The Apple Macintosh II was the first "modular" Macintosh model, so called because it came in a standard desktop case. All previous Macintosh computers used an all-in-one design with a built-in black-and-white monitor. The Mac II allowed Macintosh users a choice of larger displays, color displays, and even multiple displays.
Macintosh II motherboard
Introduced in 1987, the Mac II featured a Motorola 68020 processor operating at 16 MHz teamed with a Motorola 68881floating point unit. Standard memory was 1 megabyte, expandable to 68 megabytes. RAM could be maxed out to 128 MB if the ROMS were upgraded to IIx. A 40 megabyte internal hard disk was optional, as was a second internal 800 kilobyte 3.5-inch floppy disk drive. Six NuBus slots were available for expansion (at least one of which had to be used for a graphics card, as the Mac II had no onboard graphics).
The Macintosh II was followed by a series of confusingly-named modular Macs including the Macintosh IIx and Macintosh IIfx, all of which used the Motorola 68030 processor. It was possible to upgrade a Mac II to a Mac IIx or IIfx with a motherboard swap.
The Apple MacintoshII features a 16 MHz 68020 processor, 1 MB of RAM, a 40 MB or an 80 MB hard drive, and the option of an Apple MacintoshII video card in a relatively easy-to-expand desktop case.
The MacintoshII was nicknamed the "Open Mac" because of its 6 NuBus slots which made expansion and customization easy.
The MacintoshII was also the first color Macintosh and set a new standard for color in the computer industry.
The Macintosh IIsi was a compact 3-box desktop unit, effectively a cut-down Macintosh IIci in a smaller case, made cheaper by the redesign of the motherboard and the deletion of all but one of the expansion card slots (a single Processor Direct Slot).
Beginning with the MacintoshII and culminating in the Macintosh IIfx, the Mac IIseries was Apple Computer's high-end line from 1987 until the introduction of the Motorola 68040-based Macintosh Quadra computers in 1991.
Along with the Mac II, the Macintosh SE was released, the first compact Mac with an expansion slot; although another 8-MHz 68000 machine it shared some of the II's aesthetics, such as its new ergonomic mouse and keyboard.
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