Apple LaserWriter Select 310
| Apple LaserWriter Select 310 | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| LaserWriter Select 310 (All About Apple museum, CC BY-SA 2.5 it) | |
| Manufacturer | Apple Computer, Inc. |
| Type | Laser printer |
| Release date | February 1993 |
| Discontinued | January 1994 |
| Interface | RS-232 serial (mini-DIN-8), Centronics parallel |
| Compatible | Macintosh and PC-compatible computers (PostScript) |
| Power | 450 W maximum |
| Resolution | 300 dpi |
The Apple LaserWriter Select 310 is a 300 dpi PostScript laser printer that Apple introduced in February 1993 with the QuickDraw Apple LaserWriter Select 300. The two printers share the Fuji Xerox P0 engine, the DC controller board and the case; the 310 adds an I/O controller board with an AMD Am29205 processor, a PostScript interpreter in ROM and a Centronics parallel port.[1][2] Apple's specification sheet gives its discontinuation date as 1 January 1994, less than a year after launch, and the Apple LaserWriter Select 360 followed in October 1993.[3][1]
Specifications
[edit | edit source]| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Engine | Fuji Xerox P0 |
| Resolution | 300 dpi |
| Speed | 5 pages per minute maximum |
| Imaging language | PostScript (Level 1 in Apple's specification sheet) |
| Processor | AMD Am29205 |
| ROM | 1 MB, expandable to 2 MB |
| DRAM | 1.5 MB soldered, expandable to 2.5 MB or 5.5 MB with one 72-pin SIMM |
| Interfaces | RS-232 serial on a mini-DIN-8; Centronics parallel |
| Paper | 250-sheet universal cassette; optional legal, envelope and 500-sheet cassettes; 150-sheet face-down output |
| Life expectancy | 150,000 pages |
| Power | 100-115 V AC, 50-60 Hz, or 220-240 V AC, 50 Hz; 450 W maximum |
| Size and weight | 15 in (38 cm) wide, 18.3 in deep, 26.4 lb (12 kg) |
Apple's documents disagree on two figures. The Service Source and the 1993 service guide give the processor as an Am29205 at 16 MHz and the ROM as 1 MB expandable to 2 MB; the later specification sheet gives 7.25 MHz and 2 MB.[1][4][3] The service guide asks for 70 ns or faster SIMMs, while the specification sheet lists 100 ns as the minimum.[4][3]
The built-in fonts are 13 fonts from the Courier, Helvetica, Times and Symbol families; other PostScript fonts can be downloaded into printer memory.[1]
Connections
[edit | edit source]The rear panel has a Centronics parallel connector and a mini-DIN-8 serial port. The 310 has no LocalTalk port, unlike the Select 360.[5] Apple's pinout for the serial port is:[4]
| Pin | Signal | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | DTR | Data terminal ready (output) |
| 2 | DSR | Data set ready (input) |
| 3 | TxD− | Transmitted data − |
| 4 | SG | Signal ground |
| 5 | RxD− | Received data − |
| 6 | SG | Signal ground |
| 7, 8 | NC | Not connected |
| Shield | PG | Protective ground |
Apple's LaserWriter 8.0 driver supports every PostScript LaserWriter except the Select 310.[6]
Memory
[edit | edit source]The 310 has 1.5 MB of DRAM soldered to the I/O board. A 72-pin 1 MB SIMM brings it to 2.5 MB and a 4 MB SIMM to 5.5 MB.[4]
Power-on self test
[edit | edit source]The 310 and 360 test themselves at every switch-on. All three LEDs light, then go out in turn: Ready when the I/O controller board passes, Paper-Out when the RAM passes, and Paper-Jam when the engine passes. Control then passes to the PostScript interpreter. An LED that stays lit points at the stage that failed.[7] The diagnostic LED mode of the Select 360 does not exist on the 310.[7] Like the 300, the 310 prints no start-up test page.[4]
Maintenance and troubleshooting
[edit | edit source]The family's shared procedures are on Apple LaserWriter Select General Maintenance and Apple LaserWriter Select Troubleshooting Guide. Apple's troubleshooting chapter has a separate pair of flowcharts for the 310, and two of its tables cover I/O board errors on the 310 and 360 over a serial or a parallel connection (Tables 7 and 8).[8]
Documentation
[edit | edit source]- LaserWriter Select Service Source
- Apple Service Guide Laserwriter Printers Volume Ii Sept 1993
- Service Training Laserwriter Select Service Course Version 1.1 1996
Related pages
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Apple Computer, Inc., LaserWriter Select (Service Source), Specifications, pp. 1-10 (PDF pp. 13-22), hosted as File:Laserwriter select.pdf. Source for: Fuji Xerox P0 engine (300/310) and P1 engine (360); imaging languages; introduction dates (300 and 310 February 1993, 500-sheet feeder August 1993, 360 October 1993); CPU, DRAM, ROM and I/O of each model; 150,000-page life (300/310) and 300,000 pages (360); 5 and 10 pages per minute; built-in fonts; 100-115 V AC 50-60 Hz or 220-240 V AC 50 Hz, 450 W maximum; 15 in wide, 18.3 in deep, 26.4 lb (12 kg); 10-32.5 °C, 20-80% RH; paper weights and cassette sizes.
- ↑ LaserWriter Select Service Source, Exploded View (PDF pp. 255-256). Source for: I/O controller boards 661-2000 (300), 661-2001 (310) and 661-0820 (360); DC controller boards 661-2002 (300/310) and 661-0821 (360); power supply 661-2006 (110/115 V) and 661-2007 (220/240 V); high-voltage power supply 661-2005 (300/310) and 661-0822 (360); fuser assembly 661-2008 (110/115 V) and 661-2009 (220/240 V).
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Apple, "LaserWriter Select 310: Technical Specifications", Apple Support document 112410 (formerly SP434), retrieved 2026-10-02. Source for: AMD29205 at 7.25 MHz; PostScript Level 1; serial and Centronics parallel ports; 450 W maximum, 3.75 A, 1539 BTU/hour at 110-115 V, 50-60 Hz; 2 MB ROM; one 72-pin RAM slot, 1.5 to 5.5 MB, 100 ns minimum, 1 and 4 MB sizes; 5 pages per minute; 300 dpi; minimum life 150,000 pages; introduced 1 February 1993, discontinued 1 January 1994; 26 lb; 8 × 15 × 18.3 in.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Apple Computer, Inc., Apple Service Guide: LaserWriter Printers, Volume 2 (072-0632, September 1993), hosted as File:Apple Service Guide LaserWriter Printers Volume II Sept 1993.pdf; described at Apple Service Guide Laserwriter Printers Volume Ii Sept 1993. Source for: the Select 310 RS-232 pinout (p. 18, PDF p. 24); the I/O board figures (p. 89); print engine and I/O board specifications (pp. 90-91); status LEDs (p. 92); service test page and the absence of a start-up page (pp. 93-95); RAM upgrade with a 72-pin 1 MB or 4 MB SIMM, 70 ns or faster (p. 96).
- ↑ LaserWriter Select Service Source, Basics, Interface Connectors, pp. 3-6 (PDF pp. 5-8). Source for: the Select 300 rear panel (mini-DIN-8), the Select 310 (Centronics parallel and mini-DIN-8) and the Select 360 (optional RJ-11 fax port, Centronics parallel, mode switch, RS-232 and mini-DIN-8).
- ↑ Apple Computer, Installing and Using the LaserWriter 8.0 Driver (1993), pp. 1-4 (PDF pp. 5-8), hosted as File:LaserWriter 8.0 Driver 1993.pdf; described at Laserwriter 8.0 Driver 1993. Source for: the driver printing to any Apple PostScript LaserWriter except the LaserWriter Select 310.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 LaserWriter Select Service Source, Troubleshooting, Service Test Page, Test-Ready Configuration, 310/360 Power-On Self Test and 360 Printer Diagnostic, pp. 3-10 (PDF pp. 26-33). Source for: the service test page by jumpering P32 on the DC controller board, reached through the access hole in the I/O controller mount; delivery sensor PS201 on the I/O controller mount and the folded-paper test-ready configuration; POST on the 310 and 360 only, with the Ready, Paper-Out and Jam LEDs going out as the I/O controller board, RAM and engine pass; the 360 diagnostic LED procedure and its six error patterns.
- ↑ LaserWriter Select Service Source, Troubleshooting, Flowcharts and Tables: LaserWriter Select 310 Flowcharts 1 and 2 (PDF pp. 49-52); Table 7, Select 310 or 360 I/O Board Error, Serial Connection (PDF p. 66); Table 8, Parallel Connection (PDF p. 67).