PowerBook 520
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| PowerBook 520 (Scott Lawrence, via Wikimedia Commons) | |
| Specifications | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Apple Computer, Inc. |
| Type | Notebook computer |
| Released | 16 May 1994 |
| Discontinued | 10 June 1995 (520); 16 September 1995 (520c) |
| Intro price | US$2,270 (520); US$2,900 (520c) |
| CPU | Motorola 68LC040, 50/25 MHz, on a plug-in daughterboard |
| Memory | 4 MB on the daughterboard; one RAM card slot; 36 MB maximum |
| Storage | 1.4 MB SuperDrive; 2.5-inch SCSI hard disk |
| Display | 9.5-inch passive-matrix LCD, 640 × 480; FSTN greyscale (520) or dual-scan colour (520c) |
| Sound | — |
| ROM | 2 MB |
| Power | One 9.6 V NiMH intelligent battery as supplied, two bays; 40 W power adapter |
| Dimensions | 2.25 × 11.5 × 9.65 in (5.7 × 29.2 × 24.5 cm) |
| Weight | 6.4 lb (2.9 kg) with one battery |
| OS / Firmware | System 7.1.1 to Mac OS 8.1 |
| Successor | PowerBook 190 |
| Codename | Blackbird |
The PowerBook 520 and PowerBook 520c are the passive-matrix models of Apple's PowerBook 500 series, introduced on 16 May 1994. They are the same machine as the PowerBook 540 and 540c with a slower processor, a passive-matrix display and one battery instead of two.[1][2][3] The 68LC040 runs at 50 MHz internally on a 25 MHz bus and has no FPU.[1] The 520 was discontinued in June 1995 and the 520c in September 1995.[2][3]
Everything except the display, the processor speed and the number of batteries is shared with the 540: the case, motherboard, daughterboard design, ports, trackpad, battery system and expansion bay. That shared hardware is described on PowerBook 540, and the repair guides cover both models.
Models
[edit | edit source]| Item | PowerBook 520 | PowerBook 520c |
|---|---|---|
| Display | Backlit FSTN greyscale, 16 levels, 640 × 480[4] | Backlit dual-scan colour, 256 colours, 640 × 480[4] |
| LCD panel | Sharp LM64P858[5] | Sharp LM64C12P[6] |
| Hard disk as shipped | 160 MB[1] | 160 MB; up to 320 MB later[1][3] |
| Introductory price | US$2,270[7] | US$2,900[8] |
Apple's specification pages give the 520 as 6.3 lb and the 520c as 6.4 lb; the Service Source gives 6.4 lb (2.9 kg) with one battery for both.[2][3][4]
Display
[edit | edit source]Both displays are passive matrix, lit by a cold-cathode fluorescent lamp.[1] Apple's service charts treat two behaviours of these panels as normal: a thin white line across the middle of the screen, and a display that dims or stops working below 5 °C or above 40 °C and comes back after warming up for 30 minutes.[4] For pixels that never or always light, Apple's cure on the 520 and 520c is a new display, without the void allowance it applies to the 540.[4]
Apple sold the 540c's active-matrix display assembly as an upgrade for the 520 and 520c, fitted as a complete display assembly.[4] Owners have made the same swap from parts machines.[9]
Both Sharp panels carry surface-mount or low-profile electrolytic capacitors; MacDat recommends recapping the 520c's display along with the motherboard.[5][6] The values are on PowerBook 540 Capacitor Replacement Guide. Passive-matrix panels need FSTN polariser film with a retarder layer if their polarisers have broken down ("vinegar syndrome"); ordinary active-matrix film does not work on them.[10]
Processor upgrades
[edit | edit source]The daughterboard can be exchanged for Apple's 100 MHz PowerPC 603e card, which needs System 7.5.2 or later.[4] Low End Mac also lists NewerTech NUpowr 167 MHz and 183 MHz cards and a Sonnet 100 MHz card.[7]
Repair
[edit | edit source]The 520 and 520c share their guides with the 540:
- PowerBook 540 General Maintenance: batteries, backup battery, adapter, power manager reset, case and hinges, storage
- PowerBook 540 Troubleshooting: Apple's symptom charts and community findings
- PowerBook 540 Capacitor Replacement Guide: motherboard, inverter, 520 and 520c display and adapter capacitors
Documentation
[edit | edit source]- PowerBook 500 Series Service Source
- PowerBook 520 and 540 Developer Note
- PowerBook 520, 520c, 540 and 540c Getting Started
Related pages
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Apple Computer, Developer Note: PowerBook 520 and 520c and PowerBook 540 and 540c Computers (Developer Press, May 1994), hosted here as File:PowerBook 520 and 540 Developer Note (1994).pdf (see PowerBook 520 and 540 Developer Note). PDF page numbers: features and Table 1-1, configurations (pp. 15-19): 520 supertwist greyscale and 520c DualScan colour, 50/25 MHz, 4 MB and 160 MB, no modem, one battery.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Apple, "Macintosh PowerBook 520: Technical Specifications" (retrieved 2026-10-02). 68LC040 at 50/25 MHz, no FPU; 4-36 MB; 512K VRAM; built-in LCD at 4 bits per pixel; introduced 5/16/1994, discontinued 6/10/1995; 6.3 lb; Gestalt ID 72; original system 7.1.1; Mac OS 7.1.1 to 8.1; internal hard disk 160-240 MB.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Apple, "Macintosh PowerBook 520c: Technical Specifications" (retrieved 2026-10-02). As the 520 with the built-in LCD at 8 bits per pixel; introduced 5/16/1994, discontinued 9/16/1995; 6.4 lb; internal hard disk 160-320 MB.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Apple Computer, PowerBook 500 Series Service Source (180 pp., this copy last modified July 2002), hosted here as File:PowerBook 500 Series Service Source.pdf (see PowerBook 500 Series Service Source). PDF page numbers: Specifications pp. 19-30 (displays p. 25, weight p. 28); video symptom charts pp. 38-41; PB 540c Upgrade pp. 168-169; Processor Card Upgrade pp. 170-171.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 MacDat Capacitor Reference Library, "PowerBook 520 Capacitor Reference" (retrieved 2026-10-02). Sharp LM64P858 display with eight 3.3 µF 35 V and one 10 µF 16 V electrolytics; one 100 µF 25 V on the logic board. Secondary source.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 MacDat Capacitor Reference Library, "PowerBook 520c Capacitor Reference" (retrieved 2026-10-02). Sharp LM64C12P display with six 10 µF 50 V electrolytics; MacDat recommends recapping the display and logic board. Secondary source.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Low End Mac, "PowerBook 520" (retrieved 2026-10-02). Introduced 16 May 1994 at US$2,270, discontinued 10 June 1995; code name Blackbird; power supply M1893 or M1910; batteries; no SCSI termination power. Secondary source.
- ↑ Low End Mac, "PowerBook 520c" (retrieved 2026-10-02). Introduced 16 May 1994 at US$2,900, discontinued 16 September 1995; 8-bit dual-scan passive matrix. Secondary source.
- ↑ TinkerDifferent forum thread "PowerBook 540c screen in a 520c?", eric, This Does Not Compute and others, January 2022 to May 2024. A 540c display fitted to a 520c; Apple's 540c upgrade kit in the Service Source. Community experience.
- ↑ MacDat Knowledge Base, "LCD Vinegar Syndrome" (retrieved 2026-10-02). Passive-matrix panels need FSTN film that includes the retarder layer. Secondary source.