Re: Apple II Csa2 FAQs 12/25/1998 MainHall-1 (Start Here)

[supertimer@aol.com (Supertimer)]

Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net> wrote:

>012- What is an Apple II: The Laser 128EX
>
>     While not made by Apple, this clone is a cross between the //c and
>an Enhanced //e.  It is as luggable as a //c and has built-in 'cards',
>and an accelerator. It also has a slot to expand. If you want to add a
>card, you may have to disable the internal UDC (for 3.5" drives) or the
>internal 1MB memory expansion.  Runs almost everything that the //c and
>Enhanced //e runs. --Dan DeMaggio

Just one minor nitpick: the Laser 128EX and EX/2 don't have
caching accelerators like the IIc+ does.  The entire
motherboard runs at 3.6Mhz.  It no more has an accelerator
than a IIGS has an accelerator.

These were really well engineered units and superior to
the "slap in a ZipChip" design of the IIc+.

The Laser 128EX/2 model should probably also be
mentioned.  Unlike the EX model, which could only
support one additional disk drive (like the IIc), the
EX/2 supported as many daisychained drives as a IIGS.
The EX/2 also had a built in BRAM control panel,
like the IIGS for saving settings (the EX, in contrast,
worked like a IIc and forgot any setting when the
power was turned off).  The EX/2 also had a built in
3.5" disk drive, like the IIc+ and it had something no
other stock Apple II or clone computer had, a
MIDI port.

I would rank the Laser 128EX/2 as the finest 8-bit
Apple II or II clone ever built, with the IIc+ coming
in second.

The Laser 128EX/2 could also use both IIGS style
(Amiga and Atari ST too) analog RGB monitors as
well as IBM style digital CGA monitors via the built
in video port.  It was a true RGB video port, not like the
IIc or IIc+ ones.  However, the video port could
also support an LCD display, like the IIc and IIc+.