Apple II's switching power supply was enabled by new transistors, not Apple's innovation
By
geerlingguy
Pulled from the oven just right. Trustworthy, fact-dense, deeply satisfying.
Summary
The article discusses a claim from the Steve Jobs biography about Rod Holt's switching power supply design for the Apple II. It contrasts Jobs' assertion that the power supply was "revolutionary" with the reality that switching power supplies were already used in oscilloscopes and other equipment. The article argues that the true revolution came from new transistors (specifically power MOSFETs) that made switching power supplies practical for consumer electronics, not from Apple's implementation.
Key quotes
· 3 pulledThat switching power supply was as revolutionary as the Apple II logic board was.
Rod doesn't get a lot of credit for this in the history books but he should.
Every computer now uses swit
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