Anyone recognise this Apple 2 clone?

[matsondawson]

http://apple2.macassist.com.au/unknownc ... clone.html

My friend has one, and this website just happens to depict one too.

[tezza]

These Apple clones appeared in abundance in the early 1980s, mainly originating from Taiwan. They had exactly the same case and a very similar motherboard.

About two years ago I was given a whole bunch of Apples and Apple II+ clones. There were two types of Apple II+ clone. One had the Apple II molded case. It's label was missing but the previous owner said he thought it was a Redstone model. It looked very similar to those in the photograph in the link you supplied. The other was labelled RX8800. This had a totally different type of case.

However the interesting thing is BOTH units had EXACTLY the same motherboard. And I mean EXACTLY the same. It was very similar if not exactly the same as those motherboards shown under the link in the first post.

I suspect in Taiwan you may have had one or two firms making these motherboards. They would then sell them to many other firms who in turn would each subcontract a case from other firms, stick their own brand on the case, add the motherboard then export it. I suspect a similar thing happened with a lot of PC clones later on in the decade.

If interested, you can read about my experience in getting these clones up and going, and see close up pictures of the boards and cases.
http://www.classic-computers.org.nz/blo ... %20IIs.htm