Amaya Toman Lachitatu la Januware 1977 lidayimilira Apple - ndiye Apple Computer Co. - chochitika chachikulu. Apa ndi pomwe kampaniyo idakhala bungwe ndipo Steve Jobs ndi Steve Wozniak adalembedwa mwalamulo ngati omwe adayambitsa nawo.
Ron Wayne, yemwenso anali pa kubadwa kwa kampaniyo ndipo anali woyamba kuyikapo ndalama, adatha kusakhala nawo pa mgwirizano. Panthawiyo, anali atagulitsa kale gawo lake ku Apple chifukwa - kuchokera lero, zopusa - madola 800. Kampaniyo ili ndi ngongole yandalama komanso ukadaulo wofunikira kuti Apple alengezedwe ngati bungwe kwa Mike Markkul, yemwe adachita chidwi kwambiri m'mbiri ya Apple.
Atakhazikitsidwa mu Epulo 1976, Apple idatulutsa kompyuta yake yoyamba, Apple-1. Masiku ano, imatenga ndalama zakuthambo m'misika padziko lonse lapansi, panthawi yomwe idatulutsidwa (June 1976) idagulitsidwa pamtengo wa $666,66 ndipo sizingaganizidwe kuti ndizotsimikizika. Mayunitsi ochepa okha ndi omwe adabwera padziko lapansi ndipo, mosiyana ndi zomwe zidachitika pambuyo pake kuchokera ku Apple, sizinawonekere mopambanitsa poyerekeza ndi mpikisano. Kuphatikiza apo, gulu lamakasitomala wamba wa kampaniyo panthawiyo linali ndi mawonekedwe osiyana kwambiri ndi omwe ali nawo lero.
Steve Jobs, Mike Markulla, Steve Wozniak ndi kompyuta ya Apple-1:
Kusintha kunachitika kokha ndi kutulutsidwa kwa mtundu wa Apple II. Inali kompyuta yoyamba yopangidwa ndi kampani ya Cupertino yopangidwira makamaka msika waukulu. Idagulitsidwa ndi kiyibodi ndikudzitamandira kuti imagwirizana ndi BASIC komanso zithunzi zamitundu. Zinali zomaliza, pamodzi ndi zida zamphamvu komanso zothandiza komanso mapulogalamu, kuphatikiza masewera ndi zida zopangira, zomwe zidapangitsa Apple II kukhala yopambana kwambiri.
Apple II ikhoza kufotokozedwa ngati kompyuta yomwe inali patsogolo pa nthawi yake m'njira zambiri, molingana ndi mapangidwe ake kuchokera ku msonkhano wa Jerry Manock ndi ntchito zake. Imayendetsedwa ndi purosesa ya 1MHz MOS 6502 ndipo inali ndi kukumbukira kokulirapo kuchokera ku 4KB kupita ku 48KB, khadi lamawu, mipata isanu ndi itatu kuti ikulitse komanso kiyibodi yophatikizika. Poyamba, eni ake a Apple II amathanso kugwiritsa ntchito mawonekedwe a makaseti omvera kuyendetsa mapulogalamu ndikusunga deta, patatha chaka chimodzi kusinthaku kunabwera ngati Disk II drive kwa 5 1/4 inch floppy disks. "Ndikuganiza kuti kompyuta yanu iyenera kukhala yaying'ono, yodalirika, yosavuta kugwiritsa ntchito komanso yotsika mtengo," Steve Wozniak adanena panthawiyo poyankhulana ndi magazini ya Byte.
Apple II kompyuta:
Kupanga makompyuta abwino kwambiri, komabe, momveka bwino kunafunikira ndalama zambiri zandalama kuposa momwe Jobs ndi Wozniak akanatha kugwiritsa ntchito panthawiyo. Apa ndi pamene kupulumutsidwa kunabwera ngati Mike Markkula ndi ndalama zake zazikulu. Markkula adadziwitsidwa ku Jobs ndi wamkulu wamalonda Regis McKenna ndi venture capitalist Don Valentine. Mu 1976, Markkula adagwirizana ndi Jobs ndi Wozniak kuti apange dongosolo la bizinesi la Apple. Cholinga chawo chinali kukwaniritsa $500 miliyoni pakugulitsa pazaka khumi. Markkula adayika $92 ku Apple kuchokera m'thumba mwake ndikuthandiza kampaniyo kupeza jekeseni wina wazachuma ngati ngongole ya kotala miliyoni miliyoni kuchokera ku Bank of America. Posakhalitsa Apple itakhala bungwe, Michael Scott adakhala CEO wake woyamba - malipiro ake apachaka panthawiyo anali $26.
Pamapeto pake, ndalama zomwe tatchulazi zidalipiradi Apple. Kompyuta ya Apple II inamubweretsera ndalama zokwana madola 770 m'chaka chomwe chinatulutsidwa, madola 7,9 miliyoni chaka chotsatira, ndipo ngakhale olemekezeka 49 miliyoni chaka chatha.
