NeXTstation Color

The NeXTstation Color adapted the slab workstation for a 1120 x 832 colour display. Its 12-bit framebuffer could show 4,096 colours, while the 25 MHz Motorola 68040 and NeXTSTEP software remained closely related to the monochrome NeXTstation.

Colour systems used a separate NeXT Sound Box for audio, keyboard and mouse connections. This allowed a standard colour-display connection while retaining NeXT’s integrated DSP and high-quality sound facilities.

Notable Features

• A 1.5MB video memory system displayed 4,096 colours at 1120 x 832 pixels.
• The external Sound Box provided audio and connected the NeXT keyboard and mouse.
• Colour-capable Display PostScript supported publishing, visualisation and application development.

Historical Significance

• It brought integrated colour to NeXT’s workstation line without requiring the much more expensive NeXTdimension expansion board.
• The system helped broaden NeXTSTEP’s appeal in design, publishing and graphical software development.

Collector’s Notes

• A complete colour system needs the correct display cable and NeXT Sound Box.
• Colour NeXTstations use 72-pin memory modules and should not be confused with the monochrome board’s memory configuration.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	NeXTstation Color
Manufacturer	Next
Launched	Saturday, September 1, 1990
Discontinued	1993
Country	United States
CPU	Motorola 68040 at 25 MHz
Units Sold
Power	Internal universal power supply; configuration varies by model and market
Networking	Built-in Ethernet
Additional CPU	Motorola DSP56001 at 25 MHz
Operating System	NeXTSTEP 2.x and later
Expansion / I/O	External SCSI-2, serial, DSP, thin and twisted-pair Ethernet, DB13W3 display and Sound Box
Keyboard	NeXT keyboard with two-button optical mouse
Storage	Internal SCSI hard disk and 2.88MB floppy drive
Sound	16-bit stereo audio with built-in digital signal processing
Colours	4,096 colours
Graphics	12-bit colour framebuffer with 1.5MB VRAM
Display	NeXT MegaPixel Color Display; 1120 x 832 pixels
ROM	128KB boot ROM
RAM	12MB standard; expandable to 32MB
CPU Speed	25 MHz