The Bandai marketing team decided to release the console with different names in different territories. Due to the Pippin being a Macintosh Lite, adapters were released that allowed users to attach Mac devices to the Pippin and vice versa. The device was released with a controller, power and video cables, and a small library of software to get the end user started.Īdditional accessories that could be purchased included a keyboard and drawing tablet, wireless controller and 256MB optical drive. At its core the Pippin was a cut down PowerPC Macintosh, with 5MB of RAM, a 4x CD-ROM drive and a 14.4k modem. It was quietly discontinued in 1996.Īpple’s partnership with Bandai saw the US giant developing the hardware, while their Japanese counterpart manufactured, marketed and distributed the console. The Playdia suffered from a lack of third party support, with Bandai themselves releasing 99% of its software catalogue. Bandai, themselves, had a questionable track record with video games, having released the overpriced Playdia multimedia home entertainment system two years prior. The 1996 CES saw the debut of the Apple Pippin, released in partnership with Japanese toy giant, Bandai Entertainment. Steve Jobs would be brought back into the Apple fold in 1997, but before that Apple had another major failure on its hands. Commentators would mock the company, ignoring the still successful Macintosh line, and instead focused on underperforming products, such as the Apple Newton.

A tech giant during the 70s, 80s and early 90s, Apple was becoming better known for its failures than its successes. Steve Jobs was forced to leave Apple Inc in 1985, and while the company continued to deliver quality products, including Macintosh Classic and the Powerbook, it also made some questionable choices. It’s a lesser known fact that Microsoft’s biggest home computer rival had already dipped their toes into the console market years earlier, but unfortunately the end result was a sour Apple. It became one of their biggest success stories, and the lineage of that original console is still alive today, with the XBOX One X.

Microsoft, a major player in the home computer market, unveiled the XBOX at the 2001 show to an unsuspecting public.

While each CES will see announcements from the big names in video games, there are also a few surprises that the public never sees coming.

The Big N’s Ultra 64 was unveiled at the same show, but used cartridges at a time when developers were looking to make use of the mass storage offered by CDs. The 1995 CES saw the debut of the Virtual Boy, which promptly flopped. The Saturn was released to disinterested gamers, and Nintendo were making what can only be described as ‘interesting choices’ with their releases.

Bandai playdia emulator