Seen on eBay, a very rare Pippin prototype sold for over €2,500. This is actually the console used for development, and it differs quite a bit from the final version.
The console is marked #002, and it’s not a common model at all. It is based on a Power Macintosh 6100 (a Mac with similar performance to the console), and the prototype retains some Mac-like features. On the front panel, in addition to the CD-ROM drive (a 4x SCSI drive, like the final console), there’s an audio output (3.5mm jack) and two ADB ports. This matches the final console, although Apple later opted for a more suitable connector instead of the ADB Mini DIN.
The console
ADB ports
#002
At the back, there’s a VGA output using a DA-15 connector (Apple’s variant at the time), a DB-25 SCSI port (missing from the final version), an S-Video output, a composite video output, two Mini DIN 9 serial ports (likely GeoPort), two RCA audio jacks, and a reset button. I’m not entirely sure about the last one. The built-in power supply is also notable, along with the lack of an audio input. The different outputs make it clear that the video card is an AV card, possibly modified in terms of outputs. This is partly evident from the S-Video port, which has extra pins for handling a camera, but also from the photos—I recently took pictures of an AV card myself, so I was able to compare.
The ports
The ports
The AV card and CD-ROM drive
An interesting detail is that this console was used in France (the seller worked at Apple as an evangelist in the 90s), so it was likely used in demos at the time. It’s probably the same unit that appeared in many magazines back then.
