Lunduke
News • Science & Tech
The Best of 1986's "The Apple Collection"
Fashion, Booze, Toys, & Vehicles. Seriously.
July 21, 2023
post photo preview

In 1986, Apple Computer Incorporated unleashed "The Apple Collection" upon the world.

It wasn't a new computer.  Nor, for the most part, anything even vaguely computer-related.

It was clothes.  And vehicles.  And fashion accessories.  Even a few bottles of wine.  Apple, essentially, launched an order-by-mail, high-fashion department store.

Seriously.

This was a very real thing that happened the year after Steve Jobs was ousted from the company he co-founded.  Needless to say, this endeavor did not prove to be a success.

Below, I have painstakingly collected my favorite items from the very first (and very last) catalogue of "The Apple Collection", released for the "1986 - 1987" shopping season.  Including the actual descriptions given to each item by Apple.

Enjoy.

The Original Apple Watch

Take a dive.  The Apple watch is water-resistant to 100 feet.  Comes with quartz movement and a 90-day warranty.  Apple Watch, $35.

Seriously.  You could have had an Apple Watch for $35.  With quarts movement and everything.

The Apple T-Shirt

Apple cotton T-shirts feature the Apple name on the front, the Apple logo on the back.  Available in kids' sizes, too.  Adult T-shirts (S-XL), $7.50.  Kids' T-shirts (4T,S-L), $6.50.

That is one seriously 1980s logo!

The Apple Mouse Cover

This fuzzy gray creature is the only way to make your Macintosh even more user friendly.  He's a mousterpiece.  Mouse Cover.  $5.95.

Yep.  A mouse cover.  For your mouse.  Get it?

He's... a "mousterpiece".  I kinda liked when Apple was cracking Dad Jokes like that.

The Apple Sailboard

The Apple Sailboard.  $1,100.

I'm not sure if I despise this... or desperately want one.

The Apple Hat

Show whose team you're on with our corduroy baseball cap with adjustable band and embroidered logo.  Corduroy Baseball Cap.  $9.50.

Ok.  I'll admit it.  There was a time when I would have worn one of these.

The Apple Paperclip

Just the thing to keep those little phone message slips in one place.  Paper Clip.  $3.

Right about now, you're thinking this is a joke, right?  But it's not.  It's real.

That is a 3 dollar paperclip.  With an Apple on it.

To be clear: This is not a box of paperclips.  This is one paper clip.

The Apple Disk Box

An elegant place to store your 3.5" disks, and it holds 100 of them.  Walnut Disk Box, $24.

One of the few things in The Apple Collection that has to do with computers!  And, you know what?  I want one!  A walnut 3.5" floppy box?  Yes, please!

The Apple... Big Sweater

After a rough day windsurfing, the Apple sweatshirt is just the thing.  Letter Sweatshirt, $15.

I.  Um.  Yup.  That's a big sweater.

The Apple Calculator

This finely designed Braun calculator has an eight-digit display and four-key memory storage.  Battery operated, it coms with a protective travel case.  Braun Calculator.  $80

Go ahead.  Check the price on this incredibly simple calculator.  That's right.  80 bucks.

But, hey!  8 digit display!

The Apple Scooter

It's not a car.  It's not a motorcycle.  It's a totally new form of personal transportation.  Honda's Helix scooter has push-button starting and automatic transmission.  And from Apple, an Apple license plate frame.  Helix Scooter, $2,598.

Wait.  Apple sold a Honda scooter?

Yes.  Yes, they did.  Though there wasn't very much "Apple-y" about it.  Just a custom license plate frame.  Still.  They sold it.  Unfortunately they never provided a picture of the license plate frame.

The Apple Wooden Puzzle

Put all the colorful pieces of this hardwood puzzle togther and what do you get?  Perfect for children of all ages.  Nontoic finish.  Apple Puzzle.  $12.

You know.  Like for little kids.  This one actually I kinda like.

The Apple Toy Truck

The truck the future comes in.  It runs just as well on big kids' desks as on little kids' floors.  Truck.  $29.

Somehow Apple managed to resist making any "Mac Truck" jokes for this one.

Though... this isn't based on a "Mack Truck" design.  It's more like an early 1980s Freightliner (similar to what the original design of Optimus Prime used in the Transformers).

Just the same... cool toy.

The Apple Wine

Ridge Zinfandel Glen Ellen 1980 and Cabernet Sauvignon 1981 from Napa County, California, both com with an Apple gold seal.  Toast a very fine year in Apple-design crystal wine glasses.  Set of Ridge Zinfandel and Cabernet, $25.  Set of two Wine Glasses, $12.

Yep.  Apple wine and wine glasses.

The Apple Polo

These heavyweight 100% brushed cotton polo shirts are perfect for the courts or the club.  Polo Shirt, $32.

I love this picture.

So much.

The Apple Money Clip

Put a piece of Tiffany in his pockeet.  Our sterling silver Tiffany money clip is ngraved with the Apple logo.  Tiffany Money Clip.  $35.

We close out this journey into The Apple Collection with the Apple Money Clip.

Because... it just feels fitting, somehow.

Now, tell the truth.  Looking back over this list of items... you kinda want a few of these, don't you?

Especially the mouse cover.

That thing was a mousterpiece.

community logo
Join the Lunduke Community
To read more articles like this, sign up and join my community today
15
What else you may like…
Videos
Podcasts
Posts
Articles
GNOME Celebrates Non-Binary People's Day

The largest Linux Desktop Environment says "Non-binary people are valid and welcome", but Conservatives are banned.

Get on The Wall with a Massively Discounted Lifetime Sub:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:25:04
German Tech Journalist Attacks Lunduke... and it's Awesome

"He refers to a trans woman as a man in a dress," says Tech Journalist in hit piece that makes Lunduke sound amazing.

NeXTStep, Emacs, Desqview/X, & TRS-80 Model 100 Walls:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/8056105/trs-80-model-100-joins-the-lunduke-journal-lifetime-wall-party

Get on The Wall with a Massively Discounted Lifetime Sub:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:13:35
40% of LinkedIn (& Sneako) Publishing AI Generated Posts

Dead. Internet. Theory. It's real.

NeXTStep, Emacs, Desqview/X, & TRS-80 Model 100 Walls:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/8056105/trs-80-model-100-joins-the-lunduke-journal-lifetime-wall-party

Get on The Wall with a Massively Discounted Lifetime Sub:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:15:02
November 22, 2023
The futility of Ad-Blockers

Ads are filling the entirety of the Web -- websites, podcasts, YouTube videos, etc. -- at an increasing rate. Prices for those ad placements are plummeting. Consumers are desperate to use ad-blockers to make the web palatable. Google (and others) are desperate to break and block ad-blockers. All of which results in... more ads and lower pay for creators.

It's a fascinatingly annoying cycle. And there's only one viable way out of it.

Looking for the Podcast RSS feed or other links? Check here:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm

Give the gift of The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4898317/give-the-gift-of-the-lunduke-journal

The futility of Ad-Blockers
November 21, 2023
openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"

Those in power with openSUSE make it clear they will not allow me anywhere near anything related to the openSUSE project. Ever. For any reason.

Well, that settles that, then! Guess I won't be contributing to openSUSE! 🤣

Looking for the Podcast RSS feed or other links?
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm

Give the gift of The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4898317/give-the-gift-of-the-lunduke-journal

openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"
September 13, 2023
"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044

This episode is free for all to enjoy and share.

Be sure to subscribe here at Lunduke.Locals.com to get all shows & articles (including interviews with other amazing nerds).

"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044
2 hours ago

Suno source code has revealed that it trained on copyrighted music taken from numerous sources.

These sources include YouTube, Deezer, and Genius. Suno used proxies to collect some music while also buying scraped music from third parties.

Good luck in court, Suno. Nobody will miss you.

https://www.404media.co/hack-reveals-suno-ai-music-generator-scraped-youtube-deezer-and-genius/

6 hours ago

The sneak installs only happen on Windows.
But, you may want to avoid LG anyway.

DO NOT BUY: LG’s Spyware TVs, Monitors, and Wiretapping Concerns - YouTube

19 hours ago

How does C++ work???

post photo preview
TRS-80 Model 100 joins The Lunduke Journal Lifetime Wall party!

Buckle up, Buttercup. Because The Lunduke Journal is about to blow your mind.

  1. The “BeOS” Wall Lifetime Subscriber Wall is now full (see all of them on Lunduke.com)!

  2. We’ve added a new “TRS-80 Model 100” Wall (because we can)! That’s the 19th Lifetime Subscriber Wall! 19!

  3. The discounted Lifetime Lunduke Journal Subscriptions are still available through to the end of this month (July).

Which means there are, as of this exact moment, 4 Walls with space available (see Lunduke.com for the full list of Walls). But these fill up wicked fast.

  1. Emacs (only a few spots left)

  2. Desqview/X (a little less than 2/3rd’s full)

  3. NeXTStep (still plenty of space)

  4. TRS-80 Model 100 (just launched)

 

Nice, right?

Worth noting: The “TRS-80 Model 100” has very limited screen resolution (240 x 64), which means only a small number of names can fit on that wall. If you want on it, I’d let me know right away.

Grab a discounted Lifetime Subscription (if you don’t already have one), then let me know (email “bryan at lunduke.com”) which Wall you’d like to see your name on.

Huge high five to everyone who has already added their name to a Wall. At the current rate, we’ll have over 20 retro computer themed walls, filled with all of your names, by the end of the month.

And, doggone it, that’s amazing.

-Lunduke

Read full Article
Vim beats Emacs!

Well, we’ve done it.

We’ve answered the eternal question: “Which Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Wall would fill with names quicker? Emacs or Vim?”

The answer, it turns out, is “Vim”. And it takes just 8 days.

 

A hearty “Thank You” to everyone who supports The Lunduke Journal by getting Lifetime Subscriptions (massively discounted throughout July) and getting on these walls! You make all of this possible!

Now. How long will it take for Emacs to fill up (matching the same number of names as the Vim Wall)?

Well, right now the Emacs Wall is a hair over 2/3rds of the way full. So we’ll find out!

Welcome NeXTStep Wall!

With the closing of the “Vim” Wall (and the BeOS Wall only having the space for 1 name left), now seemed like a good time to add a new retro computer wall: The NeXTStep 1.0 Wall.

Right now, there are 4 Walls available to add your name to (*cough* massive discount *cough*).

  • NeXTStep (just opened)

  • Emacs (about 2/3rds full)

  • BeOS R5 (1 spot left)

  • Desqview/X (1/2 full)

 

Once again, huge thanks to everyone who supports The Lunduke Journal!

-Lunduke

Read full Article
Lunduke's Week in Tech : June 28 - July 4, 2026

Lunduke’s Thoughts of The Week

Yesterday was the 4th of July.

As such, time that I normally would have spent writing up some thoughts on the Tech News of the Week (tm) was, instead, spent eating hamburgers, watching fireworks, and generally goofing off with my kids.

So allow me to briefly summarize my thoughts using as little effort as possible:

Rust is weird, Sony sucks, and America is awesome.

… Yup. That just about covers it.

I hope all of my fellow Americans had a truly splendid Independence Day.

Biggest Tech Stories - June 28 - July 4, 2026

Here are the major stories from the last week, with direct links to X and Substack.

See Lunduke.com for all other platforms (Rumble, RSS Audio Podcast, etc.).

  • Git Takes Another Step Towards Making Rust Mandatory (X, Substack)

  • 74 Million User Accounts Exposed in Breaches During June (X, Substack)

  • BCacheFS Adding Rust Dependency Even Though “Rust doesn’t have a stable ABI” (X, Substack)

  • Git Without Rust From Dev of XLibre (X, Substack)

  • Sony Says No More Physical PlayStation Games (X, Substack)

  • Ubuntu Sponsors Rust Clone Foundation (X, Substack)

  • Like Computers? Thank America. (X, Substack)

Huge thank you to all of The Lunduke Journal’s subscribers. You make all of this possible.

-Lunduke

 
Read full Article
See More
Available on mobile and TV devices
google store google store app store app store
google store google store app tv store app tv store amazon store amazon store roku store roku store
Powered by Locals