The Compubrick 160

Tom Owad likes repackaging Macs with toy bricks.* The Compubrick 160 takes a PowerBook 160 and converts it into a very compact desktop computer. In fact, Tom says the design was inspired by Apple's Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh (TAM).

A huge ClarisWorks fan, Tom decided that the 25 MHz 68030 and 640 x 400 screen in the PowerBook 160 would be perfectly suited to his needs - but he didn't want to use the PowerBook's keyboard and trackball. With this design, he can use a standard Macintosh keyboard and mouse.

All the ports are on top of the Compubrick 160, the floppy drive is on the right, and the battery (a built in UPS!) is on the left. It even uses a brick as its power key.

Okay, it's a bit less professional looking than the TAM, but it's one of the must fun CustoMacs I've ever run across.

This is just one of several projects on Tom's Applefritter site, most of which include several photos and project details. In addition to the Compubrick 160, he has also rebuilt a Macintosh SE using plastic bricks, creating the Compubrick SE.

For those needing a PowerPC, Tom has repackaged a Power Mac 6100 into a minitower Compubrick 6100 and a compact Compubrick NC (the NC is the only Compubrick that is not a working computer).

And then there are the extended keyboard, QuickCam, and mouse....

* Tom originally used LEGO

®

bricks, but they got upset when he used their trademarked brand name to describe his Mac rebuilds. All projects are now built using the competing MEGA BLOCKS made by Ritvik.

Recent Content on Low End Mac

• Pismo WiFi Networking Issue Finally Solved?, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.24. It turns out the problems wasn't the Pismo, the Buffalo WiFi card, or Mac OS X 10.4. It was the Wireless G router - Linksys to the rescue!
• Mini VGA to S-video Adapter a No Go for eMacs, Dan Bashur, Apple, Tech, and Gaming, 11.24. You might think that Apple's Mini VGA S-video adapter is a cheap way to connect your eMac or G4 iMac to your TV. You would be wrong.
• Google Calendar with iPhone or iTouch Is Great for Scheduling, John Hatchett, Recycled Computing, 11.24. Web-based Google Calendar allows access and updates from any computing platform, including Mac, Windows, Linux, and iPhone OS.
• Why Spaces is My Favorite Leopard (and Snow Leopard) Feature, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.23. Spaces, a feature introduced with OS X 10.5, is like having several monitors on your Mac without the cost and space of using multiple displays.

Latest Deals on Low End Mac

• More links in our archive.

<go to CustoMacs index>

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
  LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
  Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
  Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
  PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
  Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.

Channels
 Power Macs
 iMac Channel
 iBook/PowerBook
 MacInSchool
Computer Profiles
 iMac
 Power Mac
 PowerBook/iBook
 Performas
 Mac Clones
 Older Macs
 Lisa • NeXT
Editorial Archive
Mac Daniel's Advice
Email Lists
LEMchat (uses AIM)
Online Tech Journal
Consumer
 advice, reviews
 guides, deals
Software
Apple History
Best of the Web
 Best of the Mac Web surveys
Miscellaneous Links
 Used Mac Dealers
 Video Cards
 Mac OS X
 Mac Linux
 Macspeak
 RAM Upgrades
About Low End Mac
Site Contacts

Support LEM

Affiliates

The Apple Store
.mac
iTunes Store
Club Mac
MacMall
iResQ
ExperCom
eBay
Amazon.com
PayPal
PCMall
PC Zone
Crucial Memory

Our advertising is handled by BackBeat Media. For detailed price quotes and advertising information, please contactat BackBeat Media (646-546-5194). This number is for advertising only.