Donor: Anonymous
The Apple ImageWriter II was a Dot matrix printer released in September 1985. It utilized a C.Itoh mechanism and was somewhat faster than the original ImageWriter. It was particularly well known for being extremely sturdy.
With an optional networking card installed, the ImageWriter II was a low cost alternative to the vastly more expensive LaserWriter. It could also produce basic colour images using a colour ribbon, a feature that was supported by the original version of QuickDraw, which, although it was running on a monochrome hardware platform, actually supported output for eight colors. The ImageWriter II also offered an NLQ (near-letter-quality) ASCII mode, a feature for improved text quality on the Apple II platform or for improved draft printing quality on the Macintosh platform.
In 1986 it received the I.D. Design Review and Silver Industrial Design Excellence Awards, making it the first desktop printer to receive such appraisal. ImageWriter II continued in production until late 1996, making it the longest running Apple product in history. Existing models are still useful for printing banners and, like all impact printers, for multi-part forms.
Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ImageWriter_II
