computer was introduced in September 1986, Apple announced it would be making an upgrade kit for the IIe. The upgrade cost US$500, plus the trade-in of the user's existing Apple IIe motherboard and baseplate. Users would bring their Apple IIe machines in to an authorized dealership, where the 65(C)02-based IIe motherboard and lower baseboard of the case were swapped for a 65C816-based Apple IIGS motherboard with a new baseboard. New metal sticker ID badges replaced those on the front of the Apple IIe, rebranding the machine. Retained were the upper half of the IIe case, the keyboard, speaker, and power supply. Original IIGS motherboards (those produced between 1986 and mid-1989) had electrical connections for the IIe power supply and keyboard present, although only about half of the units produced had the physical plug connectors factory-soldered in. The upgrade kit proved unpopular as it did not include a mouse; the keyboard did not mimic all the features of the Apple Desktop Bus keyboard; and some cards designed for the Apple IIGS did not fit in the Apple IIe's slanted case. In the end, most users found they were not saving much, once they had to purchase a 3.5-inch floppy drive, analog RGB monitor, and mouse. For a time, the Western Design Center (the company that designed the 16-bit 65C816 processor used in the Apple IIGS) also sold a 16-bit 65C802 processor that was a drop-in, pin-compatible replacement for the 65(C)02 that made the full 16-bit 65C816 instruction set available to the IIe, but using the same 8-bit data bus as the 65(C)02; however, this upgrade was insufficient, by itself, to allow IIGS software to run, as IIGS software additionally required the IIGS's firmware and specialized hardware. See also Apple II series Apple II peripheral cards Apple III Apple IIc Apple IIGS KansasFest – an annual convention of Apple II users List of publications and periodicals devoted to the Apple II References External links A2Central.com – Apple II news and downloads Steven Weyhrich's Apple II History PCB pictures of the Apple II Apple2clones has information on Apple II clones Apple2Online.com Free public-access library of Apple II software, games, documentation, hardware photos & more E Computer-related introductions in 1983 fr:Apple II#Apple IIe (janvier 1983)