SPIISD V2 has been released

Kay K.M.Mods · Jan 31, 2025

SPIISD is a high-performance smart port device compatible with the Apple II series.

Now upgraded to Version 2 (V2), SPIISD features a clear and easy-to-read OLED display, push-button operation, and an improved, user-friendly interface for an even smoother experience.

SPIISD V2 – Released Today!

Our GitHub is here
https://github.com/kerokero5150/SPIISD_V2
Product introduction and development blog is here
https://ameblo.jp/keroxiee1016/entry-12875583265.html
Product sales page
https://en.infinityproducts.co.jp/product-page/spiisd-v2-diy-kit

SPIISD is a forked project of Katherine Stark's SmartportSD. Special thanks to: Robert Justice, Andrea Ottaviani, Katherine Stark, Wing Yeung.

JDW · Feb 1, 2025

Congratulations on the V2 release, Kay! I also enjoyed reading your blog about it.

The vintage Mac community would not be as great without the fabulous products you offer us at Kero’s Mac Mods. Thank you for your continued passion, innovation and commitment to product excellence!

Kay K.M.Mods · Feb 1, 2025

Thank you @JDW . If you are interested in it, solder it and try it out.

Kay K.M.Mods · Feb 1, 2025

BigBadBench will be streamed on Saturday, February 1st at 1pm EST.
He will be assembling and testing SPIISD V2.

Kay K.M.Mods · Mar 3, 2025

Javier Rivera talks about the options and possibilities of SPIISD V2.
Check out his YouTube video!

Kay K.M.Mods · Mar 25, 2025

@Branchus 's live stream was interesting. One thing I noticed is that most of us here are Mac users, but at the same time, many of us used Apple II as kids. There is a part on Apple II where he says "What is a Smartport?" This is because we mostly used 5.25 diskettes at the time, so I don't think we had a concept of a hard disk.

Branchus · Mar 26, 2025

Kay K.M.Mods said:
@Branchus 's live stream was interesting. One thing I noticed is that most of us here are Mac users, but at the same time, many of us used Apple II as kids. There is a part on Apple II where he says "What is a Smartport?" This is because we mostly used 5.25 diskettes at the time, so I don't think we had a concept of a hard disk.

I did actually have a hard drive attached to my Apple IIe which I acquired around 1988. I think it was called a "Digicard" and it had its own card that plugged into the IIe. I don't remember much more about it, other than it was HUGE!

Kay K.M.Mods · Mar 26, 2025

I have a SASI card but it has never worked for me. It had a pretty huge drive cabled to it, maybe 20MB or so.

Branchus said:
I did actually have a hard drive attached to my Apple IIe which I acquired around 1988. I think it was called a "Digicard" and it had its own card that plugged into the IIe. I don't remember much more about it, other than it was HUGE!

Branchus · Mar 26, 2025

The funny thing is I have no recollection of the drive capacity. It was so big in relation to using 5.25" floppy disks, there was simply no conceivable way of us ever filling it. I never even paid attention to how much free space was available.

Kay K.M.Mods · Mar 26, 2025

Branchus said:
The funny thing is I have no recollection of the drive capacity. It was so big in relation to using 5.25" floppy disks, there was simply no conceivable way of us ever filling it. I never even paid attention to how much free space was available.

Oh, and one more interesting thing. SmartPort supports ProDOS format with a 32MB limit, but IIgs can also read HFS if it is not used as a startup disk, with a 2GB limit. I haven't tried that with SPIISD yet (V1 and V2), so I'll give it a try next time.

JDW · Mar 26, 2025

Branchus said:
I think it was called a "Digicard" and it had its own card that plugged into the IIe. I don't remember much more about it, other than it was HUGE!

Not a "Digicard", but this "Sider" 20MB drive (the original was only 10MB) originally sold for $999 and had it's own card too:

Apple Sider 20MB Hard Drive for Apple II+,IIe,IIgs; VINTAGE, WORKING | #1827328361

You are bidding on a First Class Peripherals 20MB Hard Drive for the Apple II+, IIe, and IIgs line of computers. Hard Drive is tested working in an Apple IIe, and is in very good condition.Please revi

www.worthpoint.com

This photo shows just how massive the thing is:

Kay K.M.Mods · Mar 26, 2025

You might see heaters like this in the windows of old hotels.

JDW said:
Not a "Digicard", but this "Sider" 20MB drive (the original was only 10MB) originally sold for $999 and had it's own card too:

Apple Sider 20MB Hard Drive for Apple II+,IIe,IIgs; VINTAGE, WORKING | #1827328361

You are bidding on a First Class Peripherals 20MB Hard Drive for the Apple II+, IIe, and IIgs line of computers. Hard Drive is tested working in an Apple IIe, and is in very good condition.Please revi

www.worthpoint.com

This photo shows just how massive the thing is:

View attachment 20889

You might see heaters like this in the windows of old hotels.

JDW · Apr 15, 2025

I now have first-hand soldering experience with the SPIISDv2 kit, and I can attest to the fact that anyone can do it. Match it up with a 3D-printed case, and it looks pretty slick...

JDW · Jun 15, 2025

This is my follow-up look at @Kay K.M.Mods 's SPIISD v2 Smartport drive, with en emphasis on device usage and with numerous comparisons to the FloppyEMU. Many thanks to @Javmast3r for having updated his already excellent plastic case STL files!

colinlm · Nov 10, 2025

Hi there,

I recently ordered an SPIISD for my //c, and a ROM4X. I'm investigating my options, I'd like to be able to have the SPIISD *and* an external 5.25 Disk //c drive connected. What are my options? Would the BMOW daisy chainer (https://shop.bigmessowires.com/products/daisy-chainer) work ?
I also have an A9M0106 "Apple 3.5 drive" (not Unidisk) and am wondering whether the connectors PCB is a simple daisy chainer, or more (https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Apple+3.5+Drive+External+Floppy+Drive+Teardown/92324). It seems naive to plug the SPIISD in place of the floppy drive itself and expect it to work, just because the connectors has the same form factor.

Thanks in advance!

JDW · Nov 10, 2025

@colinlm
I honestly do not know, so I will tag @Kay K.M.Mods in hopes he has tried the BMOW Daisy Chainer. But it seems it is no longer available for purchase, unfortunately.

Kay K.M.Mods · Saturday at 8:58 AM

JDW said:
@colinlm
I honestly do not know, so I will tag @Kay K.M.Mods in hopes he has tried the BMOW Daisy Chainer. But it seems it is no longer available for purchase, unfortunately.

Hi James,
Colinlm contacted me directly and I explained him that V2 is a closed source version, and he reassured me and agreed that I couldn't share any program details. I also shared some information about the known issues with the IIc ROM's smart port specs. These are files sent to me by my friend Wing Yeung, who helped me with the development. These files are like screenshots, but they illustrate the problem for daisy chains.
Of course, mathematically speaking, these are the denominators, so we can't mess with the denominators.
If we discover anything new based on this and resolve the issue, we will share it here. But we haven't said anything yet, thank you.

Kay K.M.Mods · Saturday at 9:05 AM

I forgot to share this awesome case that Bruce designed, and JDW is showcasing it with his YouTube Video:

[https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7164121]

colinlm · Monday at 10:20 PM

Kay K.M.Mods said:
Hi James,
Colinlm contacted me directly and I explained him that V2 is a closed source version, and he reassured me and agreed that I couldn't share any program details. I also shared some information about the known issues with the IIc ROM's smart port specs. These are files sent to me by my friend Wing Yeung, who helped me with the development. These files are like screenshots, but they illustrate the problem for daisy chains.
Of course, mathematically speaking, these are the denominators, so we can't mess with the denominators.
If we discover anything new based on this and resolve the issue, we will share it here. But we haven't said anything yet, thank you.

My question here was about chaining using BMOW's daisy chainer, but experience showed me that it doesn't work.

My question for which I contacted you was about the bug where SPIISD volumes are invisible when cold booting from S6,D1.
Wing Yeung sent LLM output screenshots in response to that, which are wrong. It claims that ProDOS does not scan Smartport devices when booting from S6,D1. This is wrong, as this works when warm-booting from S6,D1 after a reset. The only true thing in the LLM hallucinations is this part :

As for why the SPIISD is invisible when cold booting from S6,D1, it is because it is still booting while the //c' ROM resets and enumerates the Smartport bus, so it misses the messages and doesn't take IDs.
I have patched v1.17 firmware to spend less time in setup() by deferring SD card init to after having replied to the //c. The patch is at https://github.com/colinleroy/SP2SD_DIY_KIT/commit/5c1e8ac1fdc76c12f7e08c244c11f5b34ef67998 (sorry there are other cleanups with it).
With this patch applied, the Arduino Nano still boots too slow to catch the messages, because there's a delay at boot to verify whether there is a USB connection. The solution to it is to bypass the Nano's bootloader, by programming the same firmware using an ISP programmer instead of the USB connection.

JDW · Tuesday at 12:20 AM

I wish I was knowledgeable to be helpful in this thread, but I'm unfortunately not, Colin.

By the way, I wish to humbly and formally offer you the warmest of welcomes to TinkerDifferent.

Folks, Colin, is quite brilliant when it comes to the Apple II platform, as evidenced by his incredible work on some of the most beloved games out there, that ever Mac user back in the day grew enjoying...

Glider

Glider for Apple II

A Glider reimplementation for the Apple II line of computers.

www.colino.net

Shufflepuck

Shufflepuck Cafe for Apple II

Download Shufflepuck Cafe for your Apple II. This feature-complete port with a two-players mode requires an Apple ][+ with 64kB of RAM, or more recent.

www.colino.net

I never thought these games so beloved on the Mac would ever work on an Apple II, but you've showed us what's possible, and it's simply amazing!

SPIISD V2 has been released

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