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The SGI Indigo was a line of computer workstations manufactured by SGI beginning in 1990. The initial Indigo (codename Hollywood) was based on the IP12 processor board, which contained a 32-bit MIPS R3000A RISC processor soldered on the board and proprietary memory slots. The later version (codename Blackjack) was based on the IP20 processor board, which had a removeable processor module (PM1 or PM2) containing a 64-bit MIPS R4000 or R4400 processor. The IP20 used standard 72-pin DIMMs with parity.
The Indigo was designed to run SGI's version of UNIX, known as IRIX. The Indigos with R3000 processors were supported in IRIX through version 5.3 of that operating system, while Indigos equipped with a R4000 or R4400 processor can run IRIX 6.5.
The Indigo was considered one of the most capable graphics workstations of its era, and was essentially peerless in the realm of hardware-accelerated three-dimensional graphics rendering. For use as a graphics workstation, the Indigo was equipped with a two-dimensional framebuffer or, for use as a 3d-graphics workstation, with the Elan graphics subsystem including one to four GEs (Geometry Engines).
A Motorola 56000 DSP was used for Audio IO.
An SGI Indigo booting IRIX The Indigo was a visually pleasing design, based on a simple cube motif in indigo hue. Graphics and other peripheral expansion was accomplished via the GIO32 expansion bus.
The Indigo was superseded generally by the SGI Indigo2 (and in the low-cost market segment by the SGI Indy), although Indigos remain useful among some specialties even into the 2000s.
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