> The
First Off-the-Shelf Microcomputer
On Sat, 23 Jun 2007, Lance Lyon wrote:
Errrr.... wasn't that the PET 20001 ?
Possibly.
I have recently done research into this topic. In Kilobaud and Byte
magazines of 1977, there is general consensus that the Apple II, PET 2001,
and TRS 80 were the first of a new class of "appliance"
microcomputers. This is their term, not mine. There are numerous
references to the "appliance computer class" in articles and comparisons to
kit computers, etc.
The appliance computer is defined as a computer ready to be used,
out-of-the-box directly from the manufacturer. No component assembly
required. Although you could get a KIM or Altair pre-assembled (there are
ads in 1976 for this kind of service), ready to use with software, a
middle-man would do the assembly/configuration/testing, not the manufacturer.
Interestingly, this term appliance computer kind of fell off. The last
reference I could find was a short 1978 article describing the Attache as
an appliance computer. Other mag references?
Using the Kilobaud and Byte mag definitions, I think it's safe to say that
the TRS 80 was the first Z80-based appliance computer. According to these
sources the Apple II started shipping earlier in 1977 than the PET 2001 or
the TRS 80, so the Apple II the first appliance computer. The PET is the
2nd 6502 appliance computer, the first with a built-in monitor.
The TRS 80 is definitely NOT the first microcomputer.
Bill D
