One of the world's first personal computers for sale

Kenbak-1 Digital Computer is known to many as truly one of the world's first personal computers, commercial model. Now the PC for sale. For the first time the unit price of $ 750 was presented by John Blankenbekerom in 1971, many years before the appearance of the Altair 8800 and Apple I. However, before it was released Datapoint 2200.

Creator KEnbak-1 has positioned its device as an educational system that allows student or an adult to learn to start programming. Processor was not here, and the amount of RAM - only 256 bytes. There were produced 50 of these devices, some of which are now appearing at auctions and museums "iron».



The cost of such rarity is high enough. So, one of the models was recently sold for $ 31,000 , and another shortly will be exhibited .



The speed of such a system was not very good (though for the time - everything is fine) - about 1,000 commands per second. Display at the PC was not there, for displaying information used indicators. In the 70s this machine was, if not something incredibly advanced, it is close to it. Computers used mainly by educational institutions to demonstrate vozmozhdnostey programming to students.



The author of a computer with their child i>

Kenbak-1 was sold not only in the United States, were also buyers from France, Spain, Italy, Mexico and Canada.

Now Blankenbekeru already 85 years old, but he still keeps track of technological innovations. The idea of ​​creating a small personal computer came to him after 1949, as a college student, the author of the ENIAC read in a newspaper.



Two years later, he learned the principles of computers and the rest of his work was related to computer systems. In 1958, he first described the possibility Kenbak-1, and began work on the creation of such a system.

Source: geektimes.ru/post/265468/