IBM PC (model 5150)
IBM
Specifications
- CPU
- Intel 8088 @ 4.77 MHz
- Memory
- 16 KB or 64 KB on the board; up to 640 KB total
- Storage
- Cassette port; one or two 5.25" 160 KB floppies
- Display
- MDA (text) or CGA (color, 320×200)
- OS
- PC DOS 1.0, CP/M-86, UCSD p-System
- Intro price
- $1,565 (basic) to over $3,000 with floppies and a monitor
The machine
Designed in a year by a small team in Boca Raton, Florida, working outside IBM's normal processes. They used off-the-shelf parts and published the technical reference, including BIOS listings. Both decisions defined the platform.
Why it matters
Established the architecture that, with extensions, still runs most of the world's desktops, laptops, and servers forty years later. Made 'PC' the generic term for personal computer.