The computer has become an integral part of many people's lives. But once the PC was exotic or a device completely inaccessible due to the high cost or technology secrecy. However, over time, there were initiators of turning a personal computer into a mass device. Thanks to whom did the PC become available to a wide circle of digital technology lovers, as well as ordinary citizens, those who, it would seem, could well do without it? What computers are considered the first among such solutions?
First place criteria
Active discussions about who exactly released the first mass personal computer have not subsided so far. The arguments in favor of a particular brand that produced a product that has become a widely replicated PC are very different.
Experts believe that the key criterion that can clarify the issue is historical facts that reflect the specific time it took for a product to enter the mass market. That is, which computer began to be sold earlier than others (subsequently becoming mass) - that should, according to this methodology, be considered the first. Therefore, our main task is to explore the relevant historical data.
First pc
When did the first PCs actually appear - does it matter, mass or single? Concerning this issue, discussions are almost more fierce than in the case with the definition of those computers that have acquired the unconditional status of widely replicated. Versions vary, reflecting who released the first PC, and even in which state it appeared. So, there is evidence that in 1968, an engineer from Omsk, Arseniy Anatolyevich Gorokhov, patented a computing device that is very similar in structure to modern PCs. It was attended by a monitor, a system unit with a storage medium, as well as electronic components, according to the functions corresponding to the motherboard, RAM and video card. However, the invention did not go into production.
Apple's first PC
There is a widespread view that the first full-fledged PC was invented in the United States, namely, through the efforts of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, who proposed the world an innovative PC concept under the Apple brand in 1976.
The first Apple computers required significant hardware additions - the case, monitor, keyboard. But upon the fact of equipping them, they could fully function. However, already in 1977, the Apple II computer, which was fully equipped, was launched on the market. These devices, according to many IT experts and computer history enthusiasts, are consistent with the status of mass. What does it mean? The fact that the 1976 Apple PC is probably the first mass personal computer. Behind him, the Apple II computer soon became available to a wide range of users.
First PC from IBM
But in relation to the point of view under consideration, a wide variety of counterarguments are actively cited. Among them, we can distinguish those that are aimed at challenging Apple's championship status in terms of launching a fully equipped PC on the market. So, it is known that in 1975 - before the devices from Apple appeared, IBM managed to release the 5100 computer. It was characterized by the presence of a separate monitor, data carrier, and keyboard, and therefore it was quite consistent, as computer history enthusiasts believe, with the status personal. However, its price - more than 20 thousand dollars apiece - several dozen American salaries, probably did not contribute to the fact that this was the first mass personal computer.
IBM PC and the criteria for "mass"
In 1981, IBM introduced to the market disproportionately more affordable than the 5100, but at the same time functional, and most importantly, a device with a completely competitive concept, called the IBM PC. The incredible success of the device has allowed many experts and electronics lovers to characterize it as the first mass personal computer. What kind of arguments do the proponents of such an assessment make?
First of all, they urge to rethink the criterion of "mass" as such. Of course, Apple's device has historically outperformed many competitive solutions in terms of the affordable PC concept offered to the market. However, IBM PC computers have become especially active due to openness: the user, having bought a PC, could modify it in terms of replacing a wide variety of components - processor, memory, hard drives. Any brand could be a supplier of monitors and accessories. Apple computers, in turn, were a closed platform. The situation was similar in the program aspect. The personal computer operating system in the IBM PC concept could be anything. In turn, Apple devices should generally have a proprietary OS installed.
Two concepts
Thus, the criterion of "mass" in relation to the computer market can be understood in different ways. Apple computers correspond to it due to the fact that with the release of the first devices from the PC brand, they became affordable for a wide range of users. Speaking about the US market - to any resident with an average salary. IBM offered devices to the American, and subsequently global market, which, apart from affordability, could be freely modified and copied at the concept level. The personal computer software, corresponding to the IBM architecture, could also be created by any interested and able person.
Well, we can answer the main question of the article in two ways. If we talk about when and by whom the first mass personal computer was developed in principle, then we can quite name Apple and the device of the same name in 1976 as pioneers of the market. But we know that there are other mass criteria, such as openness for any developer of hardware components or software. They, in turn, correspond to an IBM product. Thus, answering the question of when and by whom the first mass personal computer was developed, we say - the main role here was played by IBM and its 1981 IBM PC product.
Interpretation of the term "personal computer"
There are differences in the interpretation of the term “personal computer” and the difference in versions accompanying them, reflecting the primacy of a particular brand in terms of bringing PCs to the market. What are the experts' views on this?
Some experts draw attention to the fact that the term “personal computer” itself existed long before the devices in question from Apple and IBM appeared. According to some reports, it was first used in relation to the device Programma 101, released by the Italian company Olivetti - again, to the question of the country of origin of the first PCs. Based on this fact, it is incorrect to give primacy to any of the American brands - Apple or IBM.
However, there are discussions regarding the factors that influenced the massive spread of the term “personal computer”. Here the versions diverge virtually simultaneously with the distribution of opinions about the primacy of IBM and Apple in terms of launching devices available to a wide range of users on the market. Matching their legitimacy is also likely to be incorrect.
Apple's first mass computers: specs
But back to the history of the PC. We have determined that one of the interpretations of the term “mass” can be considered Apple as the supplier of the first PCs. It is interesting to study the characteristics of devices that the American corporation brought to the market in 1976 and 1977. The first Apple computer was equipped with a MOS 6502 processor, which worked at a frequency of 1 MHz. The PC was installed 4 KB of RAM, which with the help of additional boards could be increased up to 48 KB. Almost the same characteristics were with Apple II.
Apple's first PCs: features
What could be done on Apple's first PCs? It may seem that the processors of personal computers of the corresponding type have a very modest frequency indicator.
However, the marked performance was enough for developing programs, as well as for games - in fact, the first commercial applications of the corresponding type were, as some historians and experts note, written specifically for Apple II. Computer games, thanks to PCs from Apple, are now available to a wide range of users.
IBM PC Features
The features of the IBM PC, released in 1981, are as follows. The PC was equipped with an Intel 8088 processor, operating at a frequency of 4.77 MHz. Up to 640 KB of RAM could be installed on a computer. It was controlled by a PC using the IBM BASIC or PC-DOS operating system.
It can be noted that as a resource for storing data in the IBM PC, mainly floppy disks with a diameter of 5.25 inches were used. Later, PCs with cassettes appeared on sale. However, the IBM PC soon resolved the issue of connecting a hard drive to the computer by releasing a separate module for it, through which it was possible to supply power. So users were able to connect disks with a volume of about 10 MB to a PC.
The IBM PC model turned out to be so successful that the concept proposed by the American company began to be actively copied - both by amateurs and large businesses. The corresponding solutions were called "IBM PC Compatible", that is, compatible with the original platform. This term is still relevant.
Based on the IBM concept, various classes of personal computers appeared - “desktops”, all-in-ones, laptops. Many experts believe that the architecture of mobile devices as well, in general, corresponds to this platform, since they contain processors, memory, video processing and data storage modules.
Of course, both brands - Apple and IBM, have made a major contribution to the development of the computer industry. At least in the global PC market, any competing concepts have not shown themselves noticeably. The fundamental nature of both platforms predetermined their influence, which can be traced so far - in almost all major segments of computer technology and digital devices.
Continuity of concepts
Both concepts - open and closed, proposed by IBM and Apple, remain, thus, still relevant. At the same time, according to experts, just the same platform from IBM is characterized by greater mass character, due to the openness noted above.
In today's computer technology market, there is the term "IBM PC-compatible computer." This does not mean that it is necessarily released by IBM. However, it is consistent with the concept that she proposed in 1981. Of course, the most diverse types of personal computers have appeared on the market, however, from the point of view of belonging to the platform, they can be classified in one way or another as corresponding concepts from IBM PC.
Apple's platform remains closed. The situation is similar with other market segments in which the brand is present - in particular, in the field of mobile gadgets. Smartphones and tablets from Apple - iPhone, iPad are characterized by a closed platform.
It can be noted that their main competitor is an open concept based on the use of the Android operating system from Google. Thus, the confrontation between open and closed platforms actually transferred from the PC market to the mobile electronics segment as well.