apr 1, 1976 - Apple 1
Description:
first single circuit board PC complete with video interface and 8K of RAM and a keyboard. The system incorporated some cost saving components including the MOS Technologies 6502 processor and dynamic RAM. Various potential investors were shown the prototype Apple I which was mounted on a piece of plywood with all components visible. A computer hobbyist group; the Homebrew Computer Club based in Palo Alto, California previewed one of the prototypes and its innovative features. A local computer dealer owner who agreed to sell the units required that they were assembled which was not the norm for customers buying computers at the time. Once displayed in his store, almost all the Apple I systems sold in the next ten months.
https://www.thocp.net/companies/microsoft/microsoft_company.htm
MOS 6502 microprocessor was derivated of the Motorola MC6800 and cost $25
256 bytes of ROM (program here was a small monitor routine that enabled the i/o display of memory and capability to start a program at a particular address
8K bytes of RAM (BASIC interpreter required 4K of memory, leaving 4K for user programs)
partial power supply(?)
no graphics, no color, no speaker
used dynamic rather than static memory chips
customers used their own TV sets as monitors by using a radio frequency modulator and stored programs on audio cassettes initially
Added to timeline:
History of Computing
Date:
