The Compaq Portable was the first product in the Compaq portable series to be commercially available under the Compaq Computer Corporation brand . Compaq 's first computers were portable 'lunchbox' or 'luggable' computers and as such belong to the Compaq Portable series. Compaq Computer Corporation was an American Personal computer company founded in 1982 and is now a brand name of Hewlett-Packard. It was the first "100%" IBM PC compatible personal computer not manufactured by IBM, and also the first IBM PC compatible portable computer. IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. A personal computer ( PC) is any Computer whose original sales price size and capabilities make it useful for individuals and which is intended to be operated International Business Machines Corporation abbreviated IBM and nicknamed "Big Blue", is a multinational Computer Technology A portable computer is a Computer that is designed to be moved from one place to another Compaq derived their company name from the compact nature of the Portable.

A Compaq Portable ready for work.

Announced in November 1982 and first shipped in January 1983 at a price of US$3,590, this "luggable" suitcase-sized computer was one of the progenitors of the modern laptop; an honor it shares with the CP/M-based Osborne 1 and the MS-DOS-based (but not entirely IBM PC compatible) Hyperion. Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) Year 1983 ( MCMLXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays the 1983 Gregorian calendar) A laptop computer, also known as a notebook computer, is a small Personal computer designed for mobile use. CP/M (Control Program for Microcomputers is an Operating system originally created for Intel 8080 / 85 based Microcomputers by Gary Kildall The Osborne 1 was the first commercially successful portable Microcomputer, released in April 1981 by Osborne Computer Corporation. MS-DOS (short for M icro' s' oft D isk O perating S ystem is an Operating system commercialized by Microsoft. The Hyperion vied with the Compaq Portable to be the first portable IBM PC compatible computer Its design was influenced by that of the Xerox NoteTaker, a prototype computer developed at Xerox PARC in 1976. The Xerox NoteTaker was perhaps the first Portable computer. It was developed at Xerox PARC in Palo Alto California, in 1976. PARC (Palo Alto Research Center Inc formerly Xerox PARC, is a Research and development company in Palo Alto California that began as a division of Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.

The 28 lb (12. 5 kg) of computer that made up the Compaq Portable folded up into a luggable case the size of a portable sewing machine. A sewing machine is a textile machine used to stitch Fabric or other material together with Thread. Compaq sold 53,000 units in the first year and set revenue records for American businesses in its first three years of operation.

The Compaq Portable had basically the same hardware as an IBM PC, transplanted into a luggable case, with Compaq's custom BIOS instead of IBM's. Typical PC hardware A typical Personal computer consists of a case or chassis in a tower shape (desktop and the following parts Motherboard In Computing, the BIOS (ˈbaɪoʊs The system came with 128 kibibytes of memory (expandable to 640 KiB), two 5. A kibibyte (a contraction of ki lo bi nary byte) is a unit of Information or Computer storage, established by the International 25" floppy disk drives, a built-in 9" green screen monitor and a unique CGA-compatible video card. A floppy disk is an increasingly Obsolete data storage medium that is composed of a disk of thin flexible ("floppy" Magnetic storage medium encased The Color Graphics Adapter ( CGA) originally also called the Color/Graphics Adapter or IBM Color/Graphics Monitor Adapter The Compaq's video card extended IBM's CGA by using 9x14 pixel character cells to generate text, rather than the usual 8x8 pixel character cells. The Color Graphics Adapter ( CGA) originally also called the Color/Graphics Adapter or IBM Color/Graphics Monitor Adapter This was made possible through the use of a display that could switch between 200 or 350 scan lines. While this was more expensive than IBM's design, it allowed Compaq to combine the graphics capability of the IBM CGA with the clearer text of the IBM MDA, thereby making the Compaq Portable very well suited for the spreadsheet software driving computer sales at the time. The Monochrome Display Adapter ( MDA, also MDA card, Monochrome Display and Printer Adapter, MDPA) introduced in 1981 was IBM A spreadsheet is a Computer application that simulates a paper worksheet With a larger external monitor, this graphics hardware was also used in the original Compaq Deskpro desktop computer. The Compaq Deskpro was a line of business-oriented Personal computers manufactured by Compaq, discontinued after the merger with

Compaq's efforts were possible because IBM had used mostly "off the shelf" parts for their PC, and because Microsoft had kept the right to license MS-DOS to other computer manufacturers. Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational Computer technology Corporation, which rose to dominate the Home computer MS-DOS (short for M icro' s' oft D isk O perating S ystem is an Operating system commercialized by Microsoft. The only part which had to be copied was the BIOS, which Compaq did legally by reverse engineering it at a cost of $1 million. In Computing, the BIOS (ˈbaɪoʊs Reverse engineering (RE is the process of discovering the technological principles of a device object or system through analysis of its structure function and operation Although numerous other companies soon followed its lead into the market for PC compatibles, few matched Compaq's remarkable achievement of essentially-complete software compatibility with the IBM PC (typically reaching "95% compatibility" at best) until Phoenix Technologies and others began selling similarly reverse-engineered BIOSs on the open market. IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Phoenix Technologies Ltd ( is a creator of computer BIOS software In Computing, the BIOS (ˈbaɪoʊs

This machine was the first of a series of Compaq Portable machines including the Portable Plus, Portable 286, Portable II, Portable III, and Portable 386. Compaq 's first computers were portable 'lunchbox' or 'luggable' computers and as such belong to the Compaq Portable series.

See also

• IBM Portable

External links

• Old Computers - Compaq Portable
• CED in the History of Media Technology - Compaq Portable
• Obsolete Computer Museum - Compaq Portable
• Recycled Goods - Compaq Portable XT product description