View source for Portable computer

{{Short description|Lightweight, compact computer with built-in peripherals}}
{{Distinguish|text=[[Laptop]], a microcomputer of a certain form factor, designed for consumer use}}
{{More citations needed|date=December 2008}}
[[Image:Compaq portable.jpg|thumb|The [[Compaq Portable]], one of the first [[IBM PC compatible]] systems]]
[[Image:Ordi-portable-milouf-img 0999.jpg|thumb|A military-type mobile computer housed in a reinforced case]]
[[Image:Chassis-plans-mp3x17-fnt-obl-open-1280.jpg|thumb|A portable computer with three LCD screens]]
[[Image:Chassis-plans-mp1x20a fnt obl-1280.jpg|thumb|A portable computer with one 20.1-inch LCD screen, EATX motherboard]]
[[Image:MIT Suitcase Computer 1975.jpg|thumb|The MIT Suitcase Computer, MIT Digital Systems Laboratory, 1975]]

A '''portable computer''' is a [[computer]] designed to be easily moved<ref>As contrasted with [[DYSEAC]] and [[MOBIDIC]], 1950s era military systems which were truck-based/"movable by truck".</ref> from one place to another, as opposed to those designed to remain stationary at a single location such as [[desktop computer|desktop]]s and [[workstation]]s.  These computers usually include a [[computer monitor|display]] and [[computer keyboard|keyboard]] that are directly connected to the [[computer case|main case]], all sharing a single [[power plug]] together, much like later desktop computers called ''[[Desktop computer#All-in-one|all-in-ones]]'' (AIO) that integrate the system's internal components into the same case as the display.<ref name=pcmag-howtoaio>{{cite web|title=How to Buy an All-in-One PC|url=https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2409554,00.asp|website=PC Magazine|date=28 January 2015 |access-date=23 July 2021}}</ref>  In modern usage, a portable computer usually refers to a very light and compact [[personal computer]] such as a [[laptop]], [[subnotebook]] or [[handheld PC]], while [[touchscreen]]-based handheld ("palmtop") devices such as [[tablet computer|tablets]], [[phablet]]s and [[smartphone]]s are called [[mobile device]]s instead.

The first commercially sold portable computer might be the {{convert|20|lb|adj=on}} [[MCM/70]], released 1974.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}} The next major portables were the {{convert|50|lb|adj=on}} [[IBM 5100]] (1975), [[Osborne Computer Corporation|Osborne]]'s {{convert|24|lb|adj=on}} [[CP/M]]-based [[Osborne 1]] (1981) and [[Compaq]]'s {{convert|28|lb|adj=on}}, advertised as 100% IBM [[PC compatible]] [[Compaq Portable]] (1983).  These '''luggable computers''' still required a continuous connection to an external power source;<ref name=Sh.Fr>{{cite web 
|url=https://computer.howstuffworks.com/first-portable-computer.htm
|title=What was the first portable computer? |author=Shanna Freeman|date=19 September 2012 }}</ref> this limitation was later overcome by the [[laptop computer]]s.<ref>"and plug in instead of relying on battery power."</ref><ref name=Sh.Fr/> Laptops were followed by lighter models such as [[netbook]]s, so that in the 2000s [[mobile device]]s and by 2007 [[smartphone]]s made the term "portable" rather meaningless. The 2010s introduced [[wearable computer]]s such as [[smartwatch]]es.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2015/1/181635-wearables/abstract|title=Wearables: Has the Age of Smartwatches Finally Arrived? {{!}} January 2015 {{!}} Communications of the ACM|last=Petre|first=Reza Rawassizadeh, Blaine A Price, Marian|website=cacm.acm.org|date=January 2015 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref>

Portable computers, more narrowly defined, are distinct from [[desktop replacement computer]]s in that they usually were constructed from full-specification desktop components, and often do not incorporate features associated with laptops or mobile devices. A portable computer in this usage, versus a laptop or other [[mobile computing]] [[mobile device|device]], have a standard [[motherboard]] or [[backplane]] providing plug-in slots for add-in cards. This allows mission specific cards such as test, A/D, or communication protocol (IEEE-488, 1553) to be installed. Portable computers also provide for more disk storage by using standard disk drives and provide for multiple drives.

==Early history==
===SCAMP===
In 1973, the [[IBM]] Los Gatos Scientific Center developed a portable computer prototype called SCAMP (Special Computer APL Machine Portable) based on the [[IBM PALM processor]] with a [[Philips]] compact cassette drive, small [[Cathode-ray tube|CRT]] and full function keyboard. SCAMP emulated an [[IBM 1130]] minicomputer in order to run APL\1130.<ref>{{cite web|last=Freeman |first=Shanna |url=http://computer.howstuffworks.com/first-portable-computer.htm |title=HowStuffWorks "What was the first portable computer?" |publisher=Computer.howstuffworks.com |date=2012-09-19 |access-date=2014-07-22}}</ref> In 1973, [[APL (programming language)|APL]] was generally available only on mainframe computers, and most desktop sized microcomputers such as the [[Wang 2200]] or [[HP 9800]] offered only [[BASIC]]. Because SCAMP was the first to emulate APL\1130 performance on a portable, single user computer, ''PC Magazine'' in 1983 designated SCAMP a "revolutionary concept" and "the world's first personal computer".<ref>''PC Magazine'', Vol. 2, No. 6, November 1983, ‘’SCAMP: The Missing Like in the PC's Past?‘’</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibits/pc/pc_2.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050126094625/http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/exhibits/pc/pc_2.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 26, 2005 |title=IBM Archives: IBM 5100 Portable Computer |date=23 January 2003 |publisher=03.ibm.com |access-date=2014-07-22}}</ref> The engineering prototype is in the [[Smithsonian Institution]].<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.si.edu/object/nmah_334628 |title= IBM SCAMP, National Museum of American History | publisher= Smithsonian Institution |date= |access-date= 2023-02-15}}</ref>

===Xerox NoteTaker===
[[Xerox NoteTaker]], developed in 1976 at [[Xerox PARC]], was a precursor to later portable computers from [[Osborne Computer Corporation]] and [[Compaq]], though it remained a prototype and did not enter production.

===IBM 5100===
[[File:IBM 5100 - MfK Bern.jpg|thumb|IBM 5100 (1975)]]
Successful demonstrations of the 1973 SCAMP prototype led to the first commercial [[IBM 5100]] portable microcomputer launched in 1975. The product incorporated an [[IBM PALM processor]], {{convert|5|in|adj=on}} CRT, full function keyboard and the ability to be programmed in both APL and BASIC for engineers, analysts, statisticians and other business problem-solvers. (IBM provided different models of the 5100 supporting only BASIC, only APL, or both selectable by a physical switch on the front panel.)<ref>This author learned this from an original IBM document for operators of the 5100 but does not recall the title of the document.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ibm5100/index.htm |title=Daves Old Computers- IBM 5100 |access-date=2019-03-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071126062928/http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ibm5100/index.htm |archive-date=2007-11-26 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[IBM]] referred to its [[IBM PALM processor|PALM]] processor as a [[microprocessor]], though they used that term to mean a processor that executes [[microcode]] to implement a higher-level [[instruction set]], rather than its conventional definition of a complete processor on a single [[silicon]] [[integrated circuit]]; the PALM processor was a large circuit board populated with over a dozen chips. In the late 1960s, such a machine would have been nearly as large as two desks and would have weighed about half a ton ({{convert|0.5|ST|disp=out}}). In comparison, the IBM 5100 weighed about 53 pounds (24&nbsp;kg and very portable for that time).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.advantech.com/products/Portable-Computers/sub_1-2JKOHS.aspx |title=Industrial Portable Computers |publisher=Advantech |access-date=2014-07-22}}</ref>

===MIT Suitcase Computer===
The MIT Suitcase Computer, constructed in 1975, was the first known microprocessor-based portable computer.  It was based on the [[Motorola 6800]].  Constructed in a Samsonite suitcase approximately {{convert|20x30x8|in}} and weighing approximately {{convert|20|lb|abbr=on}}, it had 4K of SRAM, a serial port to accept downloaded software and connect to a modem, a keyboard and a 40-column thermal printer taken from a cash register.  Built by student David Emberson in the MIT Digital Systems Laboratory as a thesis project, it never entered production.  It is currently in the collection of Dr. Hoo-Min D. Toong.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}}

===Micro Star or Small One===
An early portable computer was manufactured in 1979 by GM Research,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.computerhistory.org/collections/accession/X1243.96 |title=Computer History Museum |access-date=2008-12-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523011552/http://www.computerhistory.org/collections/accession/X1243.96 |archive-date=2013-05-23 |url-status=dead }}</ref> a small company in Santa Monica, California. The machine which was designed and [http://www.google.com.ar/patents/US4294496 patented] by James Murez. It was called the Micro Star and later the name was changed to The Small One. Although Xerox claims to have designed the first such system, the machine by Murez predated anything on the market or that had been documented in any publication at the time{{snd}} hence the patent was issued. As early as 1979, the U.S. Government was contracting to purchase these machines. Other major customers included Sandia Labs, General Dynamics, BBN (featured on the cover of their annual report in 1980 as the C.A.T. system) and several dozen private individuals and companies around the world. In 1979, [[Adam Osborne]] viewed the machine along with several hundred other visitors at the first computer show that was sponsored by the IEEE Westec in Los Angeles.  Later that year the machine was also shown at the first [[COMDEX]] show.

===Portal R2E CCMC===
[[File:Micro ordinateur portable le PORTAL de R2E CCMC.jpg|thumb|R2E CCMC [[Portal (computer)|Portal]] laptop in September 1980 at the SICOB show in PARIS]]

The portable micro computer; the "[[Portal (computer)|Portal]]" of the French company R2E [[Micral]] CCMC officially appeared in September 1980 at the Sicob show in Paris. The Portal was a portable microcomputer designed and marketed by the studies and developments department of the French firm R2E Micral in 1980 at the request of the company CCMC specializing in payroll and accounting. The Portal was based on an intel 8085 processor, 8-bit, clocked at 2&nbsp;MHz. It was equipped with a central 64&nbsp;KB RAM, a keyboard with 58 alpha numeric keys and 11 numeric keys (separate blocks), a 32-character screen, a floppy disk: capacity = 140 000 characters, of a thermal printer: speed = 28 characters / sec, an asynchronous channel, a synchronous channel, a 220&nbsp;V power supply. Designed for an operating temperature of {{convert|15-35|C}}, it weighed {{convert|12|kg}} and its dimensions were {{convert|45|x|45|x|15|cm|abbr=on}}. It provided total mobility. Its operating system was [[Prolog]].  A few hundred were sold between 1980 and 1983.

===Osborne 1===
[[File:Osborne 1 open.jpg|thumb|Osborne 1 (1981)]]
The first mass-produced microprocessor-based portable computer released in 1981 was the [[Osborne 1]], developed by Osborne, which owed much to the NoteTaker's design. The company had early success with the design and went public but later due to small screen sizes and other devices being released found trouble selling the Osborne.<ref name=oldcomputer>{{cite web|url=http://oldcomputers.net/osborne.html |title=Osborne 1|publisher=OldComputers.net|access-date=May 21, 2010}}</ref> The Osborne 1 is about the size and weight of a sewing machine, and was advertised as the only computer that would fit underneath an [[airline seat]].<ref name=atlantic>{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/doc/198207/fallows-computer/2 |title=Living With a Computer|first=James|last=Fallows |date=July 1982 |publisher=Atlantic Magazine |access-date=May 21, 2010}}</ref>

===Kaypro===
Another early portable computer released in 1982 was named the [[Kaypro II]], although it was the company's first commercially available product. Some of the press mocked its design—one magazine described [[Kaypro Corporation]] as "producing computers packaged in tin cans".<ref name="dickinson198607">{{cite news | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5hdeC0k_JHwC&pg=PA116 | title=Kaypro 2000 | work=PC | date=July 1986 | access-date=9 January 2015 | author=Dickinson, John | pages=116}}</ref>  Others raved about its value, as the company advertised the Kaypro II as "the {{US$|long=no|1595}} computer that sells for {{US$|long=no|1595}}",<ref name="kaypro198401">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-01/BYTE-1984-01#page/n395/mode/2up | title=The {{US$|long=no|1595}} Computer That Sells for {{US$|long=no|1595}}. | work=BYTE | date=January 1984 | access-date=20 January 2015 | pages=390 | type=advertisement}}</ref> some noting that the included software bundle had a retail value over {{US$|long=no|1000}} by itself, and by mid-1983 the company was selling more than 10,000 units a month, briefly making it the fifth-largest computer maker in the world. It managed to correct most of the [[Osborne 1]]'s deficiencies: the screen was larger and showed more characters at once, the floppy drives stored over twice as much data, the case was more attractive-looking, and it was also much better-built and more reliable.

===Grid Compass===
[[File:Macintosh Portable-IMG 7541.jpg|thumb|Macintosh Portable (1989)]]
[[File:GRiD Compass 1101 (1).jpg|thumb|Grid Compass (1982)]]
The [[Grid Compass]] ran its own operating system, GRiD-OS. Its specialized software and high price (US$8,000–10,000) meant that it was limited to specialized applications. The main buyer was the U.S. government. NASA used it on the Space Shuttle during the early 1980s, as it was powerful, lightweight, and compact. The military Special Forces also purchased the machine, as it could be used by paratroopers in combat.<ref>{{Cite web|last=didyouknowwebsite|date=2020-06-14|title=The Space Age Best Inventions We use Today|url=https://didyouknowwebsite.com/2020/06/14/the-space-age-best-inventions-we-use-today/|access-date=2020-06-14|website=Did You Know?|language=en-US}}</ref>

==Post-IBM PC portables==
===Compaq Portable and competitors===
Although [[Columbia Data Products]]' [[MPC 1600]], "Multi Personal Computer" came out in the summer of 1982,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=14Kfbrc6cbAC&pg=PA451 "Aboard the Columbia"], By Bill Machrone, Page 451, Jun 1983, ''PC Mag''</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/personal-computers/17/302/1188|title = Columbia personal computer - CHM Revolution}}</ref> one of the first extensively [[IBM PC compatible]] computers was the [[Compaq Portable]]. [[Eagle Computer]] then came out with their offering.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/personal-computers/17/302/1186|title = Eagle personal computer - CHM Revolution}}</ref> and [[Corona Data Systems]]'s PPC-400.,<ref>{{cite news | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gy4EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA15 | title=IBM wins disputes over PC copyrights | work=InfoWorld | date=1984-02-27 | access-date=23 July 2021 | author=Caruso, Denise | pages=15}}</ref> the "portable" [[Hyperion (computer)|Hyperion]] Computer System.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/personal-computers/17/302/1189|title = Hyperion computer system - CHM Revolution}}</ref> Both Eagle Computer and Columbia were sued by IBM for copyright infringement of its BIOS. They settled and were forced to halt production. Neither the Columbia nor the Eagle were nearly as [[IBM PC DOS]] compatible as Compaq's offerings.

===Commodore SX-64===
The first full-color portable computer was the [[Commodore SX-64]] in January 1984.

=== Atari STacy ===
Originally announced in 1987, the [[Atari STacy]] was released to the public in December 1989 and was one of the first laptop-like portables.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Atari Stacy 2 - Computer - Computing History|url=http://www.computinghistory.org.uk/det/43435/Atari-Stacy-2/|access-date=2021-04-27|website=www.computinghistory.org.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=ausretrogamer|date=2016-04-06|title=The Lovely Atari STacy {{!}} AUSRETROGAMER|url=https://ausretrogamer.com/the-lovely-atari-stacy/|access-date=2021-04-27|language=en-AU}}</ref>

===Apple Macintosh Portable===
[[Apple Inc.]] introduced and released the [[Macintosh Portable]] in 1989, though this device came with a battery, which added to its substantial weight.  The Portable has features similar to the [[Atari STacy]], include integrated trackball and clamshell case.

=== IBM PS/2 Portable ===
After release of [[IBM PC Convertible]] in 1986, IBM still produced classic portable computers, include released in 1989 [[PS/2|PS/2 P70]] (with upgrade in 1990 to [[IBM P75|P75]]), and IBM produce portables for up to release of [[PS/2 Note]] and [[PS/55note]] notebook lines.

==Modern portables==
[[Freelance journalist]] David Kline wrote in 1983 that portable computers like his Osborne 1 had "radically transformed my work [and] begun to radically reshape the entire field of journalism", but predicted that such luggables ("Like [[Neanderthal man]] ... a species without a future") would be replaced by laptops.<ref name="kline19830815">{{Cite magazine |last=Kline |first=David |date=1983-08-15 |title=Portables revolutionize free-lance journalism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ui8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA32 |access-date=2025-04-27 |magazine=InfoWorld |pages=32–35 |volume=5 |issue=33}}</ref> In today's world of laptops, smart phones, and tablets, portable computers have evolved and are now mostly used for industrial, commercial or military applications.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Liu|first=Zhiye|date=2020-08-06|title=Take This Portable Threadripper 3990X Workstation Wherever You Go|url=https://www.tomshardware.com/news/take-this-portable-threadripper-3990x-workstation-wherever-you-go|access-date=2021-11-01|website=Tom's Hardware|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Faulkner|first=Cameron|date=2021-02-08|title=This laptop has seven times the average number of screens|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/8/22273056/expanscape-aurora-7-seven-screen-laptop|access-date=2021-11-01|website=The Verge|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Shilov|first=Anton|date=2021-02-19|title=Seven-Screen Aurora A7 Laptop Costs Up to $20,000|url=https://www.tomshardware.com/news/expanscape-aurora-multi-screen-laptops-prices|access-date=2021-11-01|website=Tom's Hardware|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Scs|url=https://www.theportablepc.com/}}</ref>

==Timeline==
{{Table alignment}}
{| class="wikitable col2right col3center"
|-
! Year !! Price !! CPU !! CPU [[clock rate]] (MHz) !! Computer name !! Comment
|-
| 1954
|
| [[Vacuum tube]]: [[Diode logic|Diode gates]], [[tube amplifiers]] and [[Delay-line memory#Electric delay lines|electrical delay lines]]
| 1
| [[DYSEAC]]
| For the military, movable by truck.
|-
| 1955
| ~{{US$|86074|1955}}
| Custom vacuum tube CPU
| 0.01
| [[Monroe Calculating Machine Company#Electronic Calculators|Monrobot V]]
| For the military, movable by truck. Used for surveying and mapmaking.
|-
| 1957
| ~{{US$|70500|1957}} RECOMP II
| {{dunno|Transistorized: [[Printed circuit board|Printed circuit cards]]}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[Autonetics|RECOMP]] I CP-266
| For the military, movable by two men.
|-
| 1959
| ~{{US$|1600000|1959}} MOBIDIC A
| Custom transistor CPU ([[Inverter (logic gate)|inverter logic]])
| 1 MOBIDIC B
| [[MOBIDIC]]
| Truck-based for the military, five were built and deployed. Sylvania later offered a commercial version as the S 9400.
Clock speed is unknown but ADD instructions are documented as taking 16μs, i.e. ~62k ADD/s.
|-
| 1960
| ~{{US$|6900000|1960}} (development)<ref>{{Cite journal|last=United States.|date=1969|title=Field Artillery Digital Automatic Computer (FADAC) - TOTAL FADAC COSTS|url=https://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.35112202783561?urlappend=%3Bseq=651|journal=Hearings Cong. 91 Sess. 1 Appropriations V. 9 1969.|volume=9|pages=645|hdl=2027/mdp.35112202783561?urlappend=%3Bseq=651|via=[[HathiTrust]]}}</ref>
| Modular [[circuit boards]]
| 0.448
| [[M18 FADAC|FADAC]]
| For the military, movable by two men.
|-
| 1960
| ~{{US$|125600|1961}} || [[Standard Modular System]] with complementary [[diode-transistor logic]] || 0.087 || [[IBM 1401]] || Truck-based for military,<ref>{{cite web|title=IBM 1401: The Mainframe|date=7 March 2012 |url=https://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/mainframe/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403020416/http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/mainframe/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 3, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Columbia University Computing History: IBM 1401|url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/computinghistory/1401.html}}</ref> also touring Datamobile<ref>{{cite web|title=IBM 1401: Cultural Impacts|date=7 March 2012 |url=https://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/mainframe/impacts/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120403025431/http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/mainframe/impacts/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 3, 2012}}</ref> for demos.
|-
| 1960<ref name=":0">{{cite journal|last1=Beck|first1=Robert Mark|date=30 December 1960|title=PB-250 - A High Speed Serial General Purpose Computer Using Magnetostrictive Delay Line Storage|journal=Managing Requirements Knowledge, International Workshop on (AFIPS)|language=en|pages=284–285, 287|doi=10.1109/afips.1960.58|quote=The first production computer was delivered in October 1960.}}</ref>
| ~{{US$|40500|1961}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/BRL61-p.html#PACKARD-BELL-250|title=PACKARD BELL 250|last=Weik|first=Martin H.|date=Mar 1961|website=ed-thelen.org|series=A Third Survey of Domestic Electronic Digital Computing Systems}}</ref>
| Plug-in [[Printed circuit board|circuit modules]] 
| 2<ref>{{cite web |title=The PB-250 |url=https://www.cca.org/tech/rcs/pb250.html |website=www.cca.org}}</ref>
| [[PB 250]]
| Portable as the control computer for commercial mobile (by [[van]]) data systems. Can operate entirely from a battery.
|-
| 1961
| ~{{US$|500000|1961}}
| Custom transistor CPU
| 1
| [[BASICPAC]]
| For the military, movable by truck.
|-
| 1962
| ~{{US$|40000|1962}}
| {{dunno|[[Printed circuit board|Circuit modules]] ([[Integrated circuit#Invention|micromodular]])<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chipsetc.com/the-rca-micromodule.html|title=The RCA Micromodule|website=Vintage Computer Chip Collectibles, Memorabilia & Jewelry|language=en|access-date=2018-03-25}}</ref>}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[Librascope#Computers|L-2010]]
| For the military.
|-
| 1967
|
| {{dunno|[[Integrated circuit]]}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[Control Data Corporation|CDC]] 449
| For the military.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Across the Editor's Desk: CONTROL DATA 449 COMPUTER |journal=Computers and Automation |date=Nov 1967 |volume=16 |issue=11 |page=56 |url=https://archive.org/details/bitsavers_computersA_11670370/page/n55?q=%22CONTROL+DATA+449+COMPUTER%22}}</ref><ref>Used in translocation backpack system (prototype) and as an onboard computer for [[Grumman]] planes

* {{Cite journal |date=July–August 1970 |title=Translocation Backpack Systems |url=https://www.jhuapl.edu/techdigest/views/prior_issues.html#1970 |journal=APL Technical Digest |volume=9 |issue=6 |pages=10}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Rochester |first1=Jack |last2=Gantz |first2=John |date=1983-11-28 |title=The Industry: Book excerpt: The Naked Computer - The smallest computer |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sy8EAAAAMBAJ&q=%22cdc+449%22&pg=PA162 |journal=InfoWorld |language=en |publisher=InfoWorld Media Group, Inc. |volume=5 |issue=48 |pages=162}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://bitsavers.trailing-edge.com/pdf/cdc/Tom_Hunter_Scans/CDC449_Computer_RM_Oct67.pdf|title=Control Data 449 Computer Reference Manual|date=Oct 1967|website=bitsavers.trailing-edge.com|access-date=2018-12-22}}</ref>
|-
| 1975 
| {{US$|8975}}
| [[IBM PALM processor]]
| 1.9
| [[IBM 5100|IBM 5100 Portable Computer]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-ibm5100">{{cite web|title=IBM 5100 computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/ibm5100.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref> || 64K = {{US$|17975}}.
|-
| 1975 
| {{US$|4000}}
| [[Motorola 6800]]
| 1
| MIT Suitcase Computer
| 4K SRAM, approx. 20&nbsp;lbs.  Built by David Emberson in the MIT Digital Systems Laboratory as a thesis project. Currently in the collection of Dr. Hoo-Min D. Toong.
|-
| 1976 
| {{US$|50000}}
| [[Z80]]?
| 1
| [[Xerox NoteTaker]]
|
|-
| 1977 
| {{US$|2495}}
| [[Z80]]
| {{dunno}}
| Versatile 2<ref name="lse_ac_uk_mcron" /><ref name="old-computers_com-345">{{cite web|title=old-computers.com : The Museum|url=https://www.old-computers.com/MUSEUM/computer.asp?c=345&st=1}} 090508 old-computers.com</ref>
|
|-
| 1978 
| {{US$|10225}}
| [[IBM PALM processor]]
| 1.9
| [[IBM 5110]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-ibm5110">{{cite web|title=IBM 5110 computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/ibm5110.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|
|-
| 1979 
| {{US$|375}}
| [[6502]], 1K
| 1
| Rockwell [[AIM-65]]
| 20-character alphanumeric display.<ref name="lse_ac_uk_mcron" /><ref name="trygve_com-hardweird">{{cite web|title=Weird World of Hardware|url=http://www.trygve.com/hardweird.html}} 090508 trygve.com</ref><ref name="oldcomputers_net-AIM-65">{{cite web|title=Rockwell AIM-65 computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/AIM-65.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|-
| 1979 
| {{US$|3250}}
| Custom HP 8-bit
| 0.613
| [[HP Series 80|Hewlett-Packard Model 85]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-index">{{cite web|title=Old Computers – rare, vintage, and obsolete computers|url=http://oldcomputers.net/index.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|
|-
| 1980
|
| {{dunno}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[PA512]]
| Made in [[Serbia]].
|-
| 1980 
| {{US$|230}}
| SC43177, SC43178
| [[TRS-80 Pocket Computer PC-1|TRS-80 Pocket Computer]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-trs80pc1">{{cite web|title=Radio Shack TRS-80 Pocket Computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/trs80pc1.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|
|-
| 1980
|
| Intel 8085
| 2.0
| [[Portal (computer)|Portal R2E CCMC]]
| 
|-
| 1981 
| {{US$|1795}}
| [[Z80]]
| 4.0
| [[Osborne 1]]
|
|-
| 1981 
| {{US$|795}}
| 2× Hitachi 6301 
| 0.614
| [[Epson HX-20]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-hx-20">{{cite web|title=Epson HX-20 computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/hx-20.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|
|-
| 1981
|
| [[Z80]] compatible
| {{dunno}}
| [[Husky (computer)]]<ref name="old-computers_com-computer_asp_c_285">{{cite web|title=OLD-COMPUTERS.COM : The Museum|url=https://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=285}} 090508 old-computers.com</ref>
|
|-
| 1982
|
| [[8088]]
| 4.77
| [[Columbia Data Products]]
|
|-
| 1982
|
| [[Z80]]A 
| 4
| [[Grundy NewBrain]]
|
|-
| 1982
|
| [[Z80]]
| 2.5
| [[Kaypro]]
|
|-
| 1982 
| {{US$|8000}}<ref name="ldom_com-407">{{cite web|title=World's first laptop. Osborne 1 GRiD Compass 1101.|url=http://thelongestlistofthelongeststuffatthelongestdomainnameatlonglast.com/first407.html |url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170720042605/http://thelongestlistofthelongeststuffatthelongestdomainnameatlonglast.com/first407.html|archive-date=2017-07-20}}</ref>
| [[8086]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[Grid Compass 1100]]
| [[NASA]] laptop
|-
| 1982
|
| [[Z80]]
| 4.0
| [[Osborne Executive]]
|
|-
| 1983
|
| [[x86]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[Hyperion (computer)]]
|
|-
| 1983
|
| [[x86]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[Compaq Portable]]
|
|-
| 1983
| {{US$|1099}}
| 80C85
| 2.4
| [[TRS-80 Model 100]]
| {{nowrap|40 × 8}} [[LCD]]
|-
| 1983
|
| [[Z80]]A, 8086, 128K
| {{dunno}}
| [[Seequa Chameleon]]<ref name="lse_ac_uk_mcron">{{cite web|title=MicrocomputerChronology|url=http://is2.lse.ac.uk/History/MicrocomputerChronology.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121223100718/http://is2.lse.ac.uk/History/MicrocomputerChronology.htm|archive-date=2012-12-23}} 090508 is2.lse.ac.uk</ref>
|
|-
| 1983
|
| [[Z80]]A
| 3.4
| [[Sord IS-11]]
|
|-
| 1983
| {{US$|1595}}
| [[Z80]]A 
| 4
| [[Zorba (computer)|Zorba]]
|
|-
| 1984 
| {{US$|4225}}
| [[8088]] 
| 4.77
| [[IBM 5155]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-ibm5155">{{cite web|title=IBM 5155 portable computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/ibm5155.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|
|-
| 1984
|
| [[Z80]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[Actrix (computer)]]
|
|-
| ~1984
|
| [[8088]] 
| 4.77
| [[Bondwell|Bondwell-8]]
|
|-
| 1984
| {{US$|995}}
| [[Z80]]
| 2.45
| [[Epson PX-8 Geneva]]<ref name="oldcomputers_net-px-8">{{cite web|title=Epson PX-8 computer|url=http://oldcomputers.net/px-8.html}} 090508 oldcomputers.net</ref>
|
|-
| 1984
|
| [[6502]]
| 1.02
| [[Commodore SX-64]]
| First portable with color display
|-
| 1984
| {{US$|2895}}
| [[Harris Corporation|Harris]] 80C86
| 4
| [[Data General-One]]
| First true IBM PC-compatible (mostly) laptop; CGA (640x200) monochrome LCD
|-
| 1984
|
| [[Z80]]
| 4.0
| [[Osborne Vixen]]
|
|-
| 1984
|
| [[80C88]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[ZP-150]]
|
|-
| 1984 
| {{US$|595}}
| {{dunno}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[HP-71B]]
| Calculator programmable in [[BASIC]]
|-
| 1984 
| {{US$|2995}}
| [[Harris Corporation|Harris]] 80C86
| 5.33
| [[HP 110]]
| {{nowrap|80 × 16}} [[LCD]], 300-baud modem
|-
| 1984
| {{GBP|1965|link=yes}}
| [[8086]]
| 4.77
| [[Apricot Portable]]
| First portable computer with 25-line LCD. Included [[speech recognition]], wireless keyboard, and optional wireless mouse
|-
| 1985
| {{US$|995}}
| [[Z80]]
| 4
| [[Bondwell-2]]
|
|-
| 1985
|
| [[Harris Corporation|Harris]] 80C86 
| 5.33
| [[HP 110|HP 110 Plus]] || {{nowrap|80 × 25}} [[LCD]], 1200-baud modem
|-
| 1985
| {{US$|1899}}
| [[Toshiba T1100]] 80C88 
| 4.77
| [[Toshiba T1100]]
| {{nowrap|80 × 25}} [[LCD]]
|-
| 1986
|
| [[8088]] 
| 4.77
| [[IBM 5140]]
|
|-
| 1986
|
| [[Intel 80286]] 
| 8
| [[Compaq Portable II]]
|
|-
| 1986
|
| {{dunno}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[LPA512]]
|
|-
| 1987
|
| [[Z80]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[Cambridge Z88]]
|
|-
| 1988
|
| [[Intel 8088]]
| {{dunno}}
| [[NEC UltraLite]]
|
|-
| 1988<!-- I know someone who was sitting in the audience of the release of the Apple Portable while using a STacy with a Mac emulator; taking press notes of the Mac's release. There was either a delay of the Mac or the STacy was out in 88 instead of 89. -->
|  {{US$|2299}} <ref name="pigwa_net-px-8">{{cite web|title=Atari STacy computer|url=http://ftp.pigwa.net/stuff/mirror/www.atari-explorer.com/stacy.html}}ftp.pigwa.net</ref>
| [[Motorola 68000#Other manufacturers|68HC000]]
| 8
| [[Atari STacy]]
|
|-
| 1989<!-- exact release month known? -->
|
| [[Intel 8088]]
| 4.9152
| [[Atari Portfolio]]
|
|-
| 1989<!-- exact release month known? -->
|  {{US$|2000}}
| [[Intel 80C88]]
| 7
| [[Poqet PC]] (Classic)
|
|-
| 1989
|
| 8086
| 9.55
| [[Compaq LTE]]
|
|-
| 1989
|
| [[Motorola 68000]]
| 16
| [[Macintosh Portable]]
|
|-
| 1989
|
| [[Motorola 68000]]
| 15
| [[Outbound Laptop]]
|
|-
| 1991<!-- exact release month known? -->
|
| [[Motorola 68000]]
| 8
| [[ST BOOK]]<ref name="geocities_com-stbook">{{cite web|title=Planet Irata: Atari ST Book Notebook Computer|url=http://www.geocities.com/~irata/stbook.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026155421/http://geocities.com/~irata/stbook.html|archive-date=2009-10-26}} 090508 geocities.com</ref><ref name="xs4all_nl-atari">{{cite web|title=Chips in ATARI-Computern mit TOS-Betriebssystem|url=http://www.xs4all.nl/~ganswijk/chipdir/oth/atari.txt}} 090508 xs4all.nl</ref>
|
|-
| 1991<!-- exact release month known? -->
|
| [[NEC V20]]
| 5.37
| [[HP 95LX]]
|-
| 1991
|  {{US$|2300}}
| [[Motorola 68000]]
| 16
| {{nowrap|Apple [[PowerBook 100]]}}
|
|-
| 1992
|
| IBM [[386SLC|486SLC]]
| 25
| [[IBM ThinkPad 700]]
| The first ThinkPad
|-
| 1992
|
| [[Z80]], 64K
| {{dunno}}
| [[Amstrad NC100]]
|
|-
| 1992
| {{US$|4950}}
| CY601&nbsp;+ CY604
| 25
| [[SPARCbook|SPARCbook1]]
| Unix with [[SunOS]]
|-
| 1993<!-- exact release month known? -->
|
| Intel "Hornet" [[80186]]
| 7.91
| [[HP 100LX]]
|
|-
| 1993
|
| {{dunno}}
| {{dunno}}
| [[AlphaSmart]]
|
|-
| 1994
|
| Intel "Hornet" [[80186]]
| 7.91
| [[HP 200LX]]
|
|-
| 1995
|
| [[Intel 80486]]DX4
| 75 
| [[IBM ThinkPad Butterfly keyboard]]
| IBM ThinkPad 701c and 701Cs, famous for their "Butterfly Keyboard" which slides into place when opening the lid
|-
| 1996
|
| [[Intel Pentium]]
| 133
| [[Panasonic]] [[Toughbook#Toughbook CF-25|Toughbook CF-25]]
| The first Toughbook, an example of a ruggedized laptop
|-
| 1997
|
| [[Original Intel Pentium (P5 microarchitecture)|Intel Pentium]]
| 150
| [[IBM ThinkPad 380]]
| An average late-1990s notebook
|-
| 2001
|
| [[StrongARM#SA-1110|SA-1110]]
| 206 
| [[SIMpad]]
|
|-
| 2001
|
| [[Intel Pentium III|Intel Mobile Pentium III-M]]
| 1200
| [[Dell Precision#Latitude C Series based (2001-2002)|Dell Precision M40]]
| One of the world's first mobile workstation notebooks
|-
| 2002
|
| [[Intel Pentium 4]]
| 2400
| [[Alienware|Alienware Area 51-M]]
| An early example of a gaming laptop: high performance desktop components in a notebook
|-
| 2003
|
| Intel Pentium M
| 1700
| [[IBM ThinkPad|IBM ThinkPad R50p]]
| Notable for its ultra high resolution 2048x1536 (QXGA) display option
|}

==See also==
* [[Bobst Graphic Scrib Portable]]
* [[DYSEAC]], 1954, housed in a truck
* [[Handheld PC]] (palmtop)
* [[Laptop]]
* [[Mobile computing]]
* [[Mobile device]]
* [[Netbook]]
* [[Personal computer]]
* [[Personal digital assistant]] (PDA)
* [[Portal (computer)|Portal laptop computer]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{commons category-inline|Portable computers}}

{{Computer sizes}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Portable Computer}}
[[Category:Portable computers| ]]
[[Category:Classes of computers]]