Computer / Game Console History - Compaq Portable PC

The Compaq Portable was the first true IBM PC compatible. It is rumored that the prototype was tested for ruggedness by throwing it down a hallway into a wall. If this is true, I pity the wall, and anyone on the other side... This machine weighs 28 pounds stark naked. It is also reported that the original design concept for this machine was sketched out on the back of a placemat from "The House of Pies" in Houston.

This is a very capable machine with a multi-mode monitor built in, and room for three expansion devices. This is a late production example. When I bought it there was an aftermarket 20 Mb RLL hard drive installed. I recently found a second 360k floppy drive of the original type. This has replaced the after market hard drive, bringing the machine back to an original configuration.

Compaq Portable
Manufacturer	Compaq Computer Corporation
Model	Portable
Processor / Clock	8088@Mhz.
RAM installed / max	128k / 256k
Storage	2X360k FDD
OS	MS-DOS 3.2
Bus	8 bit PC-Bus
Display	9" green screen multi-mode w/ external CGA and composite outputs
Year Introduced / Built / Purchased	84 / 86 / 97
Comments	A very solid machine