The Compaq Portable in 1982 marked the company’s entry into the PC market. The system targeted a niche ignored by IBM: portable PCs. Compaq quickly established itself the leader in that category.
With the Deskpro desktop PC a little less than two years later, Compaq took on IBM right in its own wheelhouse. The Deskpro line was an immediate success and became a top alternative to PC in the business market. Compaq sold the Deskpro line until 2001, making it one of the longest-running computer models ever.
While some manufacturers of PC compatibles competed with IBM mainly on price, Compaq positioned the Deskpro as a premium brand and sold it on its reliability and range of options. The Deskpro initially was available in four models (Model 1 through Model 4, as shown in the photo above) with variations on monitor size, storage capacity, and memory.
Introduced: June 1984
Original Retail Price: $2,495 to $7,195
Base Configuration: 7.14MHz 8086 CPU, MS-DOS 2.11, six ISA slots, 128K RAM (640K max), 5.25-inch floppy disk drive, 12-inch monochrome Dual Mode Monitor, RF modulator, composite and RGB video ports, keyboard/keypad, parallel and serial ports
Video: 25-line x 80-column text, 720 x 350 graphics
Size/Weight: 5 x 19 x 16 inches, 40 lbs.
Important Options: Unix, 10- or 30MB hard disk drive, tape backup drive
Vintage Computer Photos 