19 March 1985: Happy Death Day, IBM PC Jr.
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The PCjr computer with its original "chiclet" keyboard.
Image source: Hostorycannel.com / Oldskool PC
Image source: Hostorycannel.com / Oldskool PC
Via The History Channel Online and Wikipedia.
On this day in 1985, IBM pulled the plug on its floundering home computer, the PCjr. First introduced in November of 1983, the PCjr had been created to fuel IBM's efforts to rule the consumer computer market. In its initial press packet for the PCjr, IBM touted the computer as a "compact, low-cost" machine for "personal productivity applications, learning and entertainment."More here and here.
However, the hype and putatively puny price couldn't induce people to buy the machine: after sixteen months on the market, consumers had snapped up but 240,000 units. The failure of the PCjr did not bode well for IBM: during the ensuing years, the company struggled to make the transition from its traditional realm of business computing to the burgeoning home user market.
posted by Fergie @ 3/18/2006 10:01:00 PM
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