1987: Portable computers

[kevm14]

Finally, I can get an hour's worth of work done at the airport.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSueEm2Cw28

[kevm14]

Cellular modem!!! So fancy.

[kevm14]

Best moment: when the comment was made that a 10-20MB hard drive would be nice, and the guy from NEC basically acted like that was a pipe dream.

Wait, 4-6 hours of battery life? I guess that's why no hard drive. But that' s OK, it comes with 512K of ROM software. Yeah, that's right. DIP PROMs. Oh god...

The NEC Multispeed could run at 4.77MHz or, if you were a speed demon, 9.54MHz. But that was for compatible software only. And used more battery.

[kevm14]

Make sure to watch for the priceless GPS demo from Trimble (for only $40k plus a laptop). The miniaturization of computers and computer components (and antennas in this case) has been incredible over just a few decades.

[kevm14]

Now the DynaMac is interesting. Looks like a third party packaged Macintosh guts into something portable. Weird.

[kevm14]

What else is hot for 1987: Laser printers. Yup.

Also noteworthy: the Ford software advertising. Later on they actually made software called Ford Simulator where you could drive different cars. Probably my earliest recollection of a car computer game.

[Bob]

Business travel must have been awesome before they invented that damn electronic mail