Osborne 1

The Osborne 1, released in April 1981, was the first portable computer. It weighed 23.5 pounds (12 kg), cost US $1795 --just over half the cost of a computer from other manufacturers with comparable features-- and ran the popular /A> 2.2 operating system. Besides being the first portable computer, it was also the first computer that included software; the bundled WordStar, SuperCalc, dBase II, CBASIC and MBASIC had a retail value of more than $2,000. Its hardware features included dual 5.25-inch floppy disk drives, a 4 MHz Zilog Z80 CPU, a fold down keyboard, and a five-inch, 52x24 character monitor.

At its peak, Osborne Computer Corporation shipped 10,000 Osborne 1s per month. The computer was widely imitated as other computer companies started bundling software, lowering prices, and offering portable computers. Osborne's most famous imitator was Compaq, who offered a portable computer compatible with the IBM PC.