Prediction from 1985: No One Would Want a Portable Computer


(Photo: Robert Crouse-Baker)

Why on Earth would anyone have a use for a portable computer instead of or in addition to a desktop model? In a December 8, 1985 column in the New York Times, Erik Sandberg-Diment is dismissive of arguments that laptops just haven't become small and powerful enough to be useful. They're fundamentally a bad idea:

The limitations come from what people actually do with computers, as opposed to what the marketers expect them to do. On the whole, people don't want to lug a computer with them to the beach or on a train to while away hours they would rather spend reading the sports or business section of the newspaper. Somehow, the microcomputer industry has assumed that everyone would love to have a keyboard grafted on as an extension of their fingers. It just is not so.

-via David Thompson


The first commercially successful portable would probably be the Osbourne 1 in 1983. There were arguably others before, but this was the archetype for a generation, called a "lunch box". Soon after was the Compaq luggable. While not in the business class, but the Commodore SX-64 had the distinction of being the first portable color computer.

What's the commonality? Each weighed about 25 pounds and were constrained by power requirements (no batteries).

There were a few other oddities like the TRS 80 Model 1 or the Epson HX-20 but they were even more limited.

It would take a long time before portable became really portable, so in the context of a 1985 article, I wouldn't have argued.

(as a collector, I've owned all or most of these)
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we should know by now that if something is produced that is different, expensive, and seemingly useless then apple fans will want it. or maybe other status seekers will want it like the $24,000 iwatch.
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At the time, there were:
- no Internet as we know it
- no cell phones
- severely limited hardware and software capabilities
- no foreseeable need of a portable computer
- no texting (ah... the good old days)

It's funny to see the old Star Trek characters from Next Gen to Voyager walk around and hand each other their computer pads ("Here's my report, Captain"). No concept of e-mail, wi-fi, or "cloud storage".
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