Q1 Corporation

Last updated
Q1 Corporation
IndustryComputer manufacturing
Founded1971
FounderDaniel Alroy
Defunct1974
FateAcquired by Nixdorf Computer AG [1]
HeadquartersNew York, NY, USA

Q1 Corporation was an American computer company founded in 1971 by Daniel Alroy. [2] Its main focus was the manufacturing and sale of early microcomputers.

Contents

Products

Q1/T and Q1/C (First generation)

The first generation Q1/T computer was first sold in 1972. It was based on the Intel 8008 microprocessor, designed to run PL/I, and had a memory of 4 kilobytes, user-expandable up to 16K. An IBM 3740-compatible floppy disk drive was introduced as a later peripheral. [3]

The CPU, memory, a one-line 80-character display, printer, keyboard, and magnetic card reader fit into the desktop computer. [4] A separate desk-sized peripheral, introduced later, contained the floppy drives and slots for more memory, up to 64K. The desk unit could distribute access to its additional memory to up to 6 desktop computers. [3]

The first Q1/T was delivered on December 11th, 1972 to the Litcom division of Litton Industries. [5] It was later advertised in several computer and electronics magazines in early 1973, with the 4K base model costing $10,000 and higher-memory models up to $20,000. [4] [6] According to one of the articles, Q1 Corp. was "considering use of a new Intel processor chip, the 8080", which at that time was over a year away from production.

The Q1/T was also sold as the Q1/C in Asian markets, including Taiwan and Hong Kong. [3]

Q1/Lite (Second generation)

The second generation Q1/Lite was based on the Intel 8080 processor and was first sold in 1974. The desktop Q1/Lite included a printer, two floppy drives, an alphanumeric keyboard, and a multi-line flat-panel plasma display. [7]

The first pre-production Q1/Lite was delivered to the Israeli Air Force in April 1974, the same month that the Intel 8080 was introduced. In June 1974, several more Q1/Lite systems were ordered; the original pre-production Q1/Lite was returned to Q1, and the first production units were shipped in August 1974. [5]

Second generation Q1/Lites were also installed at all eleven NASA bases between 1977 and 1979. [8] [9]

Q1/Lite (Third generation)

The third generation Q1/Lite was available by 1977. It was based on the then-unreleased Intel 8800 processor, which would go on to become Intel's iAPX 432. The desktop computer unit contained the same peripherals as the previous generation in a slightly different case. Independent workstations were also available, which each had their own processor, memory, resident OS, keyboard and plasma display, but no printer or floppy drives. [10]

Q1 and Q1/Lite (Fourth generation)

The fourth generation Q1/Lite was available sometime after 1976. It was based on the Zilog Z80 processor. The printer was separated into an external enclosure, not part of either the desk unit nor the workstation. [11]

At one point, a different design for the fourth generation Q1/Lite workstation was introduced, being very similar to the design of the second generation Q1/Lite. This design had two variants, one with a printer (marketed as the Q1) and one without (marketed as the Q1/Lite). [12] These variants were also marketed as the MicroLite and MicroLite II. [13] [14] [15]

The Q1/Lite and MicroLite also supported CP/M, along with Q1's proprietary operating system. [2]

Other products

Q1 offered several peripherals for their computers, including floppy drives, hard drives, tape drives, and printers. [11]

A Q1 Basic Office Machine was also designed and prototyped, although it never reached commercial production. [16] [17]

Q1 had also introduced the Q1-68000, a Motorola 68000-based computer, by 1981. [18] [2] The Q1-68000 ran a UNIX-compatible operating system, included 256K of memory built into the computer expandable to 2.2 megabytes, a 20-megabyte hard drive, floppy and backup tape drives, a large 24-inch color CRT, and networking capabilities. The Q1-68000 cost between $13,000 and $500,000 depending on the quantity and configuration, with the optional networking capability, Qnet, costing an additional $1,000. [19] [2]

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References

  1. ↑ "Q1 Corp - Company Profile and News". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Computerworld. August 24, 1983.
  3. 1 2 3 "First Q1 system brochure" (PDF). GitHub. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  4. 1 2 Computerworld. January 31, 1973. p. 17.
  5. 1 2 Alroy, Daniel. "The Advent of the Microcomputer Era: An Eyewitness Account". Archived from the original on 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  6. ↑ Electronic Design (PDF). February 1, 1973. p. 19.
  7. ↑ "Q1 Lite 8080 Illustration" (PDF). GitHub. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  8. ↑ "NASA letter to Daniel Alroy". November 29, 1977. Archived from the original on 2005-01-07. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  9. ↑ "The work request system of a NASA Q1 package". NASA Technical Reports. November 15, 1979.
  10. ↑ "The Q1/Lite Microcomputer System" (PDF). GitHub. October 1977. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  11. 1 2 Q1 Sales Brochure (PDF). Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  12. ↑ Magazine, Smithsonian; Boorstein, Aaron. "Cleaning Crew Discovers One of the World's Oldest Surviving Desktop Computers". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  13. ↑ "Q1 MicroLite Ad" (PDF). GitHub. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  14. ↑ Computerworld. May 4, 1981. pp. 52–53.
  15. ↑ Computerworld. June 15, 1981. p. 92.
  16. ↑ "The Q1 Basic Office Machine" (PDF). GitHub. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  17. ↑ "Q1/History/README.md at main · TheByteAttic/Q1". GitHub. Retrieved 2024-10-16.
  18. ↑ Computerworld. August 17, 1981. p. 49.
  19. ↑ Computerworld. July 27, 1981. p. 57.
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