MITS Altair

(image borrowed from Gadgets-R-Us)

The MITS Altair is perhaps the most famous early computer. It represents a significant milestone, but it tends to be overhyped, and its historical significance is often overplayed.

So, what was the historical role of the MITS Altair?

• The first microcomputer to run Microsoft software.
• The first computer to sell in significant volume (over 5000 in the first year).
• The computer that established the S-100 bus standard.

To put the Altair in the proper perspective, it's important to remember a few things.

• The Altair was not the first personal computer. That important event happened 25 years earlier.
• The Altair was not the first microcomputer. Several preceded it.
• The Altair did not start the computer hobbyist movement. By the late 60's, there were already organized home computer clubs and newsletters. The PDP-8, and later the Mark-8, were among the computers that catalyzed this movement.
• The Altair was produced as a direct response to the Mark-8. There was a rivalry between Radio Electronics and Popular Electronics magazines. Radio Electronics featured the Mark-8 in the July 1974 issue. Work on the Altair began soon after that issue appeared.
• Several models of the Altair were produced, but only the first model, the original 8800, had any historic impact.

A brief MITS Altair Product Timeline