Microcomputer

What Does Microcomputer Mean?

A microcomputer is a computer with a central processing unit (CPU) as a microprocessor. Designed for individual use, a microcomputer is smaller than a mainframe or a minicomputer.

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The term microcomputer is not as commonly used as it was during the 1970s-1980s. We now refer to microcomputers as, simply, computers, or personal computers (PC).

Techopedia Explains Microcomputer

A microcomputer’s CPU includes random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM) memory, input/output (I/O) ports, interconnecting wires and a motherboard.

In 1970, Hewlett-Packard (HP) manufactured and released a microcomputer as a calculator with varying levels of programmability, although the Datapoint 2200 by Computer Terminal Corporation (CTC) is credited as the first microcomputer. Intel’s x86 processor family can also be traced back to CTC’s release.

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Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…