Hewlett-Packard HP9830A
[Vin1]
- Manufacturer: Hewlett-Packard
- Announced: December 1972
- Available: Early 1973
- Price: $5,975
- CPU: Custom 4-boards @ 8MHz
- RAM: 4KB or 8KB
- Display: 32 character LED
- Optional: thermal printer
- Storage: Built-in cassette drive
- Ports: Printer, ROM and I/O
- OS: ‘BASIC Plus’ in ROM
While it was too expensive in its day to be considered generally obtainable by individuals, the 9830A is nonetheless a good contender for the title of ‘first personal computer’. Two other comparable machines in the marketplace in the period were the Wang 2200 (1973/76) and the IBM 5100 (1975). The 9830 predates the first generation of hobbyist/personal microcomputers (the Altair, IMSAI, SWTP-6800, etc.), and was released 5-6 years before the trinity of better-known, somewhat-equivalent, ‘easy-to-use’ personal computers of the Apple II, Commodore PET, and Radio Shack TRS-80.
The HP 9830A is a landmark vintage computer announced by Hewlett-Packard (HP) in 1972. Here are some interesting facts about this pioneering machine:
- One of the First Desktop Computers: The HP 9830A was among the earliest true desktop computers, designed to sit on a desk and be easy to use without requiring a large, complex setup.
- Programming Language: It was one of the first desktop computers to support the BASIC programming language built into its ROM, making it accessible for engineers and scientists who needed a practical, user-friendly system.
- No Microprocessor: Despite its status as a desktop computer, the HP 9830A did not use a microprocessor (which was just emerging technology in the early ’70s). Instead, it utilized discrete logic circuits for processing, as microprocessors like the Intel 4004 were just starting to be developed.
- Integrated Keyboard and Display: The HP 9830A featured an integrated keyboard and one-line LED display, a setup that was highly advanced at the time for a “desktop” machine, creating a compact, self-contained computing unit.
- Magnetic Tape Storage: For data storage, the HP 9830A used built-in magnetic tape cartridges, which allowed users to save and retrieve data—especially valuable since hard disk drives were not yet available in this class of computer.
- Applications in Science and Engineering: Due to its built-in BASIC language and ease of use, the 9830A was widely used in scientific and engineering fields for tasks like data analysis, calculations, and instrument control.
- Modular Expandability: The HP 9830A could be expanded with additional ROM modules, allowing users to load more specialized software routines for mathematics, engineering, and other scientific applications.
- Influence on Modern PCs: Though overshadowed by later microprocessor-based computers, the HP 9830A demonstrated the viability and usefulness of desktop computers in a professional setting, influencing the design of future personal computers.
The HP 9830A was a groundbreaking machine in its era, laying the groundwork for user-friendly desktop computing long before the PC revolution.
The Hewlett-Packard 9830A is a desktop-sized, all-in-one computer, released in 1972. It was usable out-of-the-box, booting to BASIC (stored in ROM) immediately at power-up. It incorporates a 16-bit processor, full alpha-numeric keyboard, 32-character alpha-numeric LED display, and digital cassette tape drive, in one package, with ROM firmware and I/O expansion capabilities. Read-write memory is up to 8KW (16KB). The tape cassettes can hold on the order of 35KW (70KB) each.
The 9830 was something of a closed system, to my knowledge there was no complete service manual or schematic released by HP in ‘normal’ publications, nor was there machine language or assembly programming documentation or support. It was intended to be used and programmed in BASIC, and that’s all.
HP did file a substantial patent (UK#1,444,141, US#4012725) however, that covers the 9830 in considerable depth, if one can stand wading through the hundreds of pages of diagrams, listings and patent-ese language with no table-of-contents or index. The UK patent is better organised than the US version, and far preferable for perusal. A version of the UK patent and a rudimentary-and-partial table of contents for the same are linked below.
Donated by: Arlen Michaels