PC-9801

PC-9801 is a 16 bit desktop personal computer that NEC Corporation (NEC) announced in October, 1982 and the first model of the PC-9800 series.

This machine was developed to meet the requirements of business market expanding gradually　and to achieve higher speed processing while succeeding to both software and hardware properties of eight bit personal computers of NEC such as PC-8001 and PC-8801. Therefore PC-9801 employed an NEC 16 bit microprocessor --μPD8086 CPU (i8086 compatible) 5MHz,　and two graphic display controller LSIs --μPD7220, which was developed by NEC. It was equipped with Japanese language processing, color graphic display functions, external floppy disk drives,　and maximum 640 kilobytes main memory.

As various applications of PC-9801 were prepared in the first stage of the sales beginning by offering development machines and technological materials to independent software vendors (ISV), PC-9801 was accepted widely around the business market, and greatly contributed to the formation of a personal computer industry, involving ISV, independent peripheral hardware vendors (IHV), publishing companies, software distributors, retailers, and system vendors. PC-9801 built the base of the 98 cultures.