CHM Revolution

Date Introduced

1975

Photographer

Richards, Mark

Dimensions

7 x 17 x 17.5 in.

Manufacturer

Micro Instrumentation Telemetry Systems (MITS)

Credit Line

Gift of Craig Payne

Copyright Owner

© Mark Richards

Location

United States

Keywords

Microsoft; Gates, Bill; Allen, Paul; Homebrew

Object ID

102621982

Speed

2 MHz

Memory Type

Semiconductor

Memory Size

1K

Memory Width

8-bit

Cost

$439 (kit), $621 (assembled)

Popular Electronics featured the MITS Altair 8800 microcomputer kit in January 1975. Under $500, Altair became the leading "homebrew" computer, inspiring Bill Gates and Paul Allen to write a BASIC interpreter program. Their company, then called "Micro-Soft," survived. MITS did not.