Triumph-Adler Advert - June 1983
From Personal Computer World
Alphatext: the WP system that stands alone
Here's an advert for another dedicated word-processing system, in an era where it seems that the idea that general-purpose computers could do word processing as well as other things seems to have passed some companies by.
It's for Triumph-Adler's Alphatext, and is based around the Adler Alphatronic P2 or P3 microcomputer. These 8/16-bit machines were hang-overs from the 1970s as they were still running CP/M.
The Alphatext system wasn't alone: the advert lists some of its competition including the "Wangwriter", for £3,995 (£15,800 in 2024), or IBM's own Displaywriter - a snip at £4,718 - £18,700 in 2024
The top-of-the-range Alphatext, based on the P3 Alphatronic with a TRD170S daisywheel printer and the software, retailed for £3,410 - that's about £13,500 in 2024.
These sorts of prices were often justified by assuming that several typing jobs could be replaced by one machine, even though typing was generally only a small part of any secretarial role.
Text and otherwise-uncredited photos © nosher.net 2024. Dollar/GBP conversions, where used, assume $1.50 to £1. "Now" prices are calculated dynamically using average RPI per year.
