Zenith Data Systems Advert - December 1991
From Personal Computer World
When you were a child, you didn't like it when the light went out. Are you any different now?
Zenith's notebook micro was based on Intel's CPU of the same name - the 80386SL, which was a variant of the '386 which had been designed specifically for use in portable computers.
It was reasonably well specified and came with a 60MB hard drive and a VGA display, albeit a monochrome one. It could also, at least according to the advert, run for a full working day on a single charge, which is something modern laptops still sometimes struggle to achieve.
Zenith had a complex corporate life, starting out as a division of the Zenith Radio Company, following the latter's acquisition of the Heath Company in 1979. Heath was already famous for its Heathkit brand of electronics and small lab-style microcomputers, and initially all Zenith did was to pre-assemble and re-badge Heath computers and sell them under their own brand.
The company became successfull in the mid 1980s after it won a number of large contracts with the US Department of Defence. At around this time it launched it SupersPort laptop range which for a while captured around a quarter of the market for portables in the US.
It lost its way in the following years and was sold off to Groupe Bull - a sort-of French ICL - at the end of 1989, which can be seen in the advert above. From there, it ended up with Packard Bell, which itself was part-owned by NEC and Groupe Bull, before NEC absorbed in completely in 1996. It exited the computer market completely in 1999.
Date created: 26 September 2024
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.