# Data General/One > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Data_General/One > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Data_General/One.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_General%2FOne > Source revision: 1340052271 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) The **Data General/One** (**DG-1**) was a [laptop](/source/Laptop) introduced in September 1984 by [Data General](/source/Data_General).[3][4] It was the first battery-powered laptop on the market that was fully [compatible with the IBM PC](/source/IBM_PC%E2%80%93compatible), featuring a full-sized [LCD](/source/Liquid_crystal_display) capable of displaying 80×25 text or [CGA](/source/Color_Graphics_Adapter) graphics (640×200).[5][6][7] Although it sold only modestly, the DG-1 set the template for all PC-based laptops to follow.[7][8] According to *[eWeek](/source/EWeek)* in 2010, it was "the prototype for all that followed ... with its LCD, flat keyboard and clam-shell case, this form factor has remained essentially the same for [decades]".[8] ## Description The nine-pound battery-powered 1984 Data General/One ran [MS-DOS](/source/MS-DOS) and had dual 3.5" diskettes, a 79-key full-stroke keyboard, 128 KB to 512 KB of RAM, and a monochrome [LCD](/source/Liquid_crystal_display) screen capable of either the standard 80×25 characters or full [CGA](/source/Color_Graphics_Adapter) graphics (640×200). It was a laptop comparable in capabilities to desktops of the era. ## History The Data General/One offered several features in comparison with contemporary portable computers. For instance, the popular 1983 [Radio Shack](/source/Radio_Shack) [TRS-80 Model 100](/source/TRS-80_Model_100), a non-PC-compatible machine, was comparably sized. It was a small battery-operated computer resting in one's lap, but had a 40×8 character (240×64 pixel) screen, a rudimentary [ROM](/source/Read_only_memory)-based menu in lieu of a full [OS](/source/Operating_system), and no built-in [floppy](/source/Floppy_disk). IBM's 1984 [Portable PC](/source/IBM_Portable) was comparable in capability with desktops, but was not battery operable and, being much larger and heavier, was by no means a laptop. ## Drawbacks The DG-1 was only a modest success. One problem was its use of 3.5" diskettes. Popular software titles were thus not widely available (5.25" being still the standard), a serious issue since then-common diskette [copy-protection](/source/Copy-protection) schemes made it difficult for users to copy software into that format. The device achieved moderate success in a large [OEM](/source/OEM) deal with [Allen-Bradley](/source/Allen-Bradley), where it was private labelled as a T-45 "programming terminal" and was resold from 1987 to 1991 with thousands of units sold. The CPU was a [CMOS](/source/CMOS) version of the 8086, compatible with the IBM PC's [8088](/source/Intel_8088) except it ran slightly slower, at 4.0 [MHz](/source/Megahertz) instead of the standard 4.77 MHz. Unlike the Portable PC, the DG-1 laptop could not take regular [PC/XT](/source/PC/XT) expansion cards. [RS-232](/source/RS-232) [serial ports](/source/Serial_port) were built-in, but the CMOS (low battery consumption) [serial I-O](/source/UART) [chip](/source/Integrated_circuit) available at design time, a CMOS version of the [Intel 8251](/source/Intel_8251), was register incompatible with the [8250](/source/8250_UART) serial IC standard for the IBM PC. As a result, software written for the PC serial ports would not run correctly. This required the use of software written using the relatively slower and less flexible [BIOS interrupt call](/source/BIOS_interrupt_call) (014h), or software written exclusively for the DG-1. Video memory came out of that available for the operating system; for example, if 256 [KB](/source/Kilobytes) of RAM was installed, only 204 KB might be available to the operating system and user's programs. Although *[Creative Computing](/source/Creative_Computing)* termed the price of US$2895 "competitive,"[2] it was a very expensive system,[9] and usually-needed additions such as more RAM and an external 51⁄4" drive drove the price higher yet. The styling of the product, including a bag designed by [Pierre Cardin](/source/Pierre_Cardin), implied a more up-market buyer than many typical PC buyers of the time. The Data General/One also had a built-in [dumb terminal](/source/Dumb_terminal) emulator, suggesting an attempt to attract as customers those in organisations with large, expensive [minicomputers](/source/Minicomputer) or [mainframes](/source/Mainframes) that would access corporate data via terminals such as the [ADM-3A](/source/ADM-3A) or Data General's own Dasher terminals (the cost of the laptop would not have seemed excessive in such situations). The screen was this computer's other great flaw. Although unusually large, the LCD had very low contrast and narrow [viewing angle](/source/Viewing_angle). *[InfoWorld](/source/InfoWorld)* stated that "the godawful screen made a better mirror than display",[10] and *[PC Magazine](/source/PC_Magazine)* reported that "The exchange 'Why don't you turn it on?' / 'It *is* on' is no joke. It happened in our offices."[9] An updated version of the DG-1 appeared later with a much improved [electroluminescent](/source/Electroluminescence) screen. However, the light-producing display could be washed out by bright sunlight. Additionally, the new screen was power hungry and consumed so much power that the battery option was removed, thereby causing the DG-1 to lose its status as a true portable. ## References 1. ((Reuters)) (September 21, 1984). ["Data General's New Computer"](https://www.nytimes.com/1984/09/21/business/data-general-s-new-computer.html). *The New York Times*. [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20180130172656/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/09/21/business/data-general-s-new-computer.html) January 30, 2018 at the Wayback Machine. 1. [Data General/One](https://archive.org/details/creativecomputing-1985-01), *[Creative Computing](/source/Creative_Computing)* Volume 11, Number 01 (January 1985), p. 55 1. Bulkeley, William M. (September 21, 1984). ["Data General Corp. Unveils a 10-Pound Portable Computer"](https://www.proquest.com/docview/397992696). *The Wall Street Journal*. Dow Jones & Company. 1. Berger, Dan (October 29, 1984). ["Why do people really buy home computers?"](https://www.proquest.com/docview/422531096). *The San Diego Union* 1. Bulkeley, William M. (October 31, 1984). ["Data General Engineers a Big Turnaround With Strong Move into Office Automation"](https://www.proquest.com/docview/397858918). *The Wall Street Journal*. Dow Jones & Company. 1. ((Editor)) (February 5, 1985). ["Letters to PC: Which Came First?"](https://books.google.com/books?id=Q2ad61ZUYQMC&pg=PA93). *PC Magazine*. **4** (4): 93. Ziff-Davis. – via Google Books. 1. Spiegelman, Lisa L. (January 19, 1987). ["Laptops to Gain Speed, Storage, Legibility in '87"](https://books.google.com/books?id=SjwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA11). *InfoWorld*. **9** (3): 11. IDG Publications. – via Google Books. 1. Rash, Wayne (June 7, 2010). ["What's next for laptops?"](https://books.google.com/books?id=e6nsDwDIBVkC&dq=%22Data+General/One%22+%221984%22&pg=PA39). *eWeek*. Ziff-Davis. – via Google Books. 1. ["DOS to Travel"](https://books.google.com/books?id=5hdeC0k_JHwC&pg=PA108). *PC*. July 1986. p. 108. Retrieved 9 January 2015. 1. Strehlo, Kevin (1985-06-17). ["The Chiclet Rule and the Green Dragon"](https://books.google.com/books?id=sy8EAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA188). *InfoWorld*. p. 8. Retrieved 23 March 2016. ## External links - ["Data General One, 360 degree model"](http://vintage-laptops.com/?page_id=198&lang=en), "Russian Vintage Laptop Museum" (museum), 6 April 2017 --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Data General/One](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_General%2FOne) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_General%2FOne?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.