October 7, 1954: Goodbye Vacuum Tube, Hello Transistor

Play
IBM 608 calculator
IBM 608 calculator

1954 – IBM created the first calculating machine to use solid-state transistors. This was the first nail in the coffin for vacuum tubes.  The end result was a 2,000 transistor calculator no smaller in size and no faster in speed.However, the transistor counterpart was cheaper, took less power and created less heat. IBM went on to make the IBM 608 calculator

2002Palm – one of the leaders in handheld electronics – announces the first Zire handheld computer. This was called the “consumer grade” brand of Personal Digital Assistants (PDA). They were meant to be low-cost ($99) and something everyone could use. Other versions were the Zire 21, Zire 31, Z22, 71 and Zire 72.

The Zire featured a 16MHz Motorola Dragonball EZ processor, 2MB RAM / 2MB ROM and the Palm OS 4.1. The Zire also had a monochrome display and 160 x 160 resolution (Zire 71 and 72 models had 320 x 320).

Subscribe to Day In Tech History:

RSS Feed - iTunes - Google Play - Spotify
Twitter - Facebook

RSS Bandwidth by Cachefly Get a 14 Day Trial

Be a Part of the Sconnie Geek Nation!

In Wisconsin, friends are called "Sconnies". Even if you're not from Wisconsin, you can be part of the Sconnie Geek Nation through my coverage! By pledging, you join the Geek Sconnie Nation! Plus, you help me cover costs so I can continue the coverage of Gadget tech, music tech, and geek culture through the shows.