IBM notable hardware during the 1970s

1971–1975

In 1971, IBM's System/370 was introduced. It was able to run System/360 programs. The new system included the Model 145, the first general-purpose business computer to use integrated circuits in all memory and logic functions¹. As integrated circuits can be made very compact, they had up to several billion transistors and other electronic components in an area equivalent to the size of a fingernail². Furthermore, the IBM 129 Card Data Recorder was brought into the market. It was capable of punching and veryfying, it used an electronic 80-column card reader and punch and the card could be punched automatically. A switch on the keyboard console provided the ability to toggle between the punch and verify modes. Its primary advantage over other IBM keypunches was that a keystroke error could now be erased by pressing the “Backspace” key³.

IBM also introduced the industry's first flexible magnetic disk in 1971, which came to be known as the “floppy disk”. It made data handling much easier. As a result, it became widely used as a basic storage medium for small systems⁴. Moving on to 1973, IBM brought about the IBM 3340 disk unit – known as “Winchester”, after IBM's internal project name. Winchester more than doubled the information density on disk surfaces to nearly 1.7 million bits per square inch. It featured a smaller and lighter read and write head that was designed to ride on an air film only 18 millionths of an inch thick. Given these great developments, Winchester technology was adopted by the industry and used for the next two decades⁵.

Forwarding to 1975, IBM researchers discovered the first polymer to become superconducting and lose nearly all resistance to electric current flow⁶. Additionally, IBM introduced the IBM 5100 Portable Computer¹², a 25kg desktop machine the size of a small suitcase that put computer capabilities at the reach of engineers, analysts, statisticians and other problem-solvers⁶. It could be transported in an optional carrying case, hence the name “portable”. While it may appear large today, in 1975 it was an amazing technical achievement to package a complete computer with a large amount of ROM and RAM, CRT display and a tape drive into a machine that small.

1976–1979

Moving to 1976, the first IBM 3800 printer was released. The 3800 was the first commercial printer to combine laser technology and electrophotography. The technology sped up the printing of bank statements, premium notices, and other high-volume documents. It has remained a workhorse for billing and accounts receivable departments⁴.

In 1978, IBM introduced the 3033 multiprocessor complex. It included two processors with a main memory capacity ranging from 4, 194, 304 to 8, 388, 608 characters of information each, in 2, 097, 152 character increments, giving users a choice of 8, 10, 12, 14 or 16 million characters of shared storage. This provided an increased power and capacity for advanced applications such as online business data communication networks and uninterrupted data processing operations⁷.

Additionally, IBM announced the mid-range IBM System/38 in 1978, a general purpose computer that incorporated new semiconductor technology. It was the only commercial computer with a built-in relational database⁸. System/38's hardware and programming innovations permitted many functions associated with large computers to be combined into a compact system. The System/38 achieved considerable acceptance in the early 1980s but was ultimately succeeded by the even more popular IBM AS/400 midrange computer family in 1988⁹. Moving to 1979, IBM introduced a hologaphic scanner technology in its supermarket checkout station. It was one of the first major commercial uses of holography as “wraparound” light rays read the UPC (Universal Product Code) stripes on merchandise. IBM's ssupport of the UPC concept helped lead to its widespread acceptance by retail and other industries around the world¹⁰.