Brand: Compaq
Founded: 1982
By: Rod Canion, Jim Harris & Bill Murto
In: Harris USA
Defunct: 2002

During the 1980s, Compaq produced some of the first low-cost IBM PC-compatible PCs.
The company grew to become the largest PC manufacturer during the 1990s.

Compaq was founded in February 1982 by Rod Canion, Jim Harris, and Bill Murto, the three top executives of the semiconductor manufacturer Texas Instruments.

In November 1982, Compaq announced its first product, the Compaq Portable, a portable personal computer compatible with the IBM PC. It went on sale in March 1983 at $2,995, considerably cheaper than the Canadian Hyperion. The Compaq Portable was one of the predecessors of today's laptop. It was the second IBM-compatible PC, capable of running all the software that an IBM PC could run. It was a commercial success, selling 53,000 units in its first year. The Compaq Portable was the first in the Compaq Portable series. Compaq was able to market a legal IBM clone because IBM mostly used parts purchased from third parties ("Commercially available Off-The-Shelf" hardware) for its PCs. Furthermore, Microsoft had retained the right to license the operating system to other computer manufacturers. The only part that had to be duplicated was the BIOS, which Compaq legally reverse-engineered at a cost of $1 million. Numerous other companies soon followed suit.

In 1985, Compaq released the Compaq Deskpro 286, a 16-bit desktop computer using an Intel 80286 microprocessor running at 6 MHz and with 7 MB of RAM, it was considerably faster than an IBM PC. The Compaq Portable was also capable of running IBM software. It cost $2,000 for a model with a 40 MB hard drive. It was the first in the Compaq Deskpro line of computers.

In 1986, Compaq released the Compaq Portable II. The Portable II was significantly lighter and smaller than its predecessor, featuring a revamped design with an 8 MHz processor and a 10 MB hard drive. It was less expensive than the IBM PC/AT at $3,199, or $4,799 with a hard drive.

A year later, in 1987, Compaq introduced the first PC based on Intel's new microprocessor, the 80386, with the Compaq Portable 386 and the Compaq Portable III. IBM was not yet using this processor, and Compaq subsequently established what is disdainfully known as the PC clone business.

In the early 1990s, Compaq entered the retail market with the Compaq Presario and was one of the first manufacturers in the mid-1990s to sell a PC for less than $1,000. To achieve this price, Compaq became one of the first manufacturers to use AMD and Cyrix CPUs. The resulting price wars ultimately drove numerous competitors, notably IBM and Packard Bell, out of the PC market.

In 1997, Compaq acquired Tandem Computers, known for its line of non-stop servers. This acquisition instantly gave Compaq a presence in the high-quality business market. In 1998, Compaq acquired Digital Equipment Corporation, the leading company in the previous generation of computers during the 1970s and early 1980s. This acquisition made Compaq, at the time, the second-largest computer manufacturer in terms of revenue.

In 2002, Compaq underwent a merger with Hewlett-Packard.

Its complete demise, at the hands of Hewlett-Packard, occurred in late 2013.

The term "COMPAQ" is an acronym for "Compatibility and Quality."

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