Compaq Computer Unveils Added Deskpro 286 PC

Dow Jones News Service

September 3, 1986

HOUSTON -- COMPAQ COMPUTER CORP. ANNOUNCED A NEW MODEL OF THE COMPAQ DESKPRO 286 PERSONAL COMPUTER THAT FEATURES A 20-MEGABYTE FIXED DISK, 640 KILOBYTES OF RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY, A 1.2-MEGABYTE DISKETTE DRIVE AND A SUGGESTED RESALE PRICE OF $3,999.

COMPAQ ALSO SAID IT REDUCED THE SUGGESTED PRICE OF THE COMPAQ DESKPRO 286, MODEL 1 FROM $3,999 TO $2,999.

COMPAQ CLAIMS ITS NEW PERSONAL COMPUTER, WHICH IS NEARLY IDENTICAL TO INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP.'S NEW XT-286, IS FASTER AND HAS MORE FEATURES THAN IBM'S.

BOTH MODELS HAVE HARD DISKS THAT STORE 20 MEGABYTES OF MEMORY. COMPAQ SAID ITS DESKPRO 286 MODEL 20 USES A FASTER VERSION OF THE INTEL CORP. 80286 MICROPROCESSOR ALSO USED IN IBM'S XT-286.

COMPAQ SAID ITS MICROPROCESSOR OPERATES AT A SPEED OF EIGHT MEGAHERTZ, AND THAT IBM'S MICROPROCESSOR OPERATES AT SIX MEGAHERTZ. USERS WOULD NOTICE THE DIFFERENCE IN SPEED PARTICULARLY IN HEAVY COMPUTATION WORK SUCH AS SPREADSHEET ANALYSIS. COMPAQ SAID, HOWEVER, THAT OTHER FACTORS COULD AFFECT TOTAL DATA PROCESSING TIME.

ALTHOUGH THE TWO COMPUTERS COME EQUIPPED WITH THE SAME AMOUNT OF MEMORY, COMPAQ SAID ITS MACHINE ALLOWS USERS TO ADD MORE MEMORY THAN DOES IBM'S MACHINE. IBM COULDN'T BE REACHED FOR COMMENT.

THE NEW MODEL FOLLOWS COMPAQ'S PREVIOUS STRATEGY OF MAKING IBM-COMPATIBLE COMPUTERS THAT THE COMPANY CLAIMS OFFERS HIGHER PERFORMANCE AT ABOUT THE SAME PRICE AS IBM'S MODELS.

"THIS GOES HEAD TO HEAD AGAINST IBM," SAID A SPOKESMAN FOR COMPAQ. MIKE DAVIS, AN ANALYST WITH SCHNEIDER, BERNET & HICKMAN INC. IN DALLAS, SAID "IT LOOKS QUITE COMPETITIVE."