Gavilan SC
Gavilan SC
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| Developer | Manuel (Manny) Fernandez |
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| Manufacturer | Gavilan Computer Corp. |
| Release date | May 1983 |
| Introductory price | 4000 US$ (today $9828.27) |
| Discontinued | 1985 |
| Operating system | MS-DOS |
| CPU | 5 MHz Intel 8088 |
| Memory | 64 kilobytes standard static CMOS memory 48 kb of ROM |
| Storage | floppy disk drive |
| Display | LCD display (400×64 pixels) |
| Touchpad | touchpad-like pointing device |
| Connectivity | 300-baud modem |
| Weight | 4 kg (9 lb) |
The Gavilan SC was a laptop computer, and was the first ever to be marketed as a "laptop".
The brainchild of Gavilan Computer Corp. founder Manuel (Manny) Fernandez, the Gavilan was introduced in May 1983, at approximately the same time as the similar Sharp PC-5000. It came to market a year after the GRiD Compass, with which it shared several pioneering details, notably a clamshell design, in which the screen folds shut over the keyboard.
The Gavilan, however, was more affordable than the GRiD, at a list price of around US$4000. Unlike the GRiD, it was equipped with a floppy disk drive and used the MS-DOS operating system, although it was only partially IBM PC-compatible. Powered by a 5 MHz Intel 8088 processor, it was equipped with a basic graphical user interface, stored in its 48 kb of ROM. An internal 300-baud modem was standard. A compact printer that attached to the rear of the machine was an option.
The machine's included software was a terminal program, MS-DOS, and MBasic (a version of the BASIC programming language). An Office Pack of four applications—Sorcim SuperCalc and SuperWriter, and PFS File and Report—was optional.
It was far smaller than competing IBM compatible portables, such as the Compaq Portable, which were the size of a portable sewing machine and weighed more than twice the Gavilan's 4 kg (9 lb), and unlike the Gavilan they could not run off batteries. Gavilan claimed the SC could run up to nine hours on its built-in nickel-cadmium batteries.
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