RAND Corporation’s 1954 Prediction Of The Size Of The Home Computer In 2004

In 1954 RAND Corporation predicted that the “home computer” would roughly be the size of your home. Seriously, they were just a little off, this thing looks more like a spaceship. Here is what the text reads:

Scientists from the RAND Corporation have created this model to illustrate how a “home computer” could look like in the year 2004. However the needed technology will not be economically feasible to the average home. Also the scientists readily admit that the computer will require not yet invented technology to actually work, but 50 years from now scientific progress is expected to solve these problems. With the teletype interface and the Fortran language, the computer will be easy to use.

As I sit here typing this on my couch, with my laptop comfortably heating my crotch…I’m glad they were wrong.