PCS size and cost have decreased tremendously over time. Correct answer: miniaturized transistors, super-efficient silicon ICs, and Moore’s law.
Which invention allowed computers to be smaller?
George Moore predicted in 1965 that the number of transistors on microchips would quadruple every two years. This phenomenon, known as Moore’s Law, predicts that computer advances will grow considerably quicker, smaller, and more efficient over time. As Moore’s Law advanced, the rate of size decrease remained constant. However, I would argue that it was not a single invention that made computers smaller. Better manufacture and construction of computer components has resulted in smaller computers. Better engineering allows for miniaturization.
The computer’s size got reduced as it progressed from the first to the fifth generation. The question Which invention helped computers to become smaller in size? It cannot be answered in a single, concise way, though.
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What does making a computer smaller mean?
Making a computer component smaller allows you to fit more in a given space because the component takes up less space. You discover newer ways to do what you used to do, often without the need for as much more stuff.
Consider the televisions of the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, as well as those of today. Remove the backs and examine the components, which are not much different from the same types of components that have been used in computers for a long time. As components become smaller, more powerful, and better constructed, computers become faster. Many of the same types exist today.
But for the time being, while the size difference can be seen with regular human eyes, we’ve gathered some of the best technologies for shrinking. Over time, computers have advanced significantly. Whereas they formerly took up a full room and had less power than a simple digital watch, they are now a thin strip of material that can fit inside an envelope.
The 1950s: an era of the first-ever digital computers
Computers shrank in the late 1950s as one of their primary components, the valve, was replaced by a considerably smaller transistor. Because they made computers significantly more trustworthy, they piqued the curiosity of a wide range of sectors and businesses.
As computer generations advanced, computers got considerably smaller.
First Generation
The vacuum tubes were employed in the initial generation of computers (1940-1956). Early first-generation computers, such as the one on the far left, utilized octal-based tubes. The ENIAC computer (1946) contained about 18,000 tubes and took up 1800 square feet of space (167 square meters).
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Later first-generation computer models, such as the IBM 701 series, constructed in the 1950s, employed miniature-sized tubes next to them, often only around 5000 of them. Each tube served as the functional equivalent of one or two transistors. The popular 6SN7 and smaller 12AU7 dual-triodes were frequently employed for flip-flop implementation. The computers still took up a full room, but the peripherals (tape drives, etc.) took up a significant amount of area.
Examples
ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), UNIVAC (Universal Automatic Computer), IBM 604, Mark-I, and EDSAC are examples of first-generation Mini/Mainframe computers. Automatic Calculator for Electronic Delay Storage.
Second Generation
Second-generation computers (1956-1963) were substantially smaller and utilized transistors. The transistor was invented in 1947 by three scientists: William Shockley, John Bardeen, and Walter Brattain. A transistor works similarly to a vacuum tube. It took the place of vacuum tubes in second-generation computers.
Second-generation computer CPUs are the size of huge refrigerators nowadays. Because transistors were faster, more dependable, and considerably cheaper than vacuum tubes, they allowed computers to be smaller while increasing their speed and memory capacity. However, core memory, the most important component of second-generation computers, was frequently packaged in refrigerator-sized boxes. As a result, transistors are our answer to the question of which discovery enabled computers to be smaller.
Examples
UNIVAC II, IBM 7030, 7780, and 7090, NCR 300 series, General Electric GE 635, and Control Data Corporation’s CDC 1604 computers are examples of second-generation computers.
Third Generation
Semiconductor chips are another name for integrated circuits (ICs). In the early 1960s, scientists invented integrated circuits (ICs). Memory was built in this generation of computers, utilizing solid-state RAM chips rather than a core. Third-generation computers (1964-1971) were smaller, using small and medium-scale integrated circuits. These machines also included a keyboard and a monitor.
The advent of IC chips was a huge step forward in computer technology. IC chips enhanced computer power while decreasing computer costs. A single integrated circuit chip has a huge number of transistors. Furthermore, these computers were capable of running multiple applications at the same time. As a result, computers used less power and grew smaller, cheaper, and more reliable than second-generation computers. As a result, the creation of integrated circuits (ICs) is the clearest response to the issue of which technology-enabled computers to become smaller in size.
Examples
The Burroughs 6700, IBM System/360, System 3, and Control Data Corporation’s 3300 and 6600 computers are examples of third-generation computers.
Fourth Generation
A microprocessor is a single chip that handles the processing of a computer. These are compact in size, incredibly reliable, use little electricity, and are reasonably priced. Microprocessors were utilized (and are still used) in fourth-generation computers (1971-present). For this generation of computers, scientists created LSI (Large Scale Integration) and VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration) chips with millions of transistors. For developing powerful applications, these machines support modern programming languages such as Visual Basic, C++, Java, and Python. That chip would now cost only $0.02, demonstrating the power of exponential growth. This is what made computers a household phenomenon, moving from our desks to our bags, pockets, and fingers!
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Over the decades, computers have reduced exponentially in size and cost, so now they are even affordable for personal computing.
Microprocessors affect the size of the computer system.
The Intel Pentium series, Dual Core, Core2 Duo, Core i3, i5, i7, and AMD Athlon are some examples of microprocessors produced in the fourth generation of computers.
The Apple II’s 6502 CPU (1975) has only 3510 transistors. The Intel Core i7 Haswell-E (2014) processor, which is used in many desktop PCs, contains 2.6 billion transistors. The difference between the 1975 6502 CPU with 3510 transistors and the 2014 Intel i7 processor with 2.6 billion is 740,740 times.
In 2018, Apple announced the A12X Bionic (ARM64) processor, which has 10 billion transistors, which is 2,849,003 times more than the 6502. Moore’s law predicts: 2(2018-1975)/2=2,965,820 — extremely near once more.
Extrapolate the ENIAC size and consider that 6500 of its tubes were dual-triodes, equivalent to two transistors. The vacuum tube equivalent of the Apple A12X Bionic CPU would then require a structure with 10 billion / 24,500 x 1,800 square feet = 735,000,000 square feet (68,255,000 square meters) or 68.3 square kilometers (26.4 square miles).
Examples
The IBM ThinkPad, HP Pavilion, Dell Inspiron, Apple’s MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air are examples of fourth-generation PCs.
Fifth Generation
This generation has nothing to do with computer size. As a result, we don’t need to debate it to determine which technology enabled computers to get smaller in size.
The fifth generation of computers, on the other hand, intends to create gadgets that can understand natural languages and think. They are thus based on artificial intelligence (AI). Creating such systems and software presents a significant challenge for computer developers and programmers.
Examples
Robots and expert systems are examples of fifth-generation computers.
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