A microcomputer is a full-featured computer that is made on a smaller scale and intended for solitary usage. A single-chip microprocessor-based device is now more commonly referred to as a PC, replacing the outdated name “microcomputer.” Laptops and desktop computers are typical microcomputers. Microcomputers are devices other than traditional PCs, such as various types of calculators, mobile phones, laptops, workstations, and embedded systems.
A microcomputer uses a single integrated semiconductor chip as its central processor unit and is smaller than a mainframe or minicomputer (CPU). They also include input/output (I/O) ports, a bus or system of connecting wires, memory in the form of read-only memory (ROM), and random access memory (RAM), all of which are housed in a single component that is typically referred to as a motherboard.
The evolution of microcomputers: Microcomputers have been around since the 1970s. The Intel 4004 microprocessor, which debuted in 1971, was followed by the Intel 8008 and Intel 8080 microprocessors in 1972 and 1974, respectively, and these developments cleared the way for the development of the microcomputer.
The Micral, introduced in 1973 by Réalisation d’Études Électroniques, was the first microcomputer (R2E). It was the first non-kit computer built around an Intel 8008 processor. Micro Computer Machines Inc. introduced the Intel 8008-based MCM/70 microcomputer in 1974. (later known as MCM Computers).
The processing power of microcomputers increased along with the development of microprocessor chip design. By the 1980s, personal computing, workstations, and academics had all found extensive usage for microcomputers beyond games and computer-based entertainment. Microcomputers first appeared in the form of pocket-sized personal digital assistants (PDAs) in the 1990s, and they later appeared as cellphones and portable music players.
Applications for computers: Personal computers are frequently used for leisure and education. Microcomputers can be found in devices other than laptops and desktops, such as video game consoles, computerized electronics, and smartphones.
Microcomputers have been used in the workplace for a variety of tasks, including data and word processing, electronic spreadsheets, graphic design, and presentation software for business, communications, and database administration. They have been used in a variety of contexts, including business for bookkeeping, inventory management, and communication; healthcare settings for scheduling, managing healthcare plans, and data processing; financial institutions for recording transactions, billing, preparing payrolls, and auditing; and military applications for training devices.
IoT and computers
A tiny single-board computer called the Raspberry Pi used to refer to itself as a microcontroller. The Raspberry Pi and other single-board computers, such as those from Arduino, Intel, and Particle, are now utilized for the internet of things (IoT) prototyping, education, and applications. They are more frequently referred to as microcontrollers than microcomputers.
However, microcomputers can perform similar functions as microcontrollers in IoT applications. Microcomputers are sometimes used to describe specific IoT devices, including linked appliances like smart TVs, refrigerators, and other appliances.
Microcontrollers versus microcomputers: An embedded system’s microcontroller is an integrated circuit (IC) created to control a single operation. These single chips include peripherals, ROM, and RAM onboard.
Single microcomputers have been used to describe microcontrollers.
Microprocessors versus microcomputers: An on-chip computer processor known as a microprocessor house all or the majority of CPU functions. RAM, ROM, and other peripherals are not present in microprocessors. Microprocessors are therefore unable to do independent tasks. Instead, by programming specific instructions for their microprocessors into their memory, systems like microcomputers, which have microprocessors, can be configured to conduct operations on data.
The combination of a microprocessor and its peripheral I/O devices, circuitry, and memory is officially referred to as a microcomputer, but not on a single chip.
In comparison to minicomputers: Minicomputers were a type of computer that was predominantly utilized in the 1960s to 1980s, although the term “microcomputer” typically refers to laptops or desktops. Minicomputers, which were larger than microcomputers and could weigh up to 700 pounds and stand more than 6 feet tall, offered faster processing rates than then-current mainframes and supercomputers at a much lower size and cost. Minicomputers were mostly utilized in small businesses, research labs, and academic institutions for word processing, bookkeeping, and teaching aids while microcomputers were frequently used at home and at the office.
The Programmed Data Processor-1, or PDP-1, from Digital Equipment Corporation was released in 1960 and sold for $120,000 (or $1,021,776 in 2018 currency). When the PDP-8, its offspring, was released in 1965, it cost around $18,500 ($148,022 in 2018 USD). The 12-bit PDP-8, the first commercial minicomputer and one of the most popular models, has been compared to the size of a small domestic refrigerator.
Microprocessors were absent from minicomputers. The popularity of minicomputers decreased in the 1980s as microprocessors improved and became more affordable.
Minicomputers are frequently referred to as midrange computers, an outdated phrase.
Mainframes vs. handheld computers: A high-performance computer called a mainframe is used for large-scale computing tasks that demand more availability and security than small-scale machines can offer. A microcomputer is made to be operated by one person at a time, whereas mainframes can process requests from multiple users at once. As a result, a mainframe computer can be thought of as a network that connects various microcomputers.
