History of Laptop in Timeline

A laptop is a portable personal computer typically featuring a clamshell design. It integrates a flat-panel screen in the upper lid and a keyboard and pointing device in the lower section, which also houses most of the computer's internal hardware. Modern laptops often include built-in webcams, and some offer touchscreen displays. Laptops usually operate on desktop operating systems, distinguishing them from tablets that run on mobile operating systems.

1920: HiDPI Screens

As of 2025, a display with anything higher than 1920 pixels wide is generally considered to be a HiDPI display.

September 1975: IBM 5100 Release

In September 1975, the IBM 5100, the first commercially available portable computer based on the SCAMP prototype, was released.

July 1980: Epson HX-20 Invention

In July 1980, the first "laptop-sized notebook computer", the Epson HX-20, was invented (patented) by Suwa Seikosha's Yukio Yokozawa.

1981: Dulmont Magnum Release

In 1981-82, the Dulmont Magnum was released in Australia.

July 1982: Epson HX-20 Release

In July 1982, the Epson HX-20 was released. It featured an LCD screen, a rechargeable battery, and a calculator-size printer, all within a 1.6 kg chassis, about the size of an A4 notebook.

1982: GRiD Compass 1101 Release

In 1982, the GRiD Compass 1101 was released at US$8,150. It was utilized at NASA and by the military.

1982: Notebook Emergence

In 1982, the term 'notebook' emerged to describe Epson's HX-20 portable computer, whose dimensions roughly corresponded to a letter-sized pad of paper.

1983: Gavilan SC Touch Pad

In 1983, the Gavilan SC introduced the touch pad as a new input technique for laptops.

1983: Sharp PC-5000 Release

In 1983, the Sharp PC-5000 was released.

1983: Earliest Attestation of Laptop

The earliest attestation of the term 'laptop' found by the Oxford English Dictionary dates to 1983.

1984: Dulmont Magnum International Marketing

In 1984-85, the Dulmont Magnum was marketed internationally.

1984: William Safire on Laptop Origin

The etymologist William Safire traced the origin of the word laptop to some time before 1984.

1985: Ampere WS-1 and Gavilan SC Releases

Between 1983 and 1985, the Ampere WS-1, and Gavilan SC were released.

1986: Low market share of battery-powered computers

In 1986, battery-powered portable computers had only 2% worldwide market share.

1987: Linus Write-Top Handwriting Recognition

In 1987, the Linus Write-Top introduced handwriting recognition in laptops.

1988: VGA Resolution Achieved

By 1988, laptop displays reached 640x480 (VGA) resolution with the Compaq SLT/286.

1988: Notebooks Separate Market

In 1988, Notebooks emerged as their own separate market from laptops with the release of the NEC UltraLite.

1989: Leading laptop vendors

As of 1989, Zenith Data Systems, Toshiba, Compaq, and Grid Systems were the leading vendors in the "small but vital" laptop market.

1989: PCMCIA Industry Association Creation

In 1989, the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) was created to promote a standard for memory cards in PCs.

1990: Introduction of 2.5" Drives

Around 1990, hard drives started to be commonly used in laptops with the introduction of 2.5" and smaller drives. However, capacities typically lagged behind those of physically larger desktop drives.

1990: Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

Between 1990 and 2009, almost all laptops typically had a hard disk drive (HDD) for storage.

1990: Laptops in the PC Market

By 1990, laptops accounted for one twentieth of the personal computer market.

1990: Intel i386SL CPU Design

In 1990, CPUs like the Intel i386SL were designed for minimum power usage to extend battery life in portable computers. Dynamic power management features such as Intel SpeedStep and AMD PowerNow! supported these designs.

1990: Macintosh portable used in space

In 1990, the first commercial laptop used in space was a Macintosh portable on Space Shuttle mission STS-41.

1990: PCMCIA Type I Cards Specification Release

In 1990, the specification for PCMCIA type I cards, later renamed PC Cards, was first released.

1991: Macintosh portable on Space Shuttle mission STS-43

In 1991, a Macintosh portable was again used aboard Space Shuttle mission STS-43.

1991: Color Screens

In 1991, color screens started becoming a common upgrade in laptops, with increases in resolution and screen size occurring frequently until the introduction of 17" screen laptops.

1992: Toshiba ranked as global leader

As of 1992–1993, Toshiba ranked as the global leading vendor in the notebook computer market.

1992: Laptop Market Growth

By 1992, the laptop market was growing about three times faster than that of desktops.

1992: IBM ThinkPad 700 Pointing Stick

In 1992, the IBM ThinkPad 700 introduced the pointing stick as a new input technique for laptops.

1993: Global laptop revenue leaders

In 1993, global revenue for the laptop market was led by Compaq, followed by Toshiba, Apple, NEC, and IBM, altogether accounting for over 53% of global revenue.

1994: Laptops More Profitable Than Desktops

By 1994, laptops were more profitable than desktops and accounted for one sixth of the personal computer market, up from one twentieth in 1990.

1996: Top notebook vendors in the US

As of 1996, the top three vendors for notebooks in market share in the United States were Toshiba, Compaq, and IBM.

1997: Optical Disc Drives Common

Around 1997, optical disc drives became common in full-size laptops, initially these were CD-ROM drives, and these later included writable and higher capacity formats like DVD and Blu-Ray.

1999: Toshiba leads worldwide laptop sales

As of 1999, Toshiba ranked first in worldwide laptop sales followed by IBM, Compaq, and Dell, with a market share of 18.6%.

2000: Built-in Ethernet ports become common

Around 2000, built-in Ethernet network ports became common in mainstream consumer laptops.

2000: Proprietary Memory Modules

Before 2000, most laptops used proprietary memory modules if their memory was upgradable.

2000: Socketed CPUs

Between around 2000 to 2014, most full-size laptops had socketed, replaceable CPUs; on thinner models, the CPU was soldered on the motherboard.

2002: Dell leads US notebook market

In the first quarter of 2002, Dell controlled 25.2% of the notebook market in the United States, ahead of Toshiba (13.6%) and Compaq (11.7%), which had been acquired by Hewlett-Packard (HP).

2003: Introduction of 17" Screen Laptops

In 2003, 17" screen laptops were introduced.

2004: Acer becomes largest laptop vendor in EMEA

In 2004, Acer became the largest vendor of laptops in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) territories, overtaking HP and IBM.

May 2005: Average notebook price

In May 2005, the average notebook sold for $1,131.

2005: Dell is the top global vendor of notebooks

According to IDC in 2005, Dell was the top global vendor of notebooks with a market share of 17.29%, followed by HP, Toshiba, Acer and Lenovo.

2005: Acer largest vendor of laptops in EMEA

In 2005, Acer continued to be the largest vendor of laptops in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) territories.

2006: ODM dominance in laptop manufacturing

In 2006, 7 major Original Design Manufacturers (ODMs) manufactured 7 of every 10 laptops in the world, with Quanta Computer holding 30% of the market share.

2007: Netbook Category Emergence

In 2007, the netbook emerged as a marketing category for small, inexpensive laptops, intended for basic tasks like web browsing and document viewing. These often used the Intel Atom architecture.

August 2008: Average laptop price at US retail stores

Around August 2008, the average price of laptops at U.S. retail stores was US$689 due to low-cost netbooks.

2008: Introduction of SSDs matching laptop hard drive size

Around 2008, SSDs were initially introduced matching the size and shape of laptop hard drives. They were substantially more expensive than HDDs, but prices converged for smaller drives in the late 2010s.

2008: Notebook PC shipments exceed desktops

In the third quarter of 2008, worldwide notebook PC shipments exceeded desktops for the first time, with 38.6 million units versus 38.5 million units.

2009: Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

Between 1990 and 2009, almost all laptops typically had a hard disk drive (HDD) for storage.

2010: Integrated GPU Introduction by Intel

In 2010, Intel introduced integrated GPUs into CPUs with the Core i-series of mobile processors, which conserved power and space in laptops.

2010: HP or Acer largest vendor of portable computers

In the first quarter of 2010, HP or Acer were the largest vendors of portable computers, including netbooks, depending on the data source.

2010: Desktop Processors in Gaming Laptops

Since around 2010, the practice of using desktop processors in laptops has been restricted to small-volume gaming models due to greater weight, heat, and limited battery life.

January 2011: AMD APU Processors

In January 2011, AMD followed Intel's lead with similar APU processors that integrated the GPU into the CPU.

2011: ThinkPads aboard the ISS

As of 2011, over 100 ThinkPads were aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

2011: Switchable Graphics

Since 2011, high-end laptops intended for gaming or professional 3D work tend to come with dedicated graphics processors and almost always involve switchable graphics like Nvidia Optimus and AMD Hybrid Graphics.

2011: Trend Shift Against Internal Optical Drives

Starting around 2011, the trend shifted against internal optical drives in laptops.

2011: High Refresh Rate Laptops

The Dell M17x and Samsung 700G7A, both released in 2011, were among the first laptops to feature a 120 Hz refresh rate, and more such laptops have appeared in the years since.

2012: MacBook Pro with Retina Display Introduction

Since the introduction of the MacBook Pro with Retina display in 2012, there has been an increase in the availability of "HiDPI" (or high pixel density) displays.

Apple MacBook Pro with Retina Display - Intel Core i5 Dual Core 2.3GHz, (13-inches, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD) - Silver (Renewed)

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2014: SSDs replaced with smaller cards

Around 2014, SSDs started to be increasingly replaced with smaller mSATA or M.2 cards, often becoming more compact.

2014: Socketed CPUs

Between around 2000 to 2014, most full-size laptops had socketed, replaceable CPUs; on thinner models, the CPU was soldered on the motherboard.

2015: MacBook transitions to USB-C ports

In 2015, Apple transitioned its MacBook from a number of different I/O ports to exclusively USB-C ports, which could be used for charging and connecting devices through aftermarket adapters.

2015: Intel and Soldered CPUs

Since 2015, Intel has not offered new laptop CPU models with pins to be interchangeable, preferring ball grid array chip packages which have to be soldered.

2015: Processors Soldered to Motherboard

Since 2015, virtually all laptops use processors that are soldered to the motherboard, making them non-replaceable.

2016: Smart batteries in laptops

Around 2016, most laptops started using a smart battery, a rechargeable battery pack with a built-in battery management system (BMS).

2018: Macs and SSDs

Since 2018, Macs have consistently used permanently attached SSDs (integrated with the motherboard).

2020: HP and Lenovo leading notebook vendors

As of the third quarter of 2020, HP and Lenovo were cited as the leading vendors for notebook computers, each with a share of 23.6%.

2021: Mainstream Consumer Laptop Screen Sizes

As of 2021, mainstream consumer laptops tend to have screens ranging between 13" and 16".

2022: Disappearance of Internal Optical Drives

As of 2022, internal optical drives have largely disappeared from laptops, although they are still readily available as external peripherals.

2023: Price of a new laptop

As of 2023, a new laptop can be obtained for $299.

2023: Laptop sales volume

In 2023, it was estimated that 166 million laptops were sold.

2024: Interchangeable Use of Laptop and Notebook

As of 2024, in American English, the terms laptop and notebook are used interchangeably. However, in other dialects of English, one or the other may be preferred.

2024: Laptop market share

In the first quarter of 2024, around 64% of personal computers sold were laptops or detachable tablets.

2025: Most Common Memory Size

As of 2025, 16 GB RAM is most common in laptops, with lower-end models occasionally having 8 GB, and 4 GB configurations being limited to very-low-cost models. Higher-end laptops may come with 64 GB of RAM or more.

2025: HDDs Obsolete

As of 2025, HDDs are essentially extinct in new laptops

2025: HiDPI Display Standard

As of 2025, a display with anything higher than 1920 pixels wide is generally considered to be a HiDPI display.

2025: Typical laptop ports

As of 2025, a typical laptop usually includes several USB ports, and if they use older USB connectors instead of USB-C, they typically have an external monitor port (almost always HDMI). An analog audio in/out port (in a combined socket) is also common.

2025: Power options for laptops

As of 2025, laptops are broadly divided between being powered only by USB-C connectors versus having a dedicated DC power connector; most systems since the mid-2010s that have both connectors can be powered by either.

2025: Laptop Processor Cores

As of 2025, mainstream laptops can have as few as 6 cores and as many as 16, with high end workstation laptops having as many as 24, and low end or ultra-portable models still being available with 4 cores.

2025: Optical drives virtually unknown

As of 2025, optical disc drives are virtually unknown in new laptops; when needed, they can be connected via USB instead.

2025: CPU Market Landscape

As of 2025, the laptop CPU market consists almost entirely of the X86 and ARM architectures with major manufacturers including Intel, AMD, Apple and Qualcomm.