The Company
NCR began as the National Manufacturing Company of Dayton, Ohio in the late 1800s. A couple of years later, the company’s name was changed to National Cash Register Company as they focused on making and selling cash registers. In 1906, they created the first cash register with an electric motor. By 1911, NCR has sold 1 million cash registers. During World War I, the company manufactured “fuses and aircraft instrumentation”. During World War II, they built “aero-engines, bomb sights and code-breaking machines”.
Following World War II, NCR used its experience building code-breaking machines to develop “new computing and communications technology.” In 1957, it released its first computer, the NCR 304. NCR remained one of the top mainframe makers into the late 1980s. In the early 1980s, NCR also started getting into building smaller systems. The first was the UNIX-powered TOWER 16/32. NCR also started selling “various PC compatible AT-class computers”. In the 1990s, NCR was owned by AT&T for several years before becoming independent again. In 2022, NCR announced that they would be dividing the company. NCR Voyix would handle digital commerce, like point-of-sale and checkouts, and NCR Atleos would handle ATMs.
The Computer
NCR released their PC4 in the early 1980s. This system was designed to compete with the IBM PC. According to a review published by Byte in July 1985 (and reprinted by Just Computers the following month), the PC4 had the following specs:
Size
148 by 146 by 18 inches; 50 pounds
Components
Processor: Intel 8088, 4.77 MHz
Memory: 128K system memory, expandable to 256K; board expansion to 640K
Mass storage: One or two 360K double-sided double-density 5%-inch TEAC floppy-disk drives; optional half-height 10-megabyte Winchester hard-disk drive or dual 8-inch flexible-disk drives
Display: 80 characters by 25 lines, Monochrome green (optional color), 640 by 200 pixels
Keyboard: IBM PC-compatible, plus separate Cursor-control pad
Expansion: Three IBM PC-compatible slots available in dual-disk system
I/O interfaces: RS-232C port, parallel printer port
Software
GW-BASIC, NCR-DOS 2.11, NCR Tutor, NCR Pal, NCR Help, diagnostics
Documentation
Owner's manual, GW-BASIC manual, NCR-DOS manual
Price
Monochrome screen, one drive, and 128K RAM, $2400; second drive, $425; 64K RAM, $90; 128K RAM, $180; parallel or serial printer cable, $45; 10-megabyte hard disk, $2195
Elaine Holden started the review by talking about the build quality of the system:
“The NCR Personal Computer Model 4 is definitely not a portable—it weighs 50 pounds and measures 18 inches wide and almost 15 inches high. But you couldn't find a more rugged computer. And NCR dealers provide dependable service. (Each dealer has a technician trained to handle any repairs. If you're not near a dealer, you can use NCR's mail-in service.)
The NCR computer comes in six variations. Choices include monochrome or color screen, one or two double-sided double-density floppy-disk drives, or a half-height 10-megabyte Winchester drive in place of the second drive.
It is a pleasure to find the on/off switch and the volume and brightness controls located on the front of the unit. The quality of sound is excellent.
…
Like all other IBM Personal Computer (PC) clones, the NCR Personal Computer cannot have BASIC in ROM (read-only memory) as it is in the IBM PC. In order not to violate copyright restrictions, an IBM PC-compatible BASIC must be on a floppy disk. The NCR version of GW-BASIC is easy to use, and the documentation provides excellent support. But the need to have BASIC on a disk almost necessitates the use of two drives; constantly switching disks can be annoying.
I was impressed by the exceptional compatibility of the NCR with the IBM PC. | was able to run Lotus 1-2-3, the Leading Edge word processor, and other packages for the IBM without any problems.
…
I found the monochrome display to have excellent resolution, competitive with any on the market. The green-phosphor screen has an 80-character by 25-line display. All characters are clear and easily read. I was equally impressed with the clarity of the color display. This 16-color screen also has a display of 80 by 25 and 640 by 200 pixels.
…
Although the NCR Personal Computer is not very portable and has the few imperfections I mentioned, it is still a good value. Ease of setup, documentation, tutorials, company backing, and solid engineering make this machine worthwhile. Other features include the choice between two excellent displays, terrific graphics, a RAM-disk utility that runs programs faster than most IBM PC-compatibles, and moderately easy memory expansion.
Having taught computer science to college students, I know the punishment that hardware must withstand. After giving the Model 4 the same type of rough treatment, | can say it is built like a tank. For heavy computer use and business purposes, this durability is a very important consideration.”
The only other review I found was in the May 1985 issue of the French computer magazine Micro 7. According to the Google Translation of the article:
“NCR France is expanding its range of personal computers by announcing the PC4i microcomputer. The PC4i is fully compatible with the IBM-PC XT, in an integrated version with plug-in modules. This design provides a small footprint system with only two connection cables. Software designed for the IBM PC runs on the NCR PC4i. The NCR PC4i, manufactured in the Augsburg plant in West Germany, is available in a fully French version.
The central unit installed on a single physical card, is organized around the 16-bit 8088 processor from Intel. A slot is provided for the 8087 arithmetic co-processor and a 16 KB ROM memory. The 256 KB central memory is expandable to 640 KB. An input-output controller exists for the floppy disk reader-recorder, the Centronics interface, the R232C serial interface, the loudspeaker and the keyboard. Seven slots are available for a screen controller, a hard disk controller, memory extensions (256 KB to 640 KB) and all other options. Physically the distribution of the 7 connectors is as follows: 3 in standard IBM format, 3 in long length format (296 mm), 1 in three-quarter format of the standard IBM format. The BUS system is integrated into this motherboard and the seven connectors (62 points) intended for the input-output interfaces are directly connected to them. Memory access is achieved by a four-channel DMA (Direct Access Memory) system, for a maximum transfer speed of 952 KB per second.
The monochrome screen is 12 inches in size and allows the display of 25 lines of 80 characters with a definition of 640 x 400 points. The size of the display cell is 8 x 16 points for characters of 6 x 9 points. The color screen offers identical characteristics, except for the screen type. It includes 16 colors, including three basic ones: red, green and blue phosphor. In its basic version, the NCR PC4i includes a graphics card equipped with 32 KB of memory. An additional 32 KB is required for 640 x 400 point operation. The PC4i has two advantages over the IBM PC-XT. Firstly, software that uses graphics (e.g. Lotus 1-2-3) can be used on the monochrome PC4i. Secondly, the vertical density is doubled by the interface. This provides a more readable image in a way that is completely transparent to the software used. The ultra-flat keyboard can be rotated in azimuth (5° and 9°). It is made up of four parts: alphanumeric azerty (accented lower case), separate numeric, function keys and cursor manipulation. The ten function keys are programmable. The layout of these keys is identical to that of the IBM keyboard, which allows the use of the identifications supplied with the software available on the market. Two "mass memory" configurations are possible. One with 360 KB diskettes, the other with a 360 KB diskette and an integrated 5 1/4 inch hard disk of 10 MB. 32 or 64 MB are also possible with or without a 45 MB streamer. A 1.2 MB diskette will soon be available.”
Did you ever use an NCR PC4i? Tell us about it in the comments below.
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