The Lemon Sours Surges
This is an interesting one.
Electronic Protection Devices, Inc. was founded in the early 1980s (as far as I can tell) in Waltham, Massachusetts. The only name that I could find connected to the company was David Simpson, who was the president.
The company initially sold basic power cables. However, Simpson decided that he wanted to do something to catch the customer’s eye. I’ll let this article from the March 1984 issue of Inc explain what happened:
"It was reverse psychology," Simpson explains. "We wanted to get the attention of the end user." So he took the fairly nondescript electronic device that he had been selling to the trade under the name Electro-Clamp, painted the beige metal box of electronics a bright yellow, renamed it The Lemon, and built a marketing campaign around this product identity.
…
"To go after the consumer, we had to develop a marketing plan that would gain quick recognition," explains Simpson, president of EPD. "We figured that buyers would think a company that would produce a product called a 'Lemon' would have to have a lot of confidence in the product to call it that."
EPD introduced The Lemon at a 1981 trade show for, appropriately enough, Apple microcomputer users. By the time the show was over, Simpson recalls, he had sold out his entire stock of 150 Lemons at $59 apiece and signed up 14 dealers to distribute the product nationally.
Electronic Protection Devices followed this success with several more products named after fruit (which will be covered in following articles).
"We wanted to get the attention of the end user."
Unfortunately, it appears that their success did not last for long. Jason Scott wrote back in 2007 that, “It looks like they started life in 1981, and I find evidence they got at least up to 1993 before expiring. Interestingly, it looks like they ran a 1-800 BBS for a number of years for technical support. After further research, I find messages in 1996 begging for assistance in finding EPD’s current location to get a “Grizzy” replaced. So for at least a dozen years, this fruit basket stayed ripe, even though like all things it ultimately went sour.”
I did find a mention of the Lemon in the May 1984 issue of Creative Computing:
We used the Lemon ($59.95) which is an AC surge protector. The Lemon plugs into a double wall outlet and provides six receptacles. It has a forward surge rating of 1440 amps for 1/120 second, peak pulse power dissipation of 10,800 watts, clamping response time of five nanoseconds, and three MOVs (across the line and line to ground). Operational rating is 15 amps, and it has two indicators to show normal operation or circuit failure.
It was also mentioned in How to use the Apple II and IIe by Robert Price and Jerry Willis:
Electronic Protection Devices manufactures several devices which protect computers and other sensitive electronic equipment against power surges. These cost between $50 and $150. The Lemon surge protector is made for small computers primarily. It has six outlets and plugs into any standard 120-volt electrical outlet. You just plug whatever needs protecting into it, and electrical spikes will be blocked before they cause damage.
There was also a small release in January 1984 issue of Basic Computing:
Insured Surge Protector
The Lemon AC Surge Protector is as easy to use as an extension cord and it comes with a guarantee that is underwritten by Lloyds of London. The Lemon sells for $59.95 and user's hardware is protected to $2,500 for repair or replacement due to transient voltage surges. The protector provides protection in excess of 6,000 volts and 200 amps and is housed in a bright yellow case, with two LEDs for verifying line or ground protection. Literature is available from Electronic Protection Devices, Inc., P.O. Box 673, Waltham, MA 02254, (800) 343-1813.
Here is a catalog of Electronic Protection Devices, Inc.’s other product.
Have you ever used a Lemon or one of the other products from Electronic Protection Devices, Inc.?
What computer ads would you like to see in the future? Please comment below. If you enjoyed, please share with your friends and relatives. Thank you.
My family had a Lemon, though I seem to remember the one we had being plastic, not painted metal per the above quote, but definitely bright yellow. It was sold to my parents around September 1984 when they bought an Apple //c from Hammett's in Braintree, MA (the ORIGINAL Apple store in South Shore Plaza!). I can remember the sales person giving my father the standard line of "You wouldn't want a power surge to ruin your expensive new computer, now would you? That's not covered by the warranty, so really this little surge protector is cheap insurance!"
Was it any good? Well, the computer never suffered from any power surges - though nothing else in the house did either, so... ?
I love the way they look. If they worked well by today’s standards, I’d use them!