Cleaning company accidentally found 2 of the world's first 50 year old desktop computers while cleaning the house

There's nothing you can't find when you're cleaning your grandmother's flat or storeroom. The staff of Just Clear cleaning company in London always find something interesting, but recently they came across a real rarity - 2 Q1 computers, which were produced back in 1972.

Details

The cleaners were cleaning a house and found the old computers under a pile of boxes. Not knowing what it even was, they decided to keep the find and seek the help of a computer expert.

It turned out that this model was the world's first fully integrated desktop computer equipped with a single-chip microprocessor. The Q1, which looked more like a typewriter, was a big step forward in computer history. It was known for its high-quality build, unique design, and neon-orange plasma display. The computer was manufactured by the Q1 Corporation in America, with only a few copies brought to the UK.

""The computers were buried under a hoard of boxes and initially we just thought they were two nice pieces of 1970s computing history that perhaps we would have data-wiped if not suitable for reuse and sent to our E-waste stream. However, after consulting our advisors and conducting research over time, we realised we had, in fact, uncovered two ultra-rare items, of which there are only three known in existence in the world today"," Brendan O'Shea, head of Just Clear, told Just Clear.

The computers are now on display at a technology exhibition at Kingston University. Later, they will probably go to auction.

Source: Mirror