Editing IBM Personal Computer (section)

==Reception==
Reception of the IBM PC was extremely positive. Even before its release reviewers were impressed by the advertised specifications of the machine, and upon its release reviews praised virtually every aspect of its design both in comparison to contemporary machines and with regards to new and unexpected features.

Praise was directed at the build quality of the PC, in particular its keyboard, IBM's decision to use open specifications to encourage third party software and hardware development, their speed at delivering documentation and the quality therein, the quality of the video display, and the use of commodity components from established suppliers in the electronics industry.<ref name="lemmons198110">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1981-10/1981_10_BYTE_06-10_Local_Networks#page/n27/mode/2up | title=The IBM Personal Computer / First Impressions | work=[[Byte (magazine)|Byte]] | date=October 1981 | access-date=October 19, 2013 | author=Lemmons, Phil | page=36}}</ref> The price was considered extremely competitive compared to the value per dollar of competing machines.<ref name="williams1982012"/>

Two years after its release, [[Byte (magazine)|''Byte'' magazine]] retrospectively concluded that the PC had succeeded both because of its features – an 80-column screen, open architecture, and high-quality keyboard – and the failure of other computer manufacturers to achieve these features first:

{{Blockquote|In retrospect, it seems IBM stepped into a void that remained, paradoxically, at the center of a crowded market.<ref name="lemmons1984fall">{{cite news | url=https://archive.org/stream/byte-magazine-1984-09/1984_09_BYTE_09-09_Guide_to_the_IBM_PCs#page/n3/mode/2up | title=IBM and Its Personal Computers | work=[[Byte (magazine)|Byte]] | date=Fall 1984 | access-date=18 March 2016 | author=Lemmons, Phil | page=1}}</ref>}}

''[[Creative Computing]]'' that year named the PC the best desktop computer between $2,000 and $4,000, praising its vast hardware and software selection, manufacturer support, and resale value.<ref name="ahl198412">{{Cite magazine |last=Ahl |first=David H. |author-link=David H. Ahl |date=December 1984 |title=Top 12 computers of 1984 |url=https://www.atarimagazines.com/creative/v10n12/10_Top_12_computers_of_1984.php |magazine=Creative Computing |access-date=March 16, 2019}}</ref>

Many IBM PCs remained in service long after their technology became largely obsolete. For instance, as of June 2006 (23–25 years after release) IBM PC and XT models were still in use at the majority of U.S. [[National Weather Service]] upper-air observing sites, processing data returned from [[radiosonde|radiosondes]] attached to [[weather balloon]]s.

Due to its status as the first entry in the extremely influential PC industry, the original IBM PC remains valuable as a collector's item. {{As of|2007}}, the system had a market value of $50–$500.<ref name="McCracken2007">{{cite web|last1=McCracken|first1=Harry|date=August 27, 2007|title=The Most Collectible PCs of All Time|url=https://www.pcworld.com/article/136242/article.html|access-date=September 25, 2017|website=PCWorld|language=en|archive-date=August 22, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170822070004/http://www.pcworld.com/article/136242/article.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>