Common Age For First Computer

Geek Out: When Did You Get Your First Computer?

June 29, 2010

Most of my friends and I inherited a parent or family member's clunky and chunky desktop as our first computer, but a lot has happened in the past 20 years. Many schools expect kids to use a computer for homework in grade school — if not younger — so it's become more and more common for families to throw down for pricey machines, or iPads if you're lucky like Suri Cruise.

I want to know: How old were you and what year was it when you got your very own computer?

Source: Flickr User iboy

Geek Out Vintage Geek

42 Comments

2 years 21 weeks

The first computer I *owned* was an XT-clone cobbled together from spare parts in 1990. To put that in perspective, in 1977 my high school was considered progressive for offering BASIC programming as a Mathematics-department elective (which I took), and my first computer-related experience was my dad teaching me Hollerith code back in 1967...

henderson1026 2 years 42 weeks

I had a DOS (is that right?) hand-me-down from Grandpa when I was 4 that I played Reader Rabbit on, first family PC was when I was 10 and I bought my own computer when I went off to college.

2 years 42 weeks

I love these comments, sadly, I might be the oldest one here! Got my first desktop in 1987 I think, an IBM pc clone. I had used computers at work for a long time but when the home versions came out it was great to get one and have a Compuserve account and a wide format dot matrix printer. Now I can't even imagine life without my laptop!

leeluvfashion 2 years 43 weeks

My first "brand new" computer was a HP laptop with the new-at-the-time Windows 2000 and I was 11 years old. I was through the roof with excitement considering I had been using an inherited Packard Bell Monitor+Tower+Speakers circa 1996. That was an upgrade all right. :P

hautepink 2 years 43 weeks

I always used Apple in school but I got a PC from COMPUSA when I was 12. My dad was super stoked about getting that Compaq and I was excited to have my own AOL account to be able to chat chat chat, but alas, not all my friends had an amazing machine like me! Sense the Sarcasm? My first Apple was a 15 inch Powerbook G4, and I still have, i don't use it, but I have a serious relationship with it. I try to regard this as my first machine because i loved it so much.

2 years 43 weeks

1986. I was twelve and I had a TRS-80 w/16kb memory..color computer 2. Back then it was like no memory when turned off as it deleted all lines of code. But it was fun to see how machines processed information compared to humans..at least computer method was predictable lol. Memory lane... To print on screen or paper "hello" and "this takes too long" the first line is for the screen and the other is to print one line on paper. 10 print, "hello" 20 print #-2,"this takes too long"pos(-2) Run Makes ya appreciate typing a ten paragraph email huh? The # sign was to signal a device was needed for the print command,- was to indicate which was coming up and 2 was device number the comma meant command was next and the quotes signified what was to be printed. The pos command was useless because according to radio shack, it closed the command line. Not needed though. If you had a special cassette player you typed csave to save before running program because some only ran once then deleted itself. So you had to manual retype all 100/200 lines of code one by one to reuse the computer as it had no hard drive. Aahh those were the days when you could "tinker" with the code..now days its locked away. By the way I am typing this on my 16gig blackberry storm 2 lol. How far have we come?

2 years 43 weeks

First computer was when I was 13, a Texas Instruments TI99/4A home computer. Must have been 1982 or somewhere around there.

2 years 45 weeks

Rofl; We had an Apple when I was 10 or 11 so 1980-81, my first personal was a commodore 64 the following year. All the kids had to share it, but I was really the only one who used it for anything but games.

phatE 2 years 45 weeks

should clarify- my family has always had one, but i got my own in 7th grade :)

phatE 2 years 45 weeks

i don't remember not having a computer.. i got my own when i was in 7th grade - it was one of those imacs that came in different colors.. ha

eetzel 2 years 45 weeks

I got the Radio Shack version of the Commodor 64 in 82 or 83. It was only a 32 not a 64. I was 15 or so.

millarci 2 years 45 weeks

I got my very own computer when I went off to college (at age 20). It was a Mac Power G4 with a 12" (yes I said 12") flat screen. Growing up, I used the family computer which was an old commodore and then we got a compaq.

BellaVida12 2 years 45 weeks

my first computer ...i was 12. it was an old desk top

witchbaby 2 years 45 weeks

1997, I was 11. It was a gateway huge tower, with I think a 2 gb hard drive. I know it was for sure under 5gb.

bsanf3 2 years 45 weeks

In 1983 a Commodore 64, but used computers earlier then that

2 years 45 weeks

10?, Amiga 500 (with HD!), 1994?

2 years 46 weeks

I was 5, but I knew how to use one at 3. My mom remembers coming home from the hospital about 3 weeks after I was born and seeing me in my daddy's lap watching him on the computer

fidlet 2 years 46 weeks

I was 8 or 9, and I got a Commodore VIC20...then a year or so later I got the Commodore 64, which I used until I was 15. It was such an AWESOME computer...I played some mad Ultima games on that baby!

aniline 2 years 46 weeks

@JessiLee99 - OMG I loved our dot matrix printer! It was soooo loud and screechy. I loved tearing the sides off of the paper though. I made pictures & stories with this program called KidWriter.

TheEnchantedOne 2 years 46 weeks

13 :)

Sanveann 2 years 46 weeks

I was 9, it was 1985, and the computer was a Commodore 128. My geekdom started early! :)

JessiLee99 2 years 46 weeks

I had an IBM PC Jr., and it was 1984. I was 3, and my favorite programs were face maker, and and some variation of paint shop where I made scribbles in pretty colors, and printed them out on the dot matrix printer. It was awesome.

Sarabear 2 years 46 weeks

I got my first computer around my junior year in high school. Bought myself my first laptop when I was a junior in college.

Morokea 2 years 46 weeks

We always had a "family" computer, but when I was 8 (in 1998) I got one of those newfangled iMacs that had just come out. I've had Macs ever since then - that was my first and only desktop though. I learned SO MUCH on the internet, and I really do mean good stuff. :)

n00dledancer 2 years 46 weeks

i was about six when i started using the family apple. i got my own laptop a couple months before i started uni in 2001.

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42 Comments

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