'One Per Desk' microcomputer

'One Per Desk' microcomputer.

The One Per Desk, or OPD, was an innovative 1980s business computer. It was based on the design of an up-market home computer, the Sinclair QL, but customised by ICL to make it better suited for the busy office executive.

The OPD had a built in telephone and modem, allowing the user to make phone calls, access email, and connect to early online services, like Prestel. It was supplied with a range of office software to automate many tasks that had previously been paper based. Applications programs could be easily loaded from plug-in cartridges and there was a built-in pair of highspeed “Microdrive” cassette tape drives for data storage.

The OPD initially cost around £1150 with a black and white screen, considered something of a bargain for a professional business computer. British Telecom marketed a version known as the Merlin Tonto. Although an innovative concept the OPD was not a great success and it lost out to IBM’s PC design, which became the standard business computer for much of the world.