Few people have heard of it, yet many consider John Blankenbaker's KENBAK-1 to be the first commercial personal computer.
Commodore 1702 Video Monitor
By bohus
This monitor was made to be coupled to the venerable Commodore 64 home computer. While you could connect your C64 to your home TV (a function coming back to mainstream computers only relatively recently), you realize a better display hooking up to the 1702.
The monitor produces a really high quality NTSC or PAL display, and I still use them to hook up video equipment. It only has mono audio (of course all computers were mono then), and sports front and rear video inputs; one with separate Luma and Chroma inputs for S-video (after you solder the appropriate cable of course). I also like that the monitor's neutral-ish colors (isn't as dated as a mid 80's TV should be), and the squarish shape means that you can stack 'em (which is good since they're pretty easy to find for about $2 at the thrift... um, I have quite a few).
Not only do I admire the high quality and longevity of this display, but it's also a reminder of a time when a single company could providing everything that you needed for your computing experience... and make it affordable to boot.
