It stored less than a thumb-drive does today and had just 64KB of RAM, but the first C64 made personal computing possible through an accessible price and friendly, easy-to-use features. The Guinness Book of World Records says the C64 is the best selling single computer model of all time with sales of about 30 million units between 1982 and 1993. Commodore blew it, though, and bigger companies like IBM got into the act. Dell, Apple and other PC manufacturers have since dominated the market. Commodore tanked in the early 1990s.
By Jeremy Caplan and Brendan Lowe