Computer Hardware Companies

3dfx Interactive made cutting-edge 3D graphics processing units and graphics cards. The company dominated the field in the late 1990s. By the end of 2000, it faced a major failure in the PC industry. 3dfx Interactive was based in San Jose, California. Near bankruptcy, NVIDIA Corporation bought many of its intellectual assets and employees. 3dfx Interactive filed for bankruptcy on October 15, 2002. Ross Smith, Gary Tarolli, and S founded the company in 1994.

Acer Inc. is a Taiwanese multinational hardware and electronics corporation. It specializes in advanced electronics technology and is headquartered in Xizhi, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Acer makes desktop and laptop PCs, tablet computers, servers, storage devices, displays, LED, LCD and plasma televisions, smartphones, and peripherals. Acer also offers e-business services to businesses, governments, and consumers. In 2014, Acer became the fourth-largest personal computer vendor globally. In the early 2000s, Acer changed its business model, moving from making products to designing them.

Acorn Computers Ltd. was a British computer company. It started in Cambridge, England, in 1978. The company made popular computers like the Acorn Electron and the Acorn Archimedes. Acorn's BBC Micro computer dominated the UK educational computer market during the 1980s. The company split into several operations in 1998, but its work includes developing RISC personal computers; RISC OS still exists.

Acorn Computers Ltd. operated out of Nottingham, England. In early 2006, the company licensed the dormant Acorn Computers trademark from the French firm Aristide & Co Antiquaire De Marques. This firm sold IBM PC compatible computers; it had no link to ARM.

Ad Lib, Inc. manufactured sound cards and other computer equipment in Canada. Martin Prevel, a former music professor and vice-dean at Université Laval, founded the company. The company's main product, the AdLib Music Synthesizer Card, or the AdLib, became the first add-on sound card game developers widely accepted. It became the first standard for audio reproduction. Emulators like AdPlug and VDMSound can recreate the AdLib's function today. Emulating the AdLib Gold 1000 presents a greater challenge.

Alienware is an American computer hardware branch of Dell, Inc. Dell makes this hardware for gaming. Alienware's look has changed over the years. Nelson Gonzalez and Alex Aguila founded Alienware in 1996. Alienware's main office is in The Hammocks, Florida, near Miami.

American Megatrends Incorporated makes PC hardware and firmware. Pat Sarma and S. Shankar founded the company in 1985; S. Shankar served as chairman and president until 2011. The company sits at Building 200, 5555 Oakbrook Parkway in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States, near Norcross. The firm began making complete motherboards, targeting the high-end market. PCs Ltd, later Dell Computers, was the first customer. The hardware business then moved to Taiwan for original design.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), formerly Apple Computer Inc., is an American company. It designs and builds consumer electronics and software. Apple makes Macintosh computers, the iPod, and the iPhone. Apple software includes Mac OS X, iTunes, the iLife suite, the iWork suite, and Final Cut Studio. The company runs over 250 retail stores across nine countries.

Owen Hill founded Applied Technology in Australia in 1975. He pioneered home computers running CP/M on Zilog Z80 microprocessors. Their MicroBee computer became the first commercial personal computer made in Australia. Schools in Australia and Sweden, plus BMW car dealers in Australia, used these computers. Applied Technology later became Microbee Systems, Microworld, and Honeysoft. Mid-1980s models include the Applied Technology S100, Micro Bee 32IC, Micro Bee 128K, "Computer in a Book," and the 256TC.

Arctic Switzerland AG, formerly Arctic Cooling, makes computer cooling parts. They supply CPU and graphics card coolers, case fans, and thermal compound. Since 2010, Arctic grew its business. They started products for consumer needs beyond computer cooling hardware. Arctic now offers audio, home entertainment, computer peripherals, and RC toys. Arctic was nominated for the PCR Awards finalists in 2012. Arctic started in 2001. Arctic has offices in Hong Kong and the United States.

Aria Networks creates software for network planning and design for the telecommunications industry.

ASRock Inc. builds motherboards, industrial PCs, and home theater PCs. Ted Hsu leads ASRock in Taiwan. ASRock began in 2002. Pegatron owns ASRock now.

AsusTek Computer Inc. is a Taiwan-based company making computer and phone hardware and electronics. It is headquartered in Beitou District, Taipei, Taiwan. Products include desktops, laptops, netbooks, mobile phones, networking gear, monitors, WIFI routers, projectors, motherboards, graphics cards, optical storage, multimedia products, peripherals, wearables, servers, workstations, and tablet PCs. The company also makes original equipment (OEM). Asus ranked as the world's fifth-largest PC vendor by 2017 unit sales. BusinessWeek listed Asus in "InfoTech 100" and "Asia's Top 10 I".

AVADirect Custom Computers, Inc. makes computers in Twinsburg, Ohio, near Cleveland. The company builds customized systems: business computers, gaming computers, notebooks, Home theater PCs, Microsoft Windows and Linux servers, and high-end workstations. AVADirect holds a GSA Schedule contract. They partner with major hardware suppliers. AVADirect is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and a Premier Intel Channel Partner. This makes them one of the few small computer makers fully compliant with requirements.

AVerMedia Technologies, Inc. is located in New Taipei City, Taiwan. It listed on the stock market in 2000. AVerMedia Technologies designs, manufactures, and markets PC/tablet/mobile TV watching solutions. They focus on high-definition video and real-time audio-visual products.

Axis Communications AB makes network cameras for physical security and video surveillance. Axis Communications serves transport, infrastructure, retail, banking, education, government, and industrial markets. Axis Communications began as an IT company selling print servers. The company used its network and embedded computing skills to create security network cameras. Most Axis Communications products feature an embedded computer with flash memory running a custom Linux version. One of their major technology breakthroughs...

Belkin International, Inc. is an American consumer electronics manufacturer focusing on connectivity devices. Headquartered in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California, Belkin sells many consumer and commercial lines. These include routers, iPod and iPhone accessories, mobile computing accessories, surge protectors, network switches, hubs, cables, KVM switches, racks and enclosures, and other peripherals.

Biostar Microtech International Corp, or Biostar, makes computer hardware in Taiwan. It designs and manufactures motherboards, video cards, expansion cards, thermal grease, headphones, home theater PCs, remote controls, desktops, barebone computers, system-on-chip solutions, and industrial PCs. In October 2008, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council awarded Biostar "Top 20 Taiwan Global Brand" with a US$46 million brand value estimate. Only three companies qualified for the Top 20 list.

Check Point Software Technologies leads Internet security. The company dominates the global markets for enterprise firewalls, personal firewalls, data security, and VPNs. Check Point focuses on IT security using its wide portfolio of network security, data security, and security management solutions. The NGX platform gives Check Point a single security design for many solutions, protecting business communications and resources across corporate networks, applications, remote workers, branch offices, and partner extranets.

Chieftec Industrial Co., Ltd. started in 1990. This company makes computer cases and power supply units. Its headquarters sits in Taiwan, but production happens in Guangdong and Zhejiang in mainland China. Because Europe is a key market, Chieftec has a major sales office in Germany.

The Chyron Corporation is based in Melville, New York. It develops products and services for digital broadcast graphics. Solutions include the Axis World Graphics online content creation software and order management system. The company also offers on-air graphics systems, clip servers, channel branding, and graphics asset management solutions. Multiple Emmy Awards recognize these solutions. Newsrooms, studios, sports broadcasting facilities, and corporate video environments use them worldwide.

Cirque Corporation is based in Salt Lake City, Utah. It developed and sold the first successful capacitive touchpad, now common in notebook computers. Cirque sells various touch input products, both for original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and direct retail. George E. Gerpheide, PhD, and James L. O'Callaghan founded Cirque in 1991. They created the GlidePoint technology, invented by Dr. Gerpheide in the 1980s.

Clevo manufactures laptop computers exclusively as an OEM/ODM. They build and sell complete laptops under their brand. Clevo also sells laptop chassis to other OEMs who build laptops on those chassis, often customizing them for each customer. Sager Notebook Computers is one OEM that builds on Clevo chassis.

Commodore International made North American home computers and electronics. Commodore International and its subsidiary Commodore Business Machines helped build the home-personal computer industry in the 1970s and 1980s. The company released the best-selling desktop computer, the Commodore 64, and launched the Amiga computer line in 1985.

Compal Electronics is a Taiwanese original design manufacturer. It produces notebook computers, monitors, and televisions for clients like Acer, Lenovo, Dell, Toshiba, Hewlett-Packard, and Fujitsu Siemens Computers. Compal also licenses client brands. In 2010, it shipped over 48 million notebooks as the second-largest contract laptop manufacturer globally.

Compaq Computer Corporation started in 1982. It developed, sold, and supported computers and related products. Compaq made early IBM PC compatible computers, legally reverse-engineering the IBM Personal Computer first. Compaq became the top PC system supplier in the 1990s before HP surpassed it in 2001. After the dot-com bust, HP bought Compaq for US$25 billion in 2002. HP still uses the Compaq brand for lower-end systems. Rod Canion and Ji formed the company.

Cooler Master Co., Ltd. makes computer hardware in Taiwan. The company started in 1992. It sells aftermarket computer chassis, PSUs, coolers, cooling pads, and other gear. Cooler Master also supplies cooling solutions as an OEM vendor for brands like nVIDIA, AMD, and EVGA. Recently, the company grew its operations and brand presence in gaming communities. They sponsored big events like KODE5. Some Cooler Master products won awards, including the iF product design award.

Core International, Inc., known as Core, was a multinational computer and technology corporation based in Boca Raton, Florida, United States. Sony now owns the company, and it no longer exists alone. Hal Prewitt founded the technology firm in 1979 to develop, market, and support computer products. The company gained fame supporting IBM's first business microcomputers, the 5100, 5110, and 5120. With the IBM PC and PC AT, the company offered extensive disk drives, backup systems, and personal computer products.

Corsair Components, Inc. is an American computer peripherals and hardware company. It is based in Fremont, California. The company formed in California in January 1994. It reincorporated in Delaware in 2007. In January 2010, the company incorporated again in Delaware as Corsair Components, Inc. Corsair designs and sells computer products. These include high-speed DRAM modules, ATX power supplies, USB flash drives, memory and case cooling solutions, computer cases, solid-state drives, and speakers. The company's worldwide headquarters remains in Fremont, California.

Cromemco was a microcomputer company in Mountain View, California. It made high-end Z80-based S-100 bus computers early in the personal computer revolution. The Cromemco Cyclops was the first digital camera. The Cromemco Dazzler was the first color graphics interface for personal computers. Harry Garland and Roger Melen, two Stanford Ph.D. students, started the company as a partnership in 1974. The company got its name from their residence at Stanford University. Cromemco incorporated in 1976. Inc. Magazine named Cromemco in the top ten fastest in December 1981.

CyberConXion is a computer services company located in Wayne, NJ. The company operates three independent locations: one in Wayne, one in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and one in Rockville, Maryland. These storefronts offered computer services for individuals and small businesses. They primarily functioned as an internet café or a LAN gaming experience. Tournaments happened often at all locations. This shows the company focuses most of its time and resources on gaming. The CyberConXion in Wayne...

D-Wave Systems, Inc. is a quantum computing company based in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. On May 11, 2011, D-Wave Systems announced D-Wave One. This is the world's first commercially available quantum computer. It uses a 128-qubit chipset and quantum annealing to solve optimization problems. In May 2013, NASA, Google, and the Universities Space Research Association announced a collaboration. This partnership launched a Quantum Artificial Intelligence Lab. This lab uses the D-Wave Two 512-qubit quantum computer for research into machine learning, among other things.

DFI, Diamond Flower Inc., manufactures motherboards. The company designs and makes computer hardware products. These products include motherboards, Smart Grids, Slot Machines, Automated Teller Machines, High-Speed Weigh-In-Motion systems, and industrial PCs. DFI is based in Taiwan.

Dialexia Communications, Inc. is a private Canadian corporation. It is based in Montréal, Quebec. The company makes, develops, and sells VoIP telecommunication products and services. Dialexia develops webRTC-enabled PBX software for organizations in certain fields like education and hospitality. This software lets users link multiple phones, share lines across phones, and add business PBX features like voicemail, caller ID, call forwarding, and call recording to their virtual PBX.

DIG64 or Developers' Interface Guide for 64-bit Intel Architecture Servers unites several top tech firms. These include Groupe Bull, Fujitsu Siemens, Hitachi, HP, Intel, NEC, and Unisys. The corporation drives interoperability on Itanium platforms. They support a specification called DIG64. This specification helps member companies build better, stronger products for Itanium processor family systems.

Digi International started in 1985 as DigiBoard. It is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, USA. The company became Digi International in 1989. It trades on the NASDAQ National Market under the symbol DGII. Digi International first offered intelligent ISA/PCI boards with multiple asynchronous serial interfaces for PCs. Multi-port serial boards still exist in its product line. Now, the company focuses on embedded and external network communication solutions, plus enterprise-class USB products. The company has a full range of radio modems and embedded modules.

Digital Equipment Corporation, also known as DEC, used the trademark Digital. DEC was a major American computer industry company from the 1960s through the 1990s. DEC sold computer systems, software, and peripherals. Its PDP and VAX products sold best among minicomputers. From 1957 to 1992, its headquarters sat in a former wool mill in Maynard, Massachusetts. The location was renamed Clock Tower Place and now hosts several companies. Compaq bought DEC in June 1998. Compaq then merged with [rest of sentence omitted for flow, preserving original factual structure].

Dragon Data produced home computers in Wales during the early 1980s. The Dragon 32 and Dragon 64 machines strongly looked like the Tandy TRS-80 Color Computer. Both used a standard Motorola datasheet setup for the three main parts. These machines existed in 32KB and 64KB versions. The Dragon Data history from 1982 to 1984 involved ups and downs. A Toy Company named Mettoy started the company. Initial good sales suggested a bright future. At its peak, Dragon Data negotiated with Rexnord's Tano Corporation to form a North Am.

Eric Chung Kwan-yee, a businessman from mainland China, started the Hong Kong-based EACA group in December 1972. He moved from Guangzhou to the British colony as a young man. EACA International Ltd made Pong-style video games from 1975 to 1983. The company also made thousands of computers named Genie, including the Video Genies I, II, and III, and the Colour Genie. They also made Apple II compatible machines and Radio Shack clones.

Ebuyer operates as an electronic commerce retailer located in Howden, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It stands as the largest independent online seller of computer and electrical goods in the United Kingdom. The Ebuyer website ranks 210th most visited site in the UK [Alexa.com ranking] and holds 1.3 million registered customers. Ebuyer has key business partnerships, including Hewlett Packard. Microsoft, Toshiba, Sony, and Zoostorm are other partners. Ebuyer sponsored the west stand at The Kingston Communications Stadium in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire.

Elitegroup Computer Systems Co., Ltd is a Taiwan electronics firm. It makes PC motherboards. In 2002, production reached 24 million units. Many of these motherboards serve OEM customers for systems made by brands like IBM, Compaq, and Zoostorm. Micro-Star International and ASRock compete with the company. After ECS bought laptop maker Uniwill in 2006, Elitegroup also made products in the desi market.

EMC Corporation is an American company based in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, United States. EMC offers data storage, security, virtualization, analytics, cloud computing, and other products. These products help businesses store, manage, protect, and analyze data. EMC targets large companies and small- to medium-sized businesses across different markets. The stock appeared on the New York Stock Exchange on April 6, 1986, and it trades on the S&P 500 index. EMC employs over 60,000 people and provides the world's largest offerings in its field.