15/11/2025
The Holborn 9100 was a Dutch personal computer introduced in 1981 by Holborn, a small company founded in 1979 by Hans P***k and Dick Gerdzen. Designed by Studio Vos, the system stood out with its futuristic, organic appearance, combining a monitor, terminal, and keyboard in one unit, paired with an external box holding two 8-inch floppy drives and an optional hard disk. Two main versions existed: a larger multi-user system running the proprietary Holborn OS with light-pen support, and a smaller CP/M-based model without light-pen features. These were sold as the 9100, 7100, 6500, and 6100 series, with the 6100 becoming the most common.
Technically, the machines used a Zilog Z80A CPU at 4 MHz, 72 KB RAM (expandable to 220 KB), and up to 2.5 MB floppy storage. Holborn OS was ROM-based, menu-driven, and designed for ease of use.
Despite strong design and marketing efforts, the computers were extremely expensive—about 30,000 guilders ($10,000)—and quickly overshadowed by IBM’s growing dominance. Only about 200 units were sold before the company went bankrupt in 1983. Today, roughly 20 systems are believed to survive, admired mainly for their striking retro-futuristic design.
