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Intel 4004
Sign in to saveAlso known as 4004, 4004 microprocessor
4-bit central processing unit; one of the earliest processors made by Intel, made on November 15, 1971
Key facts
- Launched
- November 15, 1971 ; 54 years ago ( November 15, 1971 )
- Marketed by
- Intel
- Designed by
- Intel
- Common manufacturer
- Intel
- Max cpu clock rate
- 740 kHz to 750 kHz
- Data width
- 4 bits
- Address width
- 12 bits (multiplexed)
- Transistors
- 2,300
- Package
- 16-pin dual in-line package
- Socket
- DIP16
- Application
- Busicom calculator, arithmetic manipulation
- Technology node
- 10 μm
- Instruction set
- 4-bit BCD -oriented
- Successor
- Intel 4040
via Wikipedia infobox
~37 min read
Encyclopedic overview
The Intel 4004, released by the Intel Corporation on November 15, 1971, was the first in a long line of Intel central processing units (CPUs). Priced at US$60 (equivalent to $477 in 2025), the chip marked both a technological and economic milestone in computing.
The 4-bit 4004 CPU was the first significant commercial example of large-scale integration, using the abilities of the MOS silicon gate technology (SGT) to integrate the CPU into a single chip. Compared to the existing technology, SGT enabled twice the transistor density and five times the operating speed, making future single-chip CPUs feasible. The MCS-4 chipset design, of which the 4004 was a part, served as a model on how to use SGT for complex logic and memory circuits, accelerating the adoption of SGT by the world's semiconductor industry.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Intel 4004” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.