Jump to content
 







Main menu
   


Navigation  



Main page
Contents
Current events
Random article
About Wikipedia
Contact us
Donate
 




Contribute  



Help
Learn to edit
Community portal
Recent changes
Upload file
 








Search  

































Create account

Log in
 









Create account
 Log in
 




Pages for logged out editors learn more  



Contributions
Talk
 



















Contents

   



(Top)
 


1 History  





2 Innovations  



2.1  Home theater PC  





2.2  Tiny Trainer  







3 Sponsorship  





4 References  














Tiny Computers






Català
Polski

 

Edit links
 









Article
Talk
 

















Read
Edit
View history
 








Tools
   


Actions  



Read
Edit
View history
 




General  



What links here
Related changes
Upload file
Special pages
Permanent link
Page information
Cite this page
Get shortened URL
Download QR code
Wikidata item
 




Print/export  



Download as PDF
Printable version
 
















Appearance
   

 






From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 


Tiny Computers Limited
Company typePrivate
IndustryComputer hardware
Founded1981; 43 years ago (1981)[1]
Headquarters ,

Number of locations

10+ (United Kingdom)
ParentWillow Vale Electronics limited (1981)

Tiny Computers Limited Is a British computer manufacturer based in Manchester. and London, England.[2] The company was formed by Willow Vale Electronics Limited in 1981, and is based in Manchester & London.

History[edit]

Tiny Computers enjoyed great success during the latter half of the 1990s, having retail units throughout the United Kingdom as well as launching in the United States and the Far East. The company claimed to have sold 400,000 units in 2000 and signed a contract worth £40m with Scottish manufacturer Fullarton Computer Industries in August 2001.

Tiny cited reduced air freight fees and a shorter, more efficient supply chain as their reason for choosing a firm based in the United Kingdom over Asian OEMs who had lower base costs.

In early 2023 Tiny started to offer new and refurbished Apple products via multiple online platforms

Innovations[edit]

Home theater PC[edit]

In March 2001, the company released one of the first home theater PCs, called the Takami system.[3] The PC was contained in a flat case with a similar form factor to a VHS player, and was intended to be placed under a television rather than at a computer desk as was typical during the 1990s. Bundles including a plasma television and other home cinema equipment were also sold.

Despite its innovative nature, the Takami was not a commercial success, with only 5,000 units being sold during 2001.[4]

One of the opening screens in the Tiny Trainer e learning package

Tiny Trainer[edit]

In 2000, in an attempt to make computing easier for those who had little to no experience with PCs, Tiny commissioned e-learning company VSI Communications Group to create a 'virtual mentor' named Tiny Trainer. An interactive animation ran automatically when the PC first booted up and gave users a brief introduction to computers in general, the Windows operating system as well as Tiny's own online services.[5]

Tiny Trainer was based on the same technology platform as VSI's Mentor interactive help series, and was tightly integrated with a Tiny specific Windows ME version of Mentor that also came bundled on Tiny's computers.

Sponsorship[edit]

Tiny sponsored Wimbledon F.C. shirts between 1999 and 2000.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Company details for TINY COMPUTERS LIMITED". UKData.com. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  • ^ "Company Overview of Tiny Computers". Businessweek. Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 19 November 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
  • ^ Blincoe, Robert (13 March 2001). "Tiny shows off home entertainment box". The Register (via Wayback Machine). Archived from the original on 26 June 2001. Retrieved 14 November 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  • ^ Blincoe, Robert (16 October 2001). "Tiny's home entertainment boxes disappoint". The Register. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  • ^ "British Computer Maker Bundles Mentor(TM) to Reduce Support Costs". PRNewsWire. 5 March 2001. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
  • ]


  • t
  • e

  • Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tiny_Computers&oldid=1221935122"

    Categories: 
    Information technology company stubs
    British companies established in 1981
    Computer companies established in 1981
    Hidden categories: 
    CS1 maint: unfit URL
    Articles with short description
    Short description is different from Wikidata
    Use dmy dates from March 2015
    Use British English from March 2015
    All stub articles
     



    This page was last edited on 2 May 2024, at 21:43 (UTC).

    Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.



    Privacy policy

    About Wikipedia

    Disclaimers

    Contact Wikipedia

    Code of Conduct

    Developers

    Statistics

    Cookie statement

    Mobile view



    Wikimedia Foundation
    Powered by MediaWiki