Today, in 1982, Intel introduced its “showstopping” 80286 processor. This 16-bit fully x86 software compatible CPU delivered some major performance and architectural advancements over the Intel 8086 and 8088, and would continue to be produced and feature in PC systems well into the 1990s.
Development of the 80286 began in 1978, the same year Intel introduced its 8086 CPU. Intel studiously completed six months of field research among customers to steer the next-gen CPU’s direction. Then, in 1982, the 80186 (an update to the 8086) and our headlining 80286 were rolled out, but only the latter would “dramatically reconceptualize the microprocessor's possibilities for personal computing,” says Intel.
