Oct 24, 2025
The IBM System/370
In 1970, IBM introduced the System/370 Model 145, the company’s first mainframe to use silicon memory chips instead of magnetic cores — marking the start of a new technological era. It was up to five times faster than the previous Model 40 and eleven times faster than the Model 30.
Businesses such as banks, airlines, and large distributors loved the System/370 for its speed, expandability, and backward compatibility with the earlier System/360 line. By 1972, IBM had also added virtual memory, allowing programs larger than physical memory to run — a huge leap forward at the time.
In short, the System/370 wasn’t just a new computer — it was a milestone in computing history, ushering in the Silicon Era.
