Canon Computer Systems

Canon Computer Systems, Inc. (CCSI), sometimes shortened to Canon Computer, was an American subsidiary of Canon Inc. formed in 1992 to develop and market the parent company's personal computers and workstations. The subsidiary also assumed the responsibility of marketing Canon's printers and photocopiers, which were formerly sold by other Canon divisions. It went defunct in January 2001.

Canon Computer Systems

Former headquarters in Costa Mesa, California
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Computers
Founded	April 1992; 32 years ago (1992-04)
Defunct	January 2001; 23 years ago (2001-01)
Fate	Restructured
Successor	Canon Digital Home and Personal Systems
Headquarters	Costa Mesa, California , United States
Products	Innova series NoteJet Bubble Jet
Parent	Canon Inc.
Website	ccsi.canon.com at the Wayback Machine (archived October 31, 1996)

History

Canon entered the computer industry in the 1970s,^[1] starting with the AX-1 in October 1978. It sported the form factor of a desktop calculator and was fully programmable.^[2][3] This was followed up with the AS-100 in 1982, which was a more-traditional albeit heavier personal computer that ran a Intel 8088 and ran MS-DOS.^[4][3] Canon entered the home computer market in 1984 with the V-20 and V-10 in 1984 and 1985 respectively.^[3] In 1987, the company released the Canon Cat—the brainchild of Jef Raskin who pioneered Apple's original Macintosh.^[5] In 1989, the company took a large stake in NeXT, a computer hardware company founded by Steve Jobs in 1987 after he resigned as CEO of Apple in the mid-1980s.^[6]

In April 1992, Canon spun off their computer manufacturing into Canon Computer Systems, a new subsidiary that also assumed the responsibility of marketing their parent company's printers and photocopiers. The subsidiary initially comprised 100 employees in October 1992, 50 based in Costa Mesa, California. Yasuhiro Tsubota, who founded Epson America in 1978, was named president. Several other higher-ups came from Epson America;^[7] Tsubota left Epson for NeXT 1990, to serve as a consultant for Jobs.^[8] The subsidiary's first offerings were a line of desktop computers and notebook-sized laptops, branded as the Innova and Innova Book respectively. The company expected $125 million in revenue by October 1993.^[7] They allocated $10 million of their initial budget on advertising, hiring the newly formed Hajjar/Kaufman (a spinoff of Dentsu) as their advertising agency.^[9]

Most if not all of the notebooks in the Innova Book line were produced offshore by Taiwanese OEMs. Canon repeatedly turned to Chicony of Taipei, who lent their designs to Canon for their Innova Book 10 and Innova Book 200LS.^[10][11] The former, released in 1994, was a subnotebook four pounds in weight,^[12] while the latter, released in 1995, sported the largest screen of any laptop up to that point, at 11.3 inches diagonal.^[13][14] Canon Computer collaborated with IBM's Japanese subsidiary to produce the Canon NoteJet, a notebook computer with a built-in inkjet printer, introduced to market in 1993.^[15] In March 1994, Canon Computer took the reins of the NeXTstation after NeXT ceased manufacturing hardware in 1993.^[16] They later released the Object.Station, an x86-based workstation based on the NeXTstation design.^[17]

Although Canon Computer set a goal of $1 billion sales by 1997 in 1994, they were considered late newcomers to the market of personal computers.^[18] Innovas and Innova Books continued to be sold until January 1997, when the company quietly left the desktop and notebook market, citing poor sales.^[19] The subsidiary shifted its focus to silicon-on-insulator manufacturing, spending ¥3 billion (US$25.8 million in 1997) to open up a clean room facility at Canon's plant in Hiratsuka, Tokyo. As part of this refocusing, Canon sold its existing shares of NeXT to Apple, who were in the process of acquiring that company after Jobs re-entered Apple in 1997.^[1] Canon Computer continued to sell printers, scanners and digital cameras until January 2001, when the subsidiary was restructured and renamed to Canon Digital Home and Personal Systems. Tsubota was replaced by Ryoichi Bamba.^[20]

Computers

Desktops

Name	Processor	Clock speed (MHz)	Date
Innova 386SX/33	386SX	33	October 1992[21]
Innova 486	486SX	25	October 1992[21]
Innova 486SX/33	486SX	33	August 1993[22]
Innova 486e	486SX	25	August 1993[22]
Innova 486v	486DX2	33–66	August 1993[22]
Innova Vision L33/210	486SX	33	March 1994[23]
Innova Vision L50/340	486DX2	50	March 1994[23]
Innova Media MT4900	486DX4	100	March 1995[24]
Innova Media MT7010	Pentium	75	March 1995[24]
Innova Media MT9110	Pentium	100	March 1995[24]
Innova Media MT7000	Pentium	75	March 1995[24]
Innova Media MT9100	Pentium	90	March 1995[24]
Innova Media MT4610	486DX2	66	June 1995[25]
Innova Media MT9010	Pentium	90	June 1995[25]
Innova Media MT7030	Pentium	75	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT7040	Pentium	75	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT9120	Pentium	100	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT9130	Pentium	100	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT9300	Pentium	100	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT9310	Pentium	100	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT9320	Pentium	133	August 1995[26]
Innova Media MT9600	Pentium	166	June 1996[27]
Innova Pro 5100SD	Pentium	100	May 1996[28]
Innova Pro 5400ST	Pentium	166	May 1996[28]
Innova Media MT9210	Pentium	120	November 1996[29]
Innova Media MT9340	Pentium	133	November 1996[29]
Innova Media MT9350	Pentium	133	November 1996[29]
Innova Media MT9620	Pentium	166	November 1996[29]
Innova Media MT9630	Pentium	166	November 1996[29]
Innova Media MT9800	Pentium	200	November 1996[29]

Notebooks

Innova

Name	Processor	Clock speed (MHz)	Date
Innova 386NX	Am386SX	33	October 1992[30]
Innova 486NX	486SX	25	October 1992[30]
Innova Book 150C	486DX2	50	August 1994[31]
Innova Book 150CT	486DX2	50	August 1994[31]
Innova Book 1110 P75	Pentium	75	November 1995[32]
Innova Book 1100 P75T	Pentium	75	November 1995[32]
Innova Book 1100 P90	Pentium	90	November 1995[32]
Innova Book 1100 P90T	Pentium	90	November 1995[32]
Innova Book 1100 P120T	Pentium	120	November 1995[32]
Innova Book 175C	Cx486	100	November 1995[33]
Innova Book 200LS	486DX4	100	February 1995[14]
Innova Book 300P	Pentium	75	November 1995[33]
Innova Book 350CD	Cx5x86	100	November 1995[33]
Innova Book 360CD	Am5x86	133	April 1996[34]
Innova Book 475CDS	Pentium	100	May 1996[35]
Innova Book 475CDT	Pentium	100	May 1996[35]
Innova Book 620CDT	Pentium	133	June 1996[35]
Innova Book 480CDS	Pentium	100	November 1996[29]
Innova Book 480CDT	Pentium	100	November 1996[29]
Innova Book 490CDS	Pentium	133	November 1996[29]
Innova Book 490CDT	Pentium	133	November 1996[29]

Subnotebooks

Name	Processor	Clock speed (MHz)	Date
Innova Book 10	486SL	33	May 1994[12]
Innova Book 10C	486SL	33	May 1994[12]

NoteJet

Main article: Canon NoteJet

Other

Name	Processor	Clock speed (MHz)	Stock RAM	LCD technology	Date
PN-100	PowerPC 603e	100	16	Active-matrix color	July 1995[36]
Power Notebook	PowerPC 603e	100	32	Active-matrix color	August 1995[37]

Workstations

Name	Processor	Clock speed (MHz)	Hard drive interface	Date
Object.Station 31	Pentium	100	IDE	February 1995[38]
Object.Station 41	Pentium	100	SCSI	February 1995[38]
Object.Station 50	Pentium	100	SCSI	June 1995[39]
Object.Station 52	Pentium	120	SCSI	June 1995[39]
Power Workstation	PowerPC 604 (single or dual)	100, 120, or 133	SCSI	June 1995[40]

References

1. Staff writer (January 7, 1997). "Canon Bows Out of PC Market And Instead Will Produce Wafers". Asian Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company: 7 – via ProQuest.
2. Staff writer (April 15, 2011). "Canon AX-1". IPSJ Computer Museum. Archived from the original on July 3, 2014.
3. Wiltshire, Alex; John Short (2020). Home Computers: 100 Icons that Defined a Digital Generation. MIT Press. ISBN 9780262044011 – via Google Books. Excerpt in Leonard, Marie-Anne (2020). "The Canon V-20, home computing icon". Canon Inc. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021.
4. Staff writer (n.d.). "Canon AS-100". Old-Computers.com. Archived from the original on August 2, 2021.
5. Rubin, Ross (July 27, 2019). "Meet the Canon Cat, the forgotten 1987 alternate-reality Mac". Fast Company. Archived from the original on July 27, 2019.
6. Staff writer (March 2, 1994). "Canon Computer to Ship NextStation". Los Angeles Times. Bloomberg Business News. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021.
7. Vranizan, Michelle (October 24, 1992). "Canon Computer Joins PC Wars". The Orange County Register: C1 – via ProQuest.
8. Levin, Dan (January 1994). "Canon nabs Epson execs". NextWorld Extra. Archived from the original on March 11, 2010 – via Simson.net.
9. Elliott, Stuart (November 16, 1992). "Dentsu Americ Forms a Spinoff". The New York Times: D7 – via ProQuest.
10. Zimmerman, Michael R. (June 27, 1994). "Chicony sows crop of portables". PC Week. 11 (25). Ziff-Davis: 61 – via Gale OneFile.
11. DiCarlo, Lisa (March 27, 1995). "IPC releases slim notebook, big-screen unit". PC Week. 12 (12). Ziff-Davis: 45 – via Gale OneFile.
12. Lee, Yvonne L. (May 9, 1994). "Canon ships color notebooks, ink-jet printers". InfoWorld. 16 (19). IDG Communications: 36 – via Google Books.
13. Somers, Ana (May 30, 1995). "Innova Book: If Screen Size Matters More than Performance". PC Magazine. 14 (10). Ziff-Davis: 40 – via Google Books.
14. Lee, Yvonne L. (February 13, 1995). "Innova Book 200LS line sports largest screen". InfoWorld. 17 (7). IDG Communications: 40 – via Google Books.
15. Lewis, Peter H. (April 18, 1993). "The Executive Computer; Canon's New Laptop Packs a Nice Printer Inside". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 14, 2009. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
16. Staff writer (March 10, 1994). "Canon Computer Systems Forms Advanced Technology Unit in the US for NeXTstation, PowerHouse Boxes". Computer Business Review. New Statesman Media Group. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021.
17. Staff writer (n.d.). "Canon Object.Station". Old-Computers.com. Archived from the original on August 3, 2021.
18. Takahashi, Dean (March 29, 1994). "Canon Computer a Latecomer to PC Movement". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 27, 2021.
19. Kirchner, Jake (July 1997). "The PC Magazine 100". PC Magazine. 16 (13). Ziff-Davis: 213–245 – via Google Books.
20. "Canon U.S.A. Makes Strategic Move to Serve Digital Marketplace". Business Wire. January 5, 2001 – via ProQuest.
21. Staff writer (October 1992). "New Canon desktops, notebooks, printers". Home Furnishings Daily. 66 (43). BridgeTower Media: 115 – via Gale OneFile.
22. Zimmerman, Michael R. (September 27, 1993). "Canon makes a major push into PC arena". PC World. 10 (38). Ziff-Davis: 29 – via Gale OneFile.
23. Staff writer (March 1994). "Canon adds 2 feature-laden PCs". Home Furnishings Daily. 68 (21). BridgeTower Media: 80 – via Gale OneFile.
24. Staff writer (March 13, 1995). "Canon introduces Internet-ready computers for instant infobahn cruising". EDGE. 6 (251). EDGE Publishing: 5 – via Gale OneFile.
25. Staff writer (June 21, 1995). "Multimedia system from Canon touted as plug-and-go". Computing Canada. 21 (13). CEDROM-SNi: 47 – via Gale OneFile.
26. Hernandez, Alejandro; Sherri Snelling (August 30, 1995). "Canon Multimedia Systems Among First to Ship with Windows 95; Six New Next-Generation Innova Media Tower Models in Stores Now". PR Newswire – via Gale OneFile.
27. Spiwak, Marc (June 1996). "Loaded Canon is on target". Windows Magazine. 7 (6). UBM LLC: 104 – via Gale OneFile.
28. Staff writer (May 6, 1996). "Pipeline: Shipping". InfoWorld. 18 (19). IDG Communications: 29 – via Google Books.
29. Staff writer (November 25, 1996). "PC price cuts: Canon cuts prices on new multimedia computers and notebooks". EDGE. 7. EDGE Publishing: 4 – via Gale OneFile.
30. Staff writer (December 22, 1992). "Briefs: Portables, Palmtops, and Peripherals". PC Magazine. Ziff-Davis: 59.
31. Lee, Yvonne L. (August 15, 1994). "Canon notebooks offer built-in sound, accelerated graphics". InfoWorld. 16 (33). IDG Communications: 31 – via Google Books.
32. Lee, Yvonne L. (November 6, 1995). "Canon portables add punch with Pentium". InfoWorld. 17 (45). IDG Communications: 43 – via Google Books.
33. Harrington, Mark (November 13, 1995). "Key notebooks refreshed". Computer Retail Week. 5 (119). UBM LLC: 6 – via Gale OneFile.
34. DiCarlo, Lisa (April 1, 1996). "Dell makes Latitude change; Canon aims for multimedia". PC Week. 13 (13). Ziff-Davis: 43 – via Gale OneFile.
35. DiCarlo, Lisa (April 1, 1996). "Dell makes Latitude change; Canon aims for multimedia". PC Week. 13 (13). Ziff-Davis: 43 – via Gale OneFile.
36. Staff writer (July 10, 1995). "Canon debuts PowerPC line". Computerworld. 29 (28). IDG Communications: 42 – via Google Books.
37. Clyman, John (August 1995). "Power Notebook: PowerPC Goes Mobile". PC Magazine. 14 (14). Ziff-Davis: 40 – via Google Books.
38. Kahn, Scott (February 27, 1995). "Canon object.station takes NextStep to Intel-based systems: Pentium-class action meets 486s". PC Week. 12 (8). Ziff-Davis: N3 – via Gale OneFile.
39. Staff writer (June 5, 1995). "Canon Preps Pentiums". CommunicationsWeek. CMP Publications: 26 – via ProQuest.
40. Quinlan, Tom (June 19, 1995). "Canon unveils PowerPC desktop, notebook systems". InfoWorld. 17 (25). IDG Communications: 40 – via Google Books.

External links

• Official website at the Wayback Machine (archived October 31, 1996)

33°40′17″N 117°52′46″W