Unisys UK Ltd duly added those three low-end machines to the Burroughs A Series of 48-bit mainframes on Friday, dubbing them Smallframes and saying that the line now offers users of the MCP/AS operating system growth of 115 times from the new A1 to the top-end A15 MX – although perversely, the pre-existing, and continuing, A2 is less powerful than the A1, so that starting with that machine, Unisys could quote an even wider power range. The A1, A4 and A6 come in an 18.5 by 29 by 29 desk-side cabinet which has one to four 125Mb 16.5mS access time hard disk built-in; 12Mb to 48Mb of memory, in increments of 12Mb – 2M-words; four communications lines; and seven input-output DLPs – data link processors – in addition to a distributed function multi-microprocessor, parts in TTL, parts in CMOS, with cache and pipelining. Two further, similarly sized, cabinets can be added to the A4 and A6, while the A1, which confusingly has a better performance than the A2 introduced this time last year – we ran out of numbers – can add one extra cabinet. Unisys is particularly proud of the 1M-bit chips which have allowed up to 48Mb to be crammed on one board – a world first, according to the company. The A1 with 12Mb of memory, 500Mb hard disk, printer, and low cost tape streamer costs UKP65,000. A similarly configured A4, which is rated 1.6 times the A1, costs UKP89,000 and the A6, 3.2 times the A1, is UKP160,000. The three machines support 12 to 24, 20 to 50, and 35 to 100 concurrent users and 96, 192 and 256 terminals respectively. They will be aimed straight at the IBM 9370. According to a UK senior marketing manager, Brian Barnes, the A1 offers 9370 model 20 performance for 40% less while the A4 and the A6 offer 60 and 20% more performance than the 9370 models 40 and 60 respectively at the same price. At the US launch in New York, Unisys chairman W Michael Blumenthal said that the new Unisys Corp had exceeded all its internal forecasts during the first half of 1987.