The IBM 305 RAMAC, which debuted in 1956, was the first computer with a hard drive. It was 16 square feet, weighed over a ton, and had to be transported by plane. But it sure as Hell beat punch cards.

IBM unleashed the world's first computer hard drive in 1956. It was bigger than a refrigerator. ... This seminal hard drive was part of a larger machine known as the IBM 305 RAMAC, ...

The IBM 350 disk storage unit stored about 5 MB of data on 50 24-inch disks. The 305 RAMAC with the 350 leased for $3,200/month. Image: IBM Archives.

The 305 RAMAC was one of the last vacuum tube systems designed by IBM, and more than 1,000 of them were built before production ended in 1961. The system took up the better part of an entire room ...

The first RAMAC to be used was in the US auto industry, installed at Chrysler’s MOPAR division in 1957. More than 1,000 systems were built before production ended in 1961. The RAMAC became obsolete ...

IBM announces the 305 and 650 RAMAC (Random Access Memory Accounting) “data processing machines,” incorporating the first-ever disk storage product.

IBM’s 305 RAM disk system is the distant ancestor of the hard drive we know today. The drive was introduced in 1956 as part of IBM’s 305 RAMAC (Random Access Method of Accounting and Control).

The 305 RAMAC was definitely a big deal back then. Here's how IBM pitched the computer in 1956: By the time production ended, in 1961, IBM had manufactured over 1,000 305 RAMACs, which had been leased ...

Check out IBM's 305 RAMAC (Random Access Method of Accounting and Control) hard disk and those gripes about dragging around that USB thumb drive soon evaporate. This 1956 HDD was composed of 50 24 ...

IBM introduced the 305 RAMAC (Random Access Method of Accounting and Control) in 1956. It was the first computer to use a magnetic hard disk drive for storage.

IBM engineers in San Jose, California invented the hard drive in 1956, and it was first sold as part of the IBM 305 RAMAC (Random Access Method of Accounting and Control).