In 1989 Apple buried about 2,700 Lisa computers, each of which had cost nearly $10,000 at launch, in a landfill in Utah, United States; a product that despite its commercial failure later played an important role in shaping the future of computing.
Before Apple became one of the world’s largest technology companies, it experienced investments that failed to succeed contrary to expectations. Among these projects, the Lisa computer is counted as one of the company’s most well-known commercial failures.
Apple launched the Lisa in 1983 at a price of about $9,995; a price that was very high at the time and limited access for many users and small businesses to the device.
An advanced computer for its time
When introduced, the Lisa represented a significant leap in the world of personal computers. This computer used a graphical user interface and allowed users to interact with windows, icons and menus instead of relying entirely on text commands.
The use of a mouse was also another important feature of this system. Such technologies were considered very advanced at the time, but the device’s high cost became one of the main obstacles to its success. In addition to the high price, the Lisa faced other problems including less-than-desirable performance, a limited number of compatible software, and some technical defects.
Competition from within Apple
Lisa’s problems became more serious when Apple introduced the Macintosh at a much lower price. As a result, Lisa faced a powerful competitor within the company itself.
With declining demand for Lisa, Apple was left with thousands of unsold units; products that no longer had significant commercial value for the company.
Burial of 2,700 units in Utah
Apple eventually decided in 1989 to dispose of the remaining Lisa inventory. About 2,700 of these computers were moved to a landfill in Logan, Utah and buried underground.
Thus, one of Apple’s most ambitious projects of that era met an unexpected fate and thousands of machines that were once a symbol of the future of computing became electronic waste.
A commercial failure, but not entirely technological
Despite its commercial failure, Lisa cannot be considered a complete technological failure. Many of the ideas used in this computer later played a role in shaping how users interact with computers.
The graphical interface, windows, icons and the use of a mouse were among the concepts that later became key elements of Macintosh computers and many other computers.
The Lisa story shows that even advanced technology, if introduced at the wrong time and at the wrong price, may fail.
About 37 years after these machines were buried, the Lisa affair remains one of the strangest chapters in Apple’s history; the story of a product that, although a commercial failure, helped some of its ideas change the course of the computing world.