Leading Edge Products
 | |
| Industry | Computers |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1980 in Massachusetts, United States |
| Founders |
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| Defunct | 1997 |
| Fate | Dissolved |
| Parent |
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| Divisions | Leading Edge Hardware Products |
Leading Edge Products, Inc. operated as a computer manufacturer during the 1980s and 1990s, with its headquarters located in Canton, Massachusetts.
History
Established in 1980 by Thomas Shane and Michael Shane, Leading Edge initially specialized in PC accessories, distributing aftermarket items such as Elephant Memory Systems floppy disks and printer ribbons. The company also served as the exclusive North American distributor for printers produced by the Japanese firm C. Itoh, including the budget-friendly dot-matrix model known as "Gorilla Banana." In 1984, Leading Edge divested its aftermarket product segment to Dennison Computer Supplies. That same year marked the beginning of integrating Daewoo components into their products, culminating in Daewoo's acquisition of Leading Edge in 1989 amid its Chapter 11 recovery process. Financial challenges were partially attributed to legal conflicts involving Mitsubishi.
In January 1990, Daewoo appointed Al Agbay, formerly of Panasonic, as CEO to spearhead the company's turnaround. Under Agbay’s guidance, Leading Edge reimbursed dealers $16 million and increased annual revenue to over $250 million within three years. Despite this progress, disagreements over contracts led to the termination of this collaboration. Subsequently, in October 1995, Daewoo sold Leading Edge to the Swiss investment firm Manuhold Investment AG. Although the company moved 185,000 PC clones in the US market during 1994, sales declined drastically in 1995. Ultimately, Leading Edge ceased operations by 1997.
Hardware
The first computer released by Leading Edge was the Model M in 1982, priced at $1,695 including a monitor and dual floppy disk drives. It was powered by an Intel 8088-2 CPU clocked at 7.16 MHz on an 8-bit bus architecture; the "M" indicated the use of Mitsubishi parts.
In June 1985, the company introduced the Leading Edge Model D, assembled with Daewoo components. This IBM-compatible machine featured an Intel 8088 processor, two floppy drives, 256 KB of RAM, and an amber display for $1,495. It earned recognition as a Consumer Reports "Best Buy" and sold approximately 125,000 units during its initial year before its price dropped to $1,295.
Leading Edge distinguished itself by equipping its systems with a standard 30 MB hard drive at a time when IBM’s PC-XT models offered only 20 MB. Later models included the D86 with an Intel 8086 processor; the D2 in 1988 featuring an Intel 80286 CPU running at 10 MHz paired with a 65 MB hard disk priced at $2,495; and the D3 utilizing an Intel 80386 processor.
By 1993, the WinPro Series incorporated Intel i486 processors starting from SX25 variants upward. These configurations typically included dual floppy drives, a 170 MB hard drive, and expandable memory ranging from 4 MB up to 20 MB. Operating systems provided were Windows 3.1 and MS-DOS 5.0 with prices spanning from $1,299.99 to $2,199.99.
In 1994, Leading Edge launched the Wintower 486 Multimedia PC equipped with a 66 MHz processor, 8 MB RAM, a 340 MB hard drive, CD-ROM drive, modem, sound card, and monitor for about $2,600.
Software
Leading Edge introduced the Leading Edge Word Processor (LEWP), which was recognized by PC magazine in 1986 as one of the premier corporate word processing solutions due to its comprehensive features and cost-effectiveness. Launched in 1983 and priced at $100 by 1984, LEWP was designed with user accessibility in mind, incorporated automatic data backup, and required 256 K of RAM—a considerable amount for that period. The software supported simultaneous operation of both floppy disk drives for data storage and included advanced capabilities such as immediate correction of letter transposition errors, a functionality that was ahead of many competing products at the time.
In 1984, Leading Edge expanded its software portfolio by releasing Nutshell, an early database program created by Nashoba Systems and distributed under the Leading Edge brand. Nutshell acted as a forerunner to FileMaker and FileMaker Pro, representing the company's move into the business application market.