Computer History Museum N Shoreline Blvd, Mountain View

Computer History Museum Reviews

• C

  CA Elias
  5

  What an achievement. I took my son who was studying computer science so he could experience where it all started and to see the development of technology. Then years later, I took my dad. My dad worked at IBM in the 50s & 60s. The day we attended, an IBM set of "adding machines" was in the demo room. It was his first product. I saw his eyes light up talking about the product & how he traveled around selling it. The docents were excellent.

• A

  Ahmad Baitalmal
  5

  You shouldn’t leave Silicon Valley without dedicating a day to visit the Computer History Museum. One of my top recommend places I advise anyone visiting to go to. It gives an absolute eye-opening perspective on how we got to the tech we use ubiquitously everyday and what people had to solve for us to be here.

• C

  Cerenade Me
  5

  I planned an entire trip from 400 miles away just to go to this museum and it was SO worth it! Plan on spending an entire day to really see it all and appreciate all the exhibits. If you think this is just a placeholder for technological artifacts, you're wrong. It's so much more than that, with lots of interactive things for people of all ages. It's very inspirational to see where we have come with regards to our computing abilities and how we have used technology to assist us, and enrich our daily lives. And yes, you can even play "Pong!" The cafe in the front of the museum actually has excellent food, and it's not ridiculously expensive. Try the falafel sandwich and the vegetarian chili - SO good! If we would've had an extra day, we'd have come back for another couple hours just to spend more time in the demo rooms. This visit absolutely was the highlight of our trip.

• I

  Igor Garbuz
  5

  Lovely place for everybody who likes engineering and electronics. One of the best museum I have ever visited. If you are in Silicon Valley and have free time just go there. You can spend inside from 3 to 4 hours, but it`s worth every moment.

• Z

  Zuza Kulej
  5

  Super interesting! I was a bit surprised that they offer 2-days ticket, but now I get it. For me everything was super cool, so to explore every topic and labs personally I would recommend 5-6h or just coming twice. :)

• A

  Antonina Calahorrano
  5

  Awesome place to visit if you are hanging near Palo Alto. Tons of stuff (I had three hours to visit everything and still felt like I needed more time!) and friendly staff. Pro tip: it is not going to be that interesting for kids less than 11 or so years old, so unless there's a special "kids friendly" event, I would go to another place if you have children with you.

• S

  Stefan Schnabl
  5

  Nothing better than to walk in the footsteps of the great pioneers of computing in the CHM in the middle of silicone valley. Technology has undoubtedly changed everything, and in the CHM you can see and hear from the inventors and pioneers behind it. We took the free tour, which provided an extra layer of helpful details, as well as red thread through the exhibitions. Can't recommend highly enough if you are interested in the topic.

• C

  Chetan Belegere
  4

  Plan to spend a whole day. I dont think i will want to do it a second time. But the first time is definitely worth esp with kids who may have not even heard or seen what old computers, vacuum tubes, transistors looked like. If you are a history buff too, you will enjoy it even more

• K

  Kel V
  4

  So many speak n spells! Surprisingly low tech bathrooms.

• A

  Alex Vallée
  5

  I visited this last time I was down in the Valley. I really like this museum. As someone in tech this (and science centers) is one of the places that just hit that sweet spot for me. I spent the whole day here and didn't have time to see everything. I recommend you do the tour with the guide first, get an idea of the different areas and then you can wander back in for your area of interest. I spent a good hour before being asked to leave for closing in the early semiconductors area, it was great. The only disappointment was that the Babbage difference engine was not working that day.