There were also monochrome flat-panel displays, either LCD or plasma. My first¹ computer was a 25Mhz 386 lunchbox luggable with a plasma (amber) display. It was portable-ish and ran on AC power only.
---
1. Well really my second. The first was a Spectravideo computer I got for writing demo programs for the midwest distributor when I was in high school. It wasn't very useful though.
Something similar was the first computer I used too. My answer would.be: My dad bought it. This was a common form factor for personal computers back then, and they were sold in stores to to the general public.
At the time I periodically travelled to give LaTeX workshops. I wanted something that I could set up in my hotel room to be able to work on course prep. Laptops were much more expensive and this came out to be competitive, if not cheaper than buying a desktop plus monitor.
---
1. Well really my second. The first was a Spectravideo computer I got for writing demo programs for the midwest distributor when I was in high school. It wasn't very useful though.