Unlike previous computing devices that relied on decimal systems, the ABC used binary (1s and 0s) to represent data, which became the standard for computers thereafter. ABC is also one of the first computers to use electronic circuits for computation instead of mechanical or electromechanical systems, allowing for faster and more reliable calculations. The ABC separated data storage (memory) from the processing unit (logic operations), a principle still followed in modern computer architecture. It used capacitors to store data and could handle up to 30 simultaneous equations.
ABC employed around 300 vacuum tubes for its logic operations, which made it much faster than earlier mechanical calculators. Vacuum tubes, though bulky and prone to failure, are a key development in electronic computing. The ABC weighed over 700 pounds and could solve up to 29 simultaneous linear equations.