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Even in this dreary phase, the computer industry has a few bright lights. The most dependable star right now is Houston-based Compaq, which makes IBM- compatible desktop and portable machines. Started less than eight years ago, Compaq is expected to reach sales of $3 billion in 1989. Last week the company did it again. Compaq introduced its eagerly awaited LTE, a laptop machine that packs all the power of a desktop computer into a package small enough to fit into a briefcase. The notebook-size machine has a standard keyboard and an easy-to-read backlit screen. Most important, the 6-lb. machine is the only one of its size that accepts standard 3.5-in. diskettes, which will enable users to transfer files from laptop to desktop in a snap. "This one is easy to sell. It is the Mercedes of computers," said Jim Johnston, a salesman at Atlanta's PC Mart.

The newcomer is priced accordingly. With 20 megabytes of memory on its hard- disk drive, a basic version of the LTE retails for $2,999. A more powerful model offers 40 megabytes of hard-disk memory for $4,999. Even at those prices, the LTE will be a formidable competitor, according to industry analysts. Boasts Compaq spokesman John Sweney: "It's a full-function PC. It gets everything into that same size without any of the compromises that other manufacturers had to make." Compaq is aiming at a hot new market: laptop sales are expected to grow from 834,000 units this year to 2 million annually by 1993.