Home computers were a class of microcomputers that entered the market in 1977 and became common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single, non-technical user. These computers were a distinct market segment that typically cost much less than business, scientific, or engineering-oriented computers of the time, such as those running CP/M or the IBM PC , and were generally less powerful in terms of memory and expandability. However, a home computer often had better graphics and sound than contemporary business computers. Their most common uses were word processing , playing video games , and programming .
176-656: The Amstrad CPC (short for "Colour Personal Computer") is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the ZX Spectrum , where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and the German-speaking parts of Europe. The series spawned
352-473: A colour palette of 27 colours, generated from RGB colour space with each colour component assigned as either off, half on, or on ( 3 level RGB palette ). The plus range extended the palette to 4096 colours, also generated from RGB with 4 bits each for red, green and blue ( 12-bit RGB ). With the exception of the GX4000, all CPC models lack an RF television or composite video output and instead shipped with
528-437: A disk drive (the Commodore 1541 was the only fully-compatible model) or Datasette before they could make use of it as anything but a game machine or TV Typewriter . In the early part of the 1980s, the dominant microprocessors used in home computers were the 8-bit MOS Technology 6502 (Apple, Commodore, Atari, BBC Micro ) and Zilog Z80 ( TRS-80 , ZX81 , ZX Spectrum , Commodore 128 , Amstrad CPC ). One exception
704-583: A hardcoded character set and keyboard scan code handling algorithm . While MSX has full application software compatibility at the firmware (BIOS) level, due to minor hardware differences, replacement of the BIOS with another from a different computer may return incorrect scan code translations and result in incorrect behaviour of the keyboard subsystem for the application software. In 2011, AGE Labs introduced Language Pack firmware, aiming to make each model support several localizations. In AGE Labs' GR8BIT kit ,
880-502: A 16 KB block and is switched in and out of the memory space shared with the video RAM. The Amstrad firmware is deliberately designed so that new software could be easily accessed from these ROMs. Popular applications were marketed on ROM, particularly word processing and programming utility software (examples are Protext and Brunword of the former, and the MAXAM assembler of the latter type). Such extra ROM chips do not plug directly into
1056-701: A 6-pin RGB DIN connector , also used by Acorn computers, to connect the supplied Amstrad monitor. This connector delivers a 1v p-p analogue RGB with a 50 Hz composite sync signal that, if wired correctly, can drive a 50 Hz SCART television. External adapters for RF television were available as a first-party hardware accessory. The CPC uses the General Instrument AY-3-8912 sound chip , providing three channels, each configurable to generate square waves, white noise or both. A small array of hardware volume envelopes are available. Output
1232-427: A 6502 processor and ran DOS from internal ROM. While this gave Commodore systems some advanced capabilities – a utility program could sideload a disk copy routine onto the drive and return control to the user while the drive copied the disk on its own – it also made Commodore drives more expensive and difficult to clone. Many home computers had a cartridge interface which accepted ROM-based software. This
1408-566: A Dutch company Bazix announced they had become the representatives of MSX Association in Europe , being the English contact for any questions regarding the MSX trademarks, copyrights, and licensing. On October 17, 2006, Bazix launched WOOMB.Net, a website selling MSX games in English and other languages, with a selection of 14 games. In Japan, game sales began earlier, through Project EGG. WOOMB.Net
1584-538: A built-in keyboard to support its C7420 Home Computer Module. Among third-generation consoles , Nintendo 's Family Computer offered Family BASIC (sold only in Japan), which included a keyboard that could be connected to an external tape recorder to load and store programs. Books of type-in program listings like BASIC Computer Games were available, dedicated for the BASICs of most models of computer, with titles along
1760-558: A case breakout. In order to simplify the EMC screening process, the edge connectors of the previous models have been replaced with micro-ribbon connectors as previously used on the German Schneider CPC 6128. As a result, a wide range of extensions for the original CPC range are connector-incompatible with the 464 plus and 6128 plus. In addition, the 6128plus does not have a tape socket for an external tape drive. The plus range
1936-460: A commercial failure, and very few titles were released on the format. Source files for development of the MSX cartridges are available from AGE Labs for EAGLE . Early MSX models did not have a built-in disk drive, so software were initially published on cartridge and cassette tape. Mitsumi QuickDisks were originally launched as a proprietary extension for the MSX in early 1984, but they never really caught on, as they were quickly surpassed by
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#17327648885712112-604: A common category of utility software in this pre- DMCA era. In another defining characteristic of the home computer, instead of a command line , the BASIC interpreter served double duty as a user interface. Coupled to a character-based screen or line editor , BASIC's file management commands could be entered in direct mode . In contrast to modern computers, home computers most often had their operating system (OS) stored in ROM chips. This made startup times very fast (no more than
2288-514: A custom IC known as " MSX-Engine ", which integrated glue logic , 8255 PPI, YM2149 compatible sound chip and more, sometimes even the Z80 CPU. However, almost all MSX systems used a professional keyboard instead of a chiclet keyboard , driving up the price compared to the original SV-328. Consequently, these components alongside Microsoft's MSX BASIC made the MSX a competitive, though somewhat expensive, home computer package. On June 27, 1983,
2464-576: A dedicated phone line operated bulletin boards of their own. This capability anticipated the internet by nearly 20 years. Some game consoles offered "programming packs" consisting of a version of BASIC in a ROM cartridge . Atari's BASIC Programming for the Atari 2600 was one of these. For the ColecoVision console, Coleco even announced an expansion module which would convert it into a full-fledged computer system. The Magnavox Odyssey² console had
2640-637: A few seconds), but made OS upgrades difficult or impossible without buying a new unit. Usually, only the most severe bugs were fixed by issuing new ROMs to replace the old ones at the user's cost. In addition, the small size and limited scope of home computer "operating systems" (really little more than what today would be called a kernel) left little room for bugs to hide. Although modern operating systems include extensive programming libraries to ease development and promote standardization, home computer operating systems provided little support to application programs. Professionally-written software often switched out
2816-470: A first for a stand-alone computer, costing far less than dedicated motion-video processing equipment costing many thousands of dollars. Stereo sound became standard for the first time; the Atari ST gained popularity as an affordable alternative for MIDI equipment for the production of music. Clock rates on the 68000-based systems were approximately 8 MHz with RAM capacities of 256 kB (for
2992-639: A floppy disk drive. It was available for the TRS-80 and some others. A closely-related technology was the ZX Microdrive , developed by Sinclair Research in the UK, for their ZX Spectrum and QL home computers. Eventually, mass production of 5.25" drives resulted in lower prices, and after about 1984, they pushed cassette drives out of the US home computer market. 5.25" floppy disk drives would remain standard until
3168-432: A game now and then, learn more about computers, and help educate their children". By 1986, industry experts predicted an "MS-DOS Christmas", and the magazine stated that clones threatened Commodore, Atari, and Apple's domination of the home-computer market. The declining cost of IBM compatibles on the one hand, and the greatly-increased graphics, sound, and storage abilities of fourth generation video game consoles such as
3344-418: A gaming platform. The redesigned video hardware allows for hardware sprites and soft scrolling, with a colour palette extended from a maximum of 16 colours (plus separately definable border) at one time from a choice of 27, increased to a maximum of 31 (16 for background and 15 for hardware sprites) out of 4096. The enhanced sound hardware offers automatic DMA transfer , allowing more complex sound effects with
3520-732: A great deal of software support from the traditional Japanese publishers of game software. Microsoft developed the MSX-DOS operating system, a version of their popular MS-DOS adapted to the architecture of these machines, that was also able to run CP/M software directly After the first wave of game consoles and computers landed in American homes, the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began receiving complaints of electromagnetic interference to television reception. By 1979
3696-476: A green screen and US$ 799.00/£399.00/DM2098.00 with a colour monitor. In 1990, the 6128plus replaced the CPC 6128 in the model line-up, and production of the CPC 6128 was discontinued. In 1990, confronted with a changing home computer market, Amstrad decided to refresh the CPC model range by introducing a new range variantly labelled plus or PLUS , 1990 , or CPC+ range . The main goals were numerous enhancements to
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#17327648885713872-605: A group of fans developed the MSX Mini Replica. It is a 1:2 scale reproduction of the Philips VG-8020 computer compatible with the software of the MSX, MSX2, MSX2+, and TurboR generations. It incorporates 2 USB ports, an HDMI video output and internally uses the same hardware as the C64 Mini . Connecting an additional peripheral called MSX Player allows it to run original games on ROM cartridges. The MSXVR
4048-473: A high performer, the Equity was a reliable and compatible design for half the price of a similarly-configured IBM PC. Epson often promoted sales by bundling one of their printers with it at cost. The Equity I sold well enough to warrant the furtherance of the Equity line with the follow-on Equity II and Equity III. In 1986, UK home computer maker Amstrad began producing their PC1512 PC-compatible for sale in
4224-415: A home television. Indeed, the use of a television set as a display almost defines the pre-PC home computer. Although dedicated composite or " green screen " computer displays were available for this market segment and offered a sharper display, a monitor was often a later purchase made only after users had bought a floppy disk drive, printer, modem, and the other pieces of a full system. The reason for this
4400-668: A host of other manufacturers. For many of these businesses, the development of the microcomputer made computing and business software affordable where they had not been before. Introduced in August 1981, the IBM Personal Computer would eventually supplant CP/M as the standard platform used in business. This was largely due to the IBM name and the system's 16 bit open architecture , which expanded maximum memory tenfold, and also encouraged production of third-party clones . In
4576-474: A keyboard integrated into the same case as the motherboard , or, more frequently, a mainboard . While the expandable home computers appeared from the very start (the Apple II offered as many as seven expansion slots) as the whole segment was generally aimed downmarket , few offers were priced or positioned high enough to allow for such expandability. Some systems have only one expansion port, often realized in
4752-553: A keyboard with a ñ key (although some of them were temporarily manufactured without the ñ key). The sole purpose of the 8 KB memory chip (which is not electrically connected to the machine, so consequently rendered unusable) is to increase the machine's total memory specs to 72 KB in order to circumvent the import tax. Some months later, Spain joined the European Communities by the Treaty of Accession 1985 and
4928-590: A new and short-lived kind of software cracking : converting . Since the MSX games were unplayable on the SV-328 computer, SV-328 crackers developed a method of modifying the (MSX) games to make them work on the SV-328. In most cases, this included downloading the MSX BIOS to the SV-328 from tape or floppy disk. Spectravideo later launched the SVI-728 which completely adhered to the MSX standard. The Sega SG-1000 ,
5104-499: A new law (Royal Decree 1250/1985) mandated that all computers sold in Spain must have a Spanish keyboard. To circumvent this, Amstrad's Spanish distributor Indescomp (later to become Amstrad Spain ) created and distributed the CPC 472 , a modified version of the CPC 464. Its main differences are a small additional daughter board containing a CPC 664 ROM chip and an 8 KB memory chip, and
5280-637: A palette of 512. MSX was a standard for a home computing architecture that was intended and hoped to become a universal platform for home computing. It was conceived, engineered and marketed by Microsoft Japan with ASCII Corporation . Computers conforming to the MSX standard were produced by most all major Japanese electronics manufacturers, as well as two Korean ones and several others in Europe and South America. Some 5 million units are known to have been sold in Japan alone. They sold in smaller numbers throughout
5456-558: A paper sleeve or a hard plastic case resembling a compact disc "jewel" case. The casing is thicker and more rigid than that of 3.5 inch diskettes, and designed to be mailed without any additional packaging. A sliding metal cover to protect the media surface is internal to the casing and latched, unlike the simple external sliding cover of Sony's version. They were significantly more expensive than both 5.25 inch and 3.5 inch alternatives. This, combined with their low nominal capacities and their essentially proprietary nature, led to
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5632-433: A place to plug in cartridge-based games. Usually, the manufacturer would sell peripheral devices designed to be compatible with their computers as extra-cost accessories. Peripherals and software were not often interchangeable between different brands of home computer, or even between successive models of the same brand. To save the cost of a dedicated monitor, the home computer would often connect through an RF modulator to
5808-491: A program that allowed businesses to sell computers tax-free to its employees, often accompanied by home training programs. Naturally, these businesses chose to equip their employees with the same systems they themselves were using. Today, a computer bought for home use anywhere will be very similar to those used in offices; made by the same manufacturers, with compatible peripherals, operating systems, and application software. Many home computers were superficially similar. Most had
5984-506: A reboot to use the system for something else. In an enduring reflection of their early cassette-oriented nature, most home computers loaded their disk operating system (DOS) separately from the main OS. The DOS was only used for disk and file-related commands and was not required to perform other computing functions. One exception was Commodore DOS , which was not loaded into the computer's main memory at all – Commodore disk drives contained
6160-485: A reconfiguration program under MSX-DOS. The "one chip-MSX" also has two USB connectors that can be used after adding some supporting VHDL code. In 2011, AGE Labs announced GR8BIT, a do-it-yourself kit for building an MSX computer. The kit, licensed by the MSX Licensing Corporation, is targeted to those wanting to learn about computer hardware. It includes all the necessary components to assemble
6336-400: A rudimentary copy protection mechanism (without a firmware present, the machine itself could not copy a game cartridge's content). As the enhanced V4 firmware's structural differences causes problems with some CPC software directly calling firmware functions by their memory addresses, Amstrad separately sold a cartridge containing the original CPC 6128's V3 firmware. Both the 464 plus and
6512-468: A significantly reduced processor overhead. Other hardware enhancements include the support of analogue joysticks, 8-bit printers, and ROM cartridges up to 4 Mbits . The new range of models was intended to be completely backwards compatible with the original CPC models. Its enhanced features are only available after a deliberately obscure unlocking mechanism has been triggered, thus preventing existing CPC software from accidentally invoking them. Despite
6688-415: A single industry-standard for home computers. Inspired by the success of VHS as a standard for video cassette recorders , many Japanese electronics manufacturers (Including GoldStar , Philips and Spectravideo ) built and promoted MSX computers. Any piece of hardware or software with the MSX logo on it was compatible with MSX products from other manufacturers. In particular, the expansion cartridge format
6864-563: A standard of its own, known as Tandy Graphics Adapter or TGA. Later, Tandy produced Tandy 1000 variants in form factors and price-points even more suited to the home computer market, comprised particularly by the Tandy 1000 EX and HX models (later supplanted by the 1000 RL ), which came in cases resembling the original Apple IIs (CPU, keyboard, expansion slots, and power supply in a slimline cabinet) but also included floppy disk drives. The proprietary Deskmate productivity suite came bundled with
7040-599: A successful crowdfunding campaign, an IoT device resembling a Game Boy with a keyboard, the MSX0, was revealed, intended for IoT uses, alongside the base MSX3 unit. Plans also call for a supercomputer, the MSX Turbo X 128, based around the concept of clusters. The keyboard is a functionally separate unit which could be connected by non-multiplexed and multiplexed interfaces. Multiplexed keyboard units feature additional data direction line, allowing sending scan line number to
7216-510: A total of six distinct models: The CPC 464 , CPC 664 , and CPC 6128 were highly successful competitors in the European home computer market. The later 464 plus and 6128 plus , intended to prolong the system's lifecycle with hardware updates, were considerably less successful, as was the attempt to repackage the plus hardware into a game console as the GX4000 . The CPC models' hardware
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7392-485: A turbo NEC V40 CPU (up-rated 8088) which was rather slow for its time, but the video monitor did feature 400-pixel vertical resolution. This unique computer failed for the same reasons as did IBM's PCjr: poor performance and expandability, and a price too high for the home market. Another company that offered low-cost PCs for home use was Leading Edge , with their Model M and Model D computers. These were configured like full-featured business PCs, yet still could compete in
7568-400: A wide variety of peripherals could be connected. Regular game cartridges are about the size of an audio cassette (so-called "Konami size"). Despite their higher cost, this was a popular format due to its reliability and ease of use. Around 1985, Hudson Soft released the credit card-sized Bee Card , which was meant as a cheaper and more convenient alternative to ROM cartridges. But it was
7744-532: A working MSX2-compatible computer except for an ATX chassis, power supply, floppy drive, hard disk, PS/2 keyboard, and monitor. Some of the Korean forum members who made Zemmix Neo created a new MSX-compatible called Mini IQ3000 Cutie, which has similar features to Daewoo Electronics' Korean-made MSX2 model, the IQ-2000. It is based on 1ChipMSX but has some special features like 'Scan Line Generator', which improves
7920-501: Is a computer released in 2020 and compatible with the MSX family of computers. Like the latest Zemmix game consoles, it is also based on a Raspberry Pi card with additional circuitry to connect the original MSX peripherals. In 2022, Nishi announced an official revival of the MSX computer standard dubbed the MSX3, to be implemented in multiple configurations, including an upgrade cartridge to existing MSX computers. Later, in 2023 following
8096-574: Is based on the Zilog Z80A CPU , complemented with either 64 or 128 KB of RAM . Their computer-in-a-keyboard design prominently features an integrated storage device, either a compact cassette deck or 3-inch floppy disk drive. The main units were only sold bundled with either a colour, green-screen or monochrome monitor that doubles as the main unit's power supply. Additionally, a wide range of first and third-party hardware extensions such as external disk drives, printers, and memory extensions,
8272-598: Is constrained to occur on microsecond boundaries. This effectively pads every machine cycle to four clock cycles , causing a minor loss of processing power and resulting in what Amstrad estimated to be an "effective clock rate" of "approximately 3.3 MHz". Amstrad CPCs are equipped with either 64 (CPC 464, CPC 664, 464plus, GX4000) or 128 (CPC 6128, 6128plus) KB of RAM. This base memory can be extended by up to 512 KB using memory expansions sold by third-party manufacturers, and by up to 4096 KB using experimental methods developed by hardware enthusiasts. Because
8448-484: Is fully transparent to the applications, allowing use of the controller unit with different MSX-compatible machines and for different localization setups. MSX standard requires at least 1 cartridge slot, most MSX models have 2. These slots are interchangeable, so in most cases it makes no difference in which slot a cartridge is inserted. The physical connector is a 50 pin (2 × 25 contacts), standard 2.54 mm (0.1 inch) pitch edge connector . Using these cartridge slots,
8624-451: Is housed in a box made out of transparent blue plastic, and can be used with a standard monitor (or TV) and a PC keyboard. It has two MSX cartridge slots and supports the audio extensions MSX-MUSIC and SCC+. A SD/MMC-flashcard can be used as an external storage medium, emulating a disk drive and can be used to boot MSX-DOS . Due to its VHDL programmable hardware, it is possible to give the device new hardware extensions simply by running
8800-410: Is not equipped with an on-board ROM, and thus the 464 plus and the 6128 plus do not contain a firmware. Instead, Amstrad provided the firmware for both models via the ROM extension facility, contained on the included Burnin' Rubber and Locomotive BASIC cartridge. This resulted in reduced hardware localization cost (only some select key caps and case labels had to be localized) with the added benefit of
8976-430: Is provided in mono by a small (4 cm) built-in loudspeaker with volume control, driven by an internal amplifier . Stereo output is provided through a 3.5 mm headphones jack. It is possible to play back digital sound samples at a resolution of approximately 5-bit by sending a stream of values to the sound chip. This technique is very processor-intensive and hard to combine with any other processing. Examples are
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#17327648885719152-426: Is regularly queried to identify the state of the keys on the line; query speed is identified by the system interrupt frequency. Such organization allows system to sense state of each key, not exhibiting notorious problem with 8042 microcontroller -based keyboards when pressing several keys simultaneously (usually more than 3) generates wrong input characters, or renders inability to sense the press of more keys. Due to
9328-818: The Metal Gear series were originally released for MSX hardware. In the early 1980s, most home computers manufactured in Japan such as the NEC PC-6001 and PC-8000 series, Fujitsu 's FM-7 and FM-8 , and Hitachi 's Basic Master featured a variant of the Microsoft BASIC interpreter integrated into their on-board ROMs . The hardware design of these computers and the various dialects of their BASICs were incompatible. Other Japanese consumer electronics firms such as Panasonic , Canon , Casio , Yamaha , Pioneer , and Sanyo were searching for ways to enter
9504-455: The AY-3-8910 chip manufactured by General Instrument (GI), and an Intel 8255 Programmable Peripheral Interface (PPI) chip was used for parallel I/O such as the keyboard. The choice of these components was shared by many other home computers and games consoles of the period, such as the ColecoVision and Sega SG-1000 video game systems. To reduce overall system cost, many MSX models used
9680-685: The Amstrad CPC sold 3 million units, and the Tandy TRS-80 Model 1 sold 250,000 units. A Sony MSX2 machine was launched into space to the Russian Mir space station. The system MSX most closely resembled was the Spectravideo SV-328 home computer (Spectravideo even claimed to be "MSX compatible" in advertisements before the actual launch of MSX systems, but it was not completely compatible with it). This led to
9856-609: The Atari 1040ST (not the 520ST), Amiga , and Tandy 1000 , did house floppy drive(s) internally. At any rate, to expand any computer with additional floppy drives, external units would have to be plugged in. Toward the end of the home computer era, drives for a number of home computer models appeared offering disk-format compatibility with the IBM PC. The disk drives sold with the Commodore 128, Amiga, and Atari ST were all able to read and write PC disks, which themselves were undergoing
10032-410: The BASIC programming language included on the system ROM , it was easy for users to get started creating their own simple applications. Many users found programming to be a fun and rewarding experience, and an excellent introduction to the world of digital technology. The line between 'business' and 'home' computer market segments vanished completely once IBM PC compatibles became commonly used in
10208-468: The Commodore PET , and the original Apple II in 1977, almost every manufacturer of consumer electronics rushed to introduce a home computer. Large numbers of new machines of all types began to appear during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Mattel , Coleco , Texas Instruments , and Timex , none of which had any prior connection to the computer industry, all had short-lived home computer lines in
10384-693: The German reunification happening at the time of the release, only a very small number of systems were sold. The KC compact can be emulated by free software JKCEMU . In 1993, Omsk, Russia based company Patisonic released the Aleste 520EX, a computer highly compatible with the Amstrad CPC 6128. It could also be switched into an MSX mode. An expansion board named Magic Sound allowed to play Scream Tracker files. A BYTE columnist in January 1985 called
10560-707: The Memotech MTX , the Tatung Einstein , and the ColecoVision all have many similarities with the MSX1 standard, but none are fully compatible with it. Porting games between those systems is somewhat easy. It was also very common to port games from the ZX Spectrum to the MSX, since both have the same CPU, the Spectrum 128 had the same soundchip, and the ZX Spectrum's graphic mode could be easily emulated on
10736-465: The Motorola 68008 with its external 8-bit bus). Graphics resolutions approximately doubled to give roughly NTSC -class resolution, and color palettes increased from dozens to hundreds or thousands of colors available. The Amiga was built with a custom chipset with dedicated graphics and sound coprocessors for high-performance video and audio. The Amiga found use as a workstation for desktop video ,
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#173276488857110912-556: The Nintendo Entertainment System , but no longer sold home computers. Toward the end of the 1980s, clones also became popular with non-corporate customers. Inexpensive, highly-compatible clones succeeded where the PCjr had failed. Replacing the hobbyists who had made up the majority of the home computer market were, as Compute! described them, "people who want to take work home from the office now and then, play
11088-484: The PCjr as a PC/DOS-compatible machine aimed squarely at the home user. It proved a spectacular failure because IBM deliberately limited its capabilities and expansion possibilities in order to avoid cannibalizing sales of the profitable PC. IBM management believed that if they made the PCjr too powerful, too many buyers would prefer it over the bigger, more expensive PC. Poor reviews in the computer press and poor sales doomed
11264-498: The Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo Entertainment System on the other, combined to cause the market segment for home computers to vanish by the early 1990s in the US. In Europe, the home computer remained a distinct presence for a few years more, with the low-end models of the 16-bit Amiga and Atari ST families being the dominant players, but by the mid-1990s, even the European market had dwindled. The Dutch government even ran
11440-472: The Soviet Union , and Cuba , where they were widely used in schools. In total, 9 million MSX computers were sold in Japan, making it relatively popular. However, the MSX did not become the worldwide standard envisioned because of limited adoption in other markets. Before the MSX's lack of success in these markets became apparent, US manufacturer Commodore Business Machines overhauled its product line in
11616-483: The 6128 plus were introduced to the public in September 1990. Initial suggested retail prices were £229 /1,990 F with a monochrome monitor and £329 /2,990 F with a colour monitor for the 464 plus, and £329 /2,990 F with a monochrome monitor and £429 /3,990 F with a colour monitor for the 6128plus. Developed as part of the plus range , the GX4000 was Amstrad's short-lived attempt to enter
11792-541: The Atari and Commodore 8-bit machines, coprocessors were added to speed processing of graphics and audio data. For these computers, clock rate was considered a technical detail of interest only to users needing accurate timing for their own programs. To economize on component cost, often the same crystal used to produce color television-compatible signals was also divided down and used for the processor clock. This meant processors rarely operated at their full rated speed, and had
11968-534: The BASIC interpreter was also used as the user interface , and given tasks such as loading, saving, managing, and running files. One exception was the Jupiter Ace , which had a Forth interpreter instead of BASIC. A built-in programming language was seen as a requirement for any computer of the era, and was the main feature setting home computers apart from video game consoles . Still, home computers competed in
12144-555: The CPC 464 "the closest yet to filling" his criteria for a useful home computer, including good keyboard, 80-column text, inexpensive disk drive, and support for a mainstream operating system like CP/M. The entire CPC series is based on the Zilog Z80 ; a processor, clocked at 4 MHz . In order to avoid the CPU and the video logic simultaneously accessing the shared main memory and causing video corruption ("snowing"), CPU memory access
12320-417: The CPC 464 and CPC 6128. Based on the redesigned plus hardware platform, they share the same base characteristics as their predecessors: The 464 plus is equipped with 64 KB RAM and a cassette tape drive, the 6128 plus features 128 KB RAM and a 3" floppy disk drive. Both models share a common case layout with a keyboard taken over from the CPC 6128 model, and the respective mass storage drive inserted in
12496-423: The CPC 464 were £249.00/ DM 899.00 with a green screen and £359.00/DM1398.00 with a colour monitor. Following the introduction of the CPC 6128 in late 1985, suggested retail prices for the CPC 464 were cut by £50.00/DM100.00. In 1990, the 464plus replaced the CPC 464 in the model line-up, and production of the CPC 464 was discontinued. The CPC 664 features 64 KB RAM and an internal 3-inch floppy disk drive. It
12672-476: The CPC 664, the machine was positioned not only as the lowest-cost disk system but even the lowest-cost CP/M 2.2 machine. In the Amstrad CPC product range the CPC 664 complemented the CPC 464 which was neither discontinued nor reduced in price. Compared to the CPC 464, the CPC 664's main unit has been significantly redesigned, not only to accommodate the floppy disk drive but also with a redesigned keyboard area. Touted as "ergonomic" by Amstrad's promotional material,
12848-459: The CPC itself, but into extra plug-in "rom boxes" which contain sockets for the ROM chips and a minimal amount of decoding circuitry for the main machine to be able to switch between them. These boxes were either marketed commercially or could be built by competent hobbyists and they attached to the main expansion port at the back of the machine. Software on ROM loads much faster than from disc or tape and
13024-471: The FCC demanded that home computer makers submit samples for radio frequency interference testing. It was found that "first generation" home computers emitted too much radio frequency noise for household use. The Atari 400 and 800 were designed with heavy RF shielding to meet the new requirements. Between 1980 and 1982 regulations governing RF emittance from home computers were phased in. Some companies appealed to
13200-487: The FCC to waive the requirements for home computers, while others (with compliant designs) objected to the waiver. Eventually techniques to suppress interference became standardized. MSX MSX is a standardized home computer architecture, announced by ASCII Corporation on June 16, 1983. It was initially conceived by Microsoft as a product for the Eastern sector, and jointly marketed by Kazuhiko Nishi ,
13376-601: The Language Pack is installed by default in place of the Kanji -ROM. It allows changing the character set and keyboard layout of the machine at startup between Japanese, Russian, International and Portuguese locales. It also gives the ability to change locales during machine operation using the newly introduced LANG command in BASIC. The selected locale setting is stored into the unused RTC NVRAM memory space. Several popular video game franchises were established on
13552-541: The MSX TurboR was released, which used the new custom 16-bit R800 microprocessor developed by ASCII Corporation intended for the MSX3, but features such as DMA and 24-bit addressing were disabled. Like the MSX2+, the MSX TurboR was exclusively released in Japan. By the time the MSX TurboR standard was announced in 1990, only Panasonic was manufacturing MSX computers. Its initial model FS-A1ST met with moderate success, but
13728-485: The MSX was formally announced during a press conference, and a slew of big Japanese firms declared their plans to introduce the machines. The Japanese companies avoided the intensely competitive U.S. home computer market, which was in the throes of a Commodore -led price war . Only Spectravideo and Yamaha briefly marketed MSX machines in the U.S. Spectravideo's MSX enjoyed very little success, and Yamaha's CX5M model, built to interface with various types of MIDI equipment,
13904-487: The MSX's screen-2 mode. Many Roland S-series audio/music digital sampler/synthesizer keyboards and rack module units are based on the MSX operating system. This includes the earlier 12-bit sample resolution models S-50, S-330, S-550, W-30, and later 16-bit sample resolution models S-770, S-750, SP-700, and S-760. Most of these models included (or could be expanded with) color video outputs to display monitors, as well as MSX-compatible mouse ports. By default, MSX machines have
14080-535: The MSX: Others received various installments on the MSX, including several titles unique to the system or largely reworked versions of games on other formats: * Clones or unlicensed equipment. In 2001, Kazuhiko Nishi initiated a MSX revival around an official MSX emulator called MSXPLAYer. This is the only official MSX emulator as all MSX copyrights are maintained by the MSX Association. In 2004,
14256-526: The Macintosh itself was too expensive for most households. The Amiga in particular had true multitasking capability, and unlike all other low-cost computers of the era, could run multiple applications in their own windows. The second generation of MSX computers (MSX2) achieved the performance of high-performance computers using a high-speed video processor ( Yamaha V9938 ) capable of handling resolutions of 512 × 424 pixels, and 256 simultaneous colors from
14432-467: The PCjr. Tandy Corporation capitalized on IBM's blunder with its PCjr-compatible Tandy 1000 in November. Like the PCjr, it was pitched as a home, education, and small-business computer, featuring joystick ports, better sound and graphics (same as the PCjr but with enhancements), combined with near-PC/DOS compatibility (unlike Tandy's earlier Tandy 2000 ). The improved Tandy 1000 video hardware became
14608-593: The Panasonic (previously named National) CF-3300. In Europe, a range of Philips MSX2 systems NMS 8230, 8235, 8245, 8250 and above featured either 360 or 720 KB 3.5-inch floppy drives. In 1985, the MSX2 was released, and these systems often (but not always) also included a built-in 3.5-inch disk drive. Consequently, the popular media for games and other software shifted to floppy disks. The MSX-DOS disk operating system had binary compatibility with CP/M , but used
14784-519: The ROM-based OS anyway to free the address space it occupied and maximize RAM capacity. This gave the program full control of the hardware and allowed the programmer to optimize performance for a specific task. Games would often turn off unused I/O ports, as well as the interrupts that served them. As multitasking was never common on home computers, this practice went largely unnoticed by users. Most software even lacked an exit command, requiring
14960-549: The Tandy 1000s. Deskmate was suited to use by computer novices with its point-and-click (though not graphical) user interface. From the launch of the Tandy 1000 series, their manufacture were price-competitive because of Tandy's use of high-density ASIC chip technology, which allowed their engineers to integrate many hardware features into the motherboard (obviating the need for circuit cards in expansion slots as with other brands of PC). Tandy never transferred its manufacturing operation to Asia; all Tandy desktop computers were built in
15136-664: The UK. Later they would market the machine in the US as the PC6400. In June 1987, an improved model was produced as the PC1640. These machines had fast 8086 CPUs, enhanced CGA graphics, and were feature-laden for their modest prices. They had joystick adapters built into their keyboards and shipped with a licensed version of the Digital Research 's GEM , a GUI for the MS-DOS operating system. They became marginal successes in
15312-481: The US. Imported and distributed by Indescomp, Inc. of Chicago, it was the first Amstrad product to be sold in the United States, a market that at the time was traditionally hostile towards European computer manufacturers. Two months later, on 15 August 1985, it arrived in Europe and replaced the CPC 664 in the CPC model line-up. Initial suggested retail prices for the CPC 6128 were US$ 699.00/£299.00/DM1598.00 with
15488-654: The USA (this was not true of the laptop and pocket computers, nor peripherals). In 1985, the Epson corporation, a popular and respected producer of inexpensive dot-matrix printers and business computers (the QX-10 and QX-16 ), introduced its low-cost Epson Equity PC. Its designers took minor shortcuts, such as few expansion slots and a lack of a socket for an 8087 math chip, but Epson did bundle some utility programs that offered decent turnkey functionality for novice users. While not
15664-498: The United States. The meaning of the acronym MSX remains a matter of debate. In 2001, Kazuhiko Nishi recalled that many assumed that it was derived from "Microsoft Extended", referring to the built-in Microsoft Extended BASIC ( MSX BASIC ). Others believed that it stood for "Matsushita-Sony". Nishi said that the team's original definition was "Machines with Software eXchangeability", although in 1985 he said it
15840-461: The Z80 processor is only able to directly address 64 KB of memory, additional memory from the 128 KB models and memory expansions is made available using bank switching . Underlying a CPC's video output is the unusual pairing of a CRTC ( Motorola 6845 or compatible) with a custom-designed gate array to generate a pixel display output. CPC 6128s later in production as well as the models from
16016-431: The ability to run industry-standard MS-DOS software on affordable, user-friendly PCs was anticipated as a source of new sales. Furthermore, many in the industry felt that MS-DOS would eventually (inevitably, it seemed) come to dominate the computer business entirely, and some manufacturers felt the need to offer individual customers PC-style products suitable for the home market. In early 1984, market colossus IBM produced
16192-415: The adapter board to connect a PS/2 keyboard to the multiplexed MSX keyboard interface. The firmware embedded into its ATTiny chip was tailored for Daewoo CPC machines. In 2011, AGE Labs embedded a PS/2 keyboard controller unit, based on Microchip microcontroller, into its GR8BIT do-it-yourself machine. Its firmware is developed to directly convert PS/2 scan codes to the MSX keyboard scan codes. Thus it
16368-481: The author to obtain the programs on disk or cassette for a few dollars. Before the Internet, and before most computer owners had a modem , books were a popular and low-cost means of software distribution—one that had the advantage of incorporating its own documentation. These books also served a role in familiarizing new computer owners with the concepts of programming; some titles added suggested modifications to
16544-477: The base Amiga 1000 ) up to 1024 kB ( 1 MB , a milestone, first seen on the Atari 1040ST). These systems used 3.5" floppy disks from the beginning, but 5.25" drives were made available to facilitate data exchange with IBM PC compatibles. The Amiga and ST both had GUIs with windowing technology. These were inspired by the Macintosh , but at a list price of US$ 2,495 (equivalent to $ 7,100 in 2023),
16720-500: The buyer would fill with the integrated circuits , other individual electronic components, wires and connectors, and then hand- solder all the connections. While two early home computers ( Sinclair ZX80 and Acorn Atom ) could be bought either in kit form or assembled, most home computers were only sold pre-assembled. They were enclosed in plastic or metal cases similar in appearance to typewriter or hi-fi equipment enclosures, which were more familiar and attractive to consumers than
16896-477: The default PC floppy was double-sided, with about twice the storage capacity of floppy disks used by 8-bit home computers. PC drives tended to cost less because they were most often built-in, requiring no external case, controller, or power supply. The faster clock rates and wider buses available to later Intel CPUs compensated somewhat for the custom graphics and sound chips of the Commodores and Ataris. In time,
17072-493: The development of home computers. While they were competing for videotape formats , Nobuyuki Idei of Sony accepted his proposal. Idei thought Sony should cooperate with Panasonic on its development because the SMC-70 , Sony's first personal computer, faced difficulty in the market when Sony started their computer business. Maeda also wanted to invite NEC, but NEC chose to go its own way. Nishi proposed MSX as an attempt to create
17248-846: The director at ASCII Corporation. Microsoft and Nishi conceived the project as an attempt to create unified standards among various home computing system manufacturers of the period, in the same fashion as the VHS standard for home video tape machines. The first MSX computer sold to the public was a Mitsubishi ML-8000, released on October 21, 1983, thus marking its official release date. MSX systems were popular in Japan and several other countries. There are differing accounts of MSX sales. One source claims 9 million MSX units were sold worldwide, including 7 million in Japan alone, whereas ASCII corporation founder Kazuhiko Nishi claims that 3 million were sold in Japan, and 1 million overseas. Despite Microsoft's involvement, few MSX-based machines were released in
17424-464: The early 1980s and introduced models such as the Plus/4 and Commodore 16 , that were intended to better compete with the features of MSX computers. In comparison with rival 8-bit computers, the Commodore 64 is estimated to have sold 12.5–17 million units worldwide, the Apple II sold 6 million units, the ZX Spectrum over 5 million units, the Atari 8-bit computers sold at least 4 million units,
17600-478: The early 1980s. Some home computers were more successful. The BBC Micro , Sinclair ZX Spectrum , Atari 8-bit computers , and Commodore 64 sold many units over several years and attracted third-party software development. Almost universally, home computers had a BASIC interpreter combined with a line editor in permanent read-only memory , which one could use to type in BASIC programs and execute them immediately, or save them to tape or disk. In direct mode ,
17776-493: The end of the 8-bit era. Though external 3.5" drives were made available for home computer systems toward the latter part of the 1980s, almost all software sold for 8-bit home computers remained on 5.25" disks. 3.5" drives were used for data storage, with the exception of the Japanese MSX standard, on which 5.25" floppies were never popular. Standardization of disk formats was not common; sometimes, even different models from
17952-426: The existing CPC hardware platform, to restyle the casework to provide a contemporary appearance, and to add native support of cartridge media. The new model palette includes three variants, the 464plus and 6128plus computers and the GX4000 video game console. The "CPC" abbreviation was dropped from the model names. The redesign significantly enhanced the CPC hardware, mainly to rectify its previous shortcomings as
18128-416: The family TV set, which served as both video display and sound system. The rise of the home computer also led to a fundamental shift during the early 1980s in where and how computers were purchased. Traditionally, microcomputers were obtained by mail order or were purchased in person at general electronics retailers like RadioShack . Silicon Valley , in the vanguard of the personal computer revolution,
18304-465: The few business users. Various copy protection schemes were developed for floppy disks; most were broken in short order. Many users would only tolerate copy protection for games, as wear and tear on disks was a significant issue in an entirely floppy-based system. The ability to make a "working backup" disk of vital application software was seen as important. Copy programs that advertised their ability to copy or even remove common protection schemes were
18480-404: The form of a cartridge containing the disk interface electronics and a BIOS extension ROM (the floppy disk drive interface), connected to an external case with the drive. In South America, many of these systems used a 5.25 in (133 mm) floppy disk drive, but in Europe, 3.5 in (89 mm) drives were more popular. In Japan, some MSX1 systems included a built-in 3.5-inch disk drive, like
18656-477: The form of cumbersome "sidecar" systems, such as on the TI-99/4 , or required finicky and unwieldy ribbon cables to connect the expansion modules. Sometimes they were equipped with a cheap membrane or chiclet keyboard in the early days, although full-travel keyboards quickly became universal due to overwhelming consumer preference. Most systems could use an RF modulator to display 20–40 column text output on
18832-630: The format being discontinued shortly after the CPC itself was discontinued. Apart from Amstrad's other 3-inch machines (the PCW and the ZX Spectrum +3 ), the few other computer systems to use them included the Sega SF-7000 and CP/M systems such as the Tatung Einstein and Osborne machines. They also found use on embedded systems. The Shugart -standard interface means that Amstrad CPC machines are able to use standard 3", 3½" or 5¼" drives as their second drive. Programs such as ROMDOS and ParaDOS extend
19008-606: The game console showed a blank screen or continued playing the same repetitive game. Another capability home computers had that game consoles of the time lacked was the ability to access remote services over telephone lines by adding a serial port interface, a modem , and communication software . Though it could be costly, it permitted the computer user to access services like Compuserve , and private or corporate bulletin board systems and viewdata services to post or read messages, or to download or upload software. Some enthusiasts with computers equipped with large storage capacity and
19184-414: The growing popularity of home PCs spurred many software publishers to offer gaming and children's software titles. Many decision-makers in the computer industry believed there could be a viable market for office workers who used PC/DOS computers at their jobs and would appreciate an ability to bring diskettes of data home on weeknights and weekends to continue work after-hours on their "home" computers. So,
19360-451: The home market on price because Leading Edge had access to low-cost hardware from their Asian manufacturing partners Mitsubishi with the Model M and Daewoo with the Model D. The LEWP was bundled with the Model D. It was favorably reviewed by the computer press and sold very well. By the mid '80s, the market for inexpensive PCs for use in the home market was expanding at such a rate that
19536-483: The home market. In 1987, longtime small computer maker Zenith introduced a low-cost PC they called the EaZy PC . This was positioned as an "appliance" computer much like the original Apple Macintosh: turnkey startup, built-in monochrome video monitor, and lacking expansion slots, requiring proprietary add-ons available only from Zenith, but instead with the traditional MS-DOS Command-line interface . The EaZy PC used
19712-489: The home". In 1990, the company reportedly refused to support joysticks on its low-cost Macintosh LC and IIsi computers to prevent customers from considering them as "game machines". Although the Apple II and Atari computers are functionally similar, Atari's home-oriented marketing resulted in a game-heavy library with much less business software. By the late 1980s, many mass merchants sold video game consoles like
19888-484: The home, since now both categories of computers typically use the same processor architectures, peripherals, operating systems, and applications. Often, the only difference may be the sales outlet through which they are purchased. Another change from the home computer era is that the once-common endeavor of writing one's own software programs has almost vanished from home computer use. As early as 1965, some experimental projects, such as Jim Sutherland's ECHO IV , explored
20064-462: The image of, as Compute! wrote, "a low-powered, low-end machine primarily suited for playing games". Apple consistently avoided stating that it was a home-computer company, and described the IIc as "a serious computer for the serious home user", despite competing against IBM's PCjr home computer. John Sculley denied that his company sold home computers; rather, he said, Apple sold "computers for use in
20240-521: The import tax was suppressed, so Amstrad added the ñ key for the 464 and production of the CPC 472 was discontinued. The KC compact [ de ] (" Kleincomputer " - which means "small computer" - being a rather literal German translation of the English "microcomputer") is a clone of the Amstrad CPC built by East Germany 's VEB Mikroelektronik Mühlhausen , part of VEB Kombinat Mikroelektronik Erfurt , in October 1989. Although
20416-609: The industrial metal card-cage enclosures used by the Altair and similar computers. The keyboard - a feature lacking on the Altair - was usually built into the same case as the motherboard . Ports for plug-in peripheral devices such as a video display, cassette tape recorders, joysticks , and (later) disk drives were either built-in or available on expansion cards . Although the Apple II had internal expansion slots, most other home computer models' expansion arrangements were through externally-accessible 'expansion ports' that also served as
20592-431: The keyboard is noticeably tilted to the front with MSX -style cursor keys above the numeric keypad. Compared to the CPC 464's multicoloured keyboard, the CPC 664's keys are kept in a much quieter grey and pale blue colour scheme. The back of the CPC 664 main unit features the same connectors as the CPC 464, with the exception of an additional 12V power lead. Unlike the CPC 464's cassette tape drive that could be powered off
20768-506: The keyboard scan being controlled by the system interrupts, one of the troubleshooting hints when an MSX machine does not display any image (assuming power is present) is to press the CAPS key to see if the respective LED toggles. If it does not toggle, the system is likely suffering a more serious problem than just lack of image on the screen (i.e. the problem with video cable or video display interface in overall). In 2009, Kamil Karimov designed
20944-589: The keyboard using same data lines used for return scan code, decreasing overall number of wires between keyboard and machine. Non-multiplexed interface is usually used for internal keyboards (and some external keyboards, like Panasonic CF-3300); multiplexed interface is used for external keyboards (e.g. in Yamaha YIS805 model). The keyboard is organized as a matrix with maximum 11 input lines and 8 output lines, accounting for maximum 88 keys (including all control, numerical and alphanumerical keys). Each scan line
21120-632: The largest electronics companies. In the late 1970s, the company investigated other business areas outside of home appliances. Panasonic also saw potential in the recent microcomputer revolution . One of Panasonic's distributors, Yamagata National, told Panasonic's president, Toshihiko Yamashita: Recently, NEC 's personal computers sell well in Yamagata too, and our dealers also request merchandise. However, we must purchase not only personal computers, but also home appliances from NEC. I think Matsushita also need develop personal computers. Yamashita ordered
21296-406: The late 1970s, the 6502-based Apple II had carved out a niche for itself in business, thanks to the industry's first killer app , VisiCalc , released in 1979. However, the Apple II would quickly be displaced for office use by IBM PC compatibles running Lotus 1-2-3 . Apple Computer 's 1980 Apple III was underwhelming, and although the 1984 release of the Macintosh introduced the modern GUI to
21472-467: The line-up, and production of the CPC 664 was discontinued. The CPC 6128 features 128 KB RAM and an internal 3-inch floppy disk drive. Aside from various hardware and firmware improvements, one of the CPC 6128's most prominent features is the compatibility with the CP/M+ operating system that rendered it attractive for business uses. The CPC 6128 was released on 13 June 1985 and initially only sold in
21648-402: The lines of 64 Amazing BASIC Games for the Commodore 64 . While most of the programs in these books were short and simple games or demos , some titles, such as Compute! ' s SpeedScript series, contained productivity software that rivaled commercial packages. To avoid the tedious process of typing in a program listing from a book, these books would sometimes include a mail-in offer from
21824-511: The machine included various substitutes and emulations of an Amstrad CPC's hardware, the machine is largely compatible with Amstrad CPC software. It is equipped with 64 KB of memory and a CPC 6128's firmware customized to the modified hardware, including a copy of Locomotive BASIC 1.1 modified in the startup banner only. The expansion port is a K 1520 bus slot. The KC compact is the last 8-bit computer introduced in East Germany. Due to
22000-509: The machine to not look like "a pregnant calculator" – in reference presumably to the ZX81 and ZX Spectrum with their low cost, membrane-type keyboards. The CPC 464 was one of the most successful computers in Europe and sold more than two million units. The CPC 464 featured 64 KB RAM and an internal cassette deck . It was introduced in June 1984 in the UK. Initial suggested retail prices for
22176-405: The machine's boot-up sequence was designed to evaluate ROMs it found and optionally hand over control of the machine to them. This allows significant customisation of the functionality of the machine, something that enthusiasts exploited for various purposes. However, the typical users would probably not be aware of this added ROM functionality unless they read the CPC press, as it is not described in
22352-401: The main unit's 5V voltage, the CPC 664's floppy disk drive requires an additional 12V voltage. This voltage had to be separately supplied by an updated version of the bundled green screen/colour monitor (GT-65 and CTM-644 respectively). The CPC 664 was only produced for approximately six months. In late 1985, when the CPC 6128 was introduced in Europe, Amstrad decided not to keep three models in
22528-512: The market, it was not common until IBM-compatible computers adopted it. Throughout the 1980s, businesses large and small adopted the PC platform, leading, by the end of the decade, to sub-US$ 1000 IBM PC XT -class white box machines, usually built in Asia and sold by US companies like PCs Limited . In 1980, Wayne Green , the publisher of Kilobaud Microcomputing , recommended that companies avoid
22704-429: The new home computer market. Major Japanese electronics companies entered the computer market in the 1960s, and Panasonic (Matsushita Electric Industrial) was also developing mainframe computers . The Japanese economy was facing a recession after the 1964 Summer Olympics and Panasonic decided to exit the computer business and focus on home appliances. The decision was a huge success, and Panasonic grew to become one of
22880-664: The new machine and its MS-DOS operating system. Even basic PCs cost thousands of dollars and were far out of reach for typical home computer users. However, in the following years, technological advances and improved manufacturing capabilities (mainly greater use of robotics and relocation of production plants to lower-wage locations in Asia) permitted several computer companies to offer lower-cost, PC-style machines that would become competitive with many 8-bit home-market pioneers like Radio Shack, Commodore, Atari, Texas Instruments, and Sinclair. PCs could never become as affordable as these because
23056-488: The plus range integrate both the CRTC and the gate array's functions with the system's ASIC . Three built-in display resolutions are available: 160×200 pixels with 16 colours ("Mode 0", 20 text columns), 320×200 pixels with 4 colours ("Mode 1", 40 text columns), and 640×200 pixels with 2 colours ("Mode 2", 80 text columns). Increased screen size can be achieved by reprogramming the CRTC. The original CPC video hardware supports
23232-757: The possible utility of a computer in the home. In 1969, the Honeywell Kitchen Computer was marketed as a luxury gift item, and would have inaugurated the era of home computing, but none were sold. Computers became affordable for the general public in the 1970s due to the mass production of the microprocessor , starting in 1971. Early microcomputers such as the Altair 8800 had front-mounted switches and diagnostic lights (nicknamed " blinkenlights ") to control and indicate internal system status, and were often sold in kit form to hobbyists. These kits would contain an empty printed circuit board which
23408-546: The price difference between old 8-bit technology and new PCs. Despite their higher absolute prices, PCs were perceived by many to be better values for their utility as superior productivity tools and their access to industry-standard software. Another advantage was the 8088/8086's wide, 20-bit address bus. The PC could access more than 64 kilobytes of memory relatively inexpensively (8-bit CPUs, which generally had multiplexed 16-bit address buses, required complicated, tricky memory management techniques like bank-switching ). Similarly,
23584-474: The program listings for the user to carry out. Applying a patch to modify software to be compatible with one's system, or writing a utility program to fit one's needs, was a skill every advanced computer owner was expected to have. During the peak years of the home computer market, scores of models were produced, usually as individual design projects with little or no thought given to compatibility between different manufacturers, or even within product lines of
23760-561: The purchaser could assemble the unit from a kit. Advertisements in the popular press for early home computers were rife with possibilities for their practical use in the home, from cataloging recipes to personal finance to home automation , but these were seldom realized in practice. For example, using a typical 1980s home computer as a home automation appliance would require the computer to be kept powered on at all times and dedicated to this task. Personal finance and database use required tedious data entry . By contrast, advertisements in
23936-517: The quality of the video display, and 'Multi Language Support' that allows it to support two languages. By default, the machine operates using the Korean version of MSX displaying the Korean font, but if the 'del' key is pressed during booting it will operate in Japanese mode. Even though the default mode is Korean, the default font allocation table is Japanese, and will show Japanese characters when executing Japanese version software programs. In 2019,
24112-501: The recording back through the modem to "load". Most cassette implementations were notoriously slow and unreliable, but 8" drives were too bulky for home use, and early 5.25" form-factor drives were priced for business use, out of reach of most home buyers. An innovative alternative was the Exatron Stringy Floppy , a continuous-loop tape drive which was much faster than a data cassette drive and could perform much like
24288-482: The resulting V9990 E-VDP III as a video-chipset for PC VGA graphic cards, with moderate success. In Japan, South Korea, Argentina, and Brazil, the MSX was the preeminent home computer system of the 1980s. It was also fairly popular in continental Europe , especially in the Netherlands and Spain. Classrooms full of networked Yamaha MSX computers were used for teaching informatics in schools in some Arab countries,
24464-529: The same FAT file system as MS-DOS . Its user commands were also similar to early MS-DOS versions. In this way, Microsoft could promote MSX for home use while promoting MS-DOS based personal computers in office environments. The MSX 3.5-inch floppy disks are directly compatible with MS-DOS (although some details like file undeletion and boot sector code were different). Like MS-DOS 1, MSX disks (formatted) under MSX-DOS 1 have no support for subdirectories . In September 2012, AGE Labs extended
24640-518: The same manufacturer used different disk formats. Almost universally, the floppy disk drives available for 8-bit home computers were housed in external cases, with their own controller boards and power supplies contained within. Only the later, advanced 8-bit home computers housed their drives within the main unit; these included the TRS-80 Model III , TRS-80 Model 4 , Apple IIc , MSX2 , and Commodore 128D . The later 16-bit machines, such as
24816-445: The same manufacturer. Except for the Japanese MSX standard, the concept of a computer platform was still forming, with most companies considering rudimentary BASIC language and disk format compatibility sufficient to claim a model as "compatible". Things were different in the business world, where cost-conscious small business owners had been using CP/M running on Z80 -based computers from Osborne , Kaypro , Morrow Designs , and
24992-473: The same market as the consoles. A home computer was often seen as simply a higher-end purchase than a console, adding abilities and productivity potential to what would still be mainly a gaming device. A common marketing tactic was to show a computer system and console playing games side by side, then emphasizing the computer's greater ability by showing it running user-created programs, education software, word processing, spreadsheet, and other applications, while
25168-418: The same price-reducing measures were available to all computer makers. Furthermore, software and peripherals for PC-style computers tended to cost more than those for 8-bit computers because of the anchoring effect caused by the pricey IBM PC. As well, PCs were inherently more expensive since they could not use the home TV set as a video display. Nonetheless, the overall reduction in manufacturing costs narrowed
25344-433: The same time, Spectravideo contacted Microsoft in order to obtain software for their new home computer. Nishi went to Hong Kong to meet with Spectravideo, and suggested some improvements to its prototype. Spectravideo's president, Harry Fox, was willing to accept Nishi's proposals. Nishi conceived to create a unified standard based on its machine, and Maeda agreed with his idea. Nishi wanted to involve Panasonic and Sony in
25520-444: The side-effect that European and North American versions of the same home computer operated at slightly different speeds and different video resolution due to different television standards. Initially, many home computers used the then-ubiquitous compact audio cassette as a storage mechanism. A rough analogy to how this worked would be to place a recorder on the phone line as a file was uploaded by modem to "save" it, and playing
25696-557: The significant hardware enhancements, many viewed it as outdated, being based on an 8-bit CPU, and it failed to attract both customers and software producers who were moving towards systems such as the Amiga and Mega Drive which was launched a few short months after the plus range. The plus range was a commercial failure, and production was discontinued shortly after its introduction in 1990. The 464 plus and 6128 plus models were intended as "more sophisticated and stylish" replacements of
25872-405: The specialty computer press often simply listed specifications, assuming a knowledgeable user who already had applications in mind. If no packaged software was available for a particular application, the home computer user could program one—provided they had invested the requisite hours to learn computer programming , as well as the idiosyncrasies of their system. Since most systems arrived with
26048-427: The standard AMSDOS system to provide support for double-sided, 80-track formats, enabling up to 800 KB to be stored on a single disk. The 3-inch disks themselves are usually known as "discs" on the CPC, following the spelling on the machine's plastic casing and conventional British English spelling . The hardware and firmware was designed to be able to access software provided on external ROMs. Each ROM has to be
26224-504: The standard by including support for 1.44Mb 3.5-inch format. The 1.44Mb diskette size goes in two configurations: Standard (1 sector per cluster, 9 FAT sectors), and Compatible (4 sectors per cluster, 3 FAT sectors). MSX computers are emulated on many platforms today. Early MSX emulators were often based on the code of the pioneer fMSX , a portable MSX emulator by Marat Fayzullin. Many emulators removed Fayzullin's Z80 emulation code entirely in later versions to avoid legal problems, as at
26400-563: The standard floppy disk interface released a few months later. Only a handful of titles were released in this format. Sony also created a battery backed RAM cartridge the HBI-55 "data cartridge" in 1984 for some computers in their "Hit-Bit" line of MSX systems, that could be used to store programs or data as an alternative to cassette tapes. Many Yamaha Music software are also compatible with this cartridge. Traditional floppy disk drives were made available for MSX in 1984, either built-in or in
26576-406: The term "home computer" in their advertising, as it "I feel is self-limiting for sales...I prefer the term "microcomputers" since it doesn't limit the uses of the equipment in the imagination of the prospective customers". With the exception of Tandy, most computer companies – even those with a majority of sales to home users – agreed, avoiding the term "home computer" because of its association with
26752-599: The time 1801 series CPU , offering a full PDP-11 compatibility and a fully functional Q-Bus slot, though at the cost of very anemic RAM and graphics. The Motorola 6809 was used by the Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer , the Fujitsu FM-7 , and Dragon 32/64 . Processor clock rates were typically 1–2 MHz for 6502 and 6809-based CPUs and 2–4 MHz for Z80-based systems (yielding roughly equal performance), but this aspect
26928-423: The title screens or other non-playable scenes of games like Chase H.Q. , Meltdown , and RoboCop . The later Plus models incorporated a DMA engine in order to offload this processing. Amstrad uses Matsushita's 3" floppy disk drive [ref: CPCWiki], which was compatible with Hitachi 's existing 3" floppy disk format . The chosen drive (built-in for later models) is a single-sided 40-track unit that requires
27104-501: The transition from 5.25" to 3.5" format at the time (though 5.25" drives remained common on PCs until the late 1990s, due to existence of the large software and data archives on five-inch floppies). 5.25" drives were made available for the ST, Amiga, and Macintosh, otherwise 3.5" based systems with no other use for a 5.25" format. Hard drives were never popular on home computers, remaining an expensive, niche product mainly for BBS sysops and
27280-836: The two leaders in the US, Commodore and Atari, themselves felt compelled to enter the market with their own lines. They were only marginally successful compared to other companies that made only PCs. Still, later prices of white box PC clone computers by various manufacturers became competitive with the higher-end home computers (see below). Throughout the 1980s, costs and prices continued to be driven down by: advanced circuit design and manufacturing, multi-function expansion cards, shareware applications such as PC-Talk , PC-Write , and PC-File , greater hardware reliability, and more user-friendly software that demanded less customer support services. The increasing availability of faster processor and memory chips, inexpensive EGA and VGA video cards, sound cards , and joystick adapters also bolstered
27456-500: The upgraded model FS-A1GT introduced in 1991 sold poorly due to its high retail cost of 99800 yen (about 740 USD at the time). Production of the TurboR ended in 1993 when Panasonic decided to focus on the release of 3DO . The VDP was eventually delivered in 1992, two years after its planned deadline, by which time the market had moved on. In an attempt to reduce its financial loss, Yamaha stripped nearly all V9958 compatibility and marketed
27632-422: The use of the domestic television set and a separately connected tape recorder or disk drive . In itself, the all-in-one concept was not new, having been seen before on business-oriented machines and the Commodore PET . Secondly, Amstrad founder Alan Sugar wanted the machine to resemble a "real computer, similar to what someone would see being used to check them in at the airport for their holidays", and for
27808-470: The user manual and was hardly ever mentioned in marketing literature. It is, however, documented in the official Amstrad firmware manual. Home computer Home computers were usually sold already manufactured in stylish metal or plastic enclosures. However, some home computers also came as commercial electronic kits , like the Sinclair ZX80 , which were both home and home-built computers since
27984-772: The user to remove and flip the disk to access the other side. Each side has its own independent write-protect switch. The sides are termed "A" and "B", with each one commonly formatted to 180 KB (in AMSDOS format, comprising 2 KB directory and 178 KB storage) for a total of 360 KB per disk. The interface with the drives is an NEC 765 FDC , used for the same purpose in the IBM PC/XT , PC/AT and PS/2 machines. Its features are not fully used in order to cut costs, namely DMA transfers and support for single density disks; they were formatted as double density using modified frequency modulation . Discs were shipped in
28160-458: The viability of PC/DOS computers as alternatives to specially-made computers and game consoles for the home. From about 1985, the high end of the home computer market began to be dominated by "next-generation" home computers using the 16-bit Motorola 68000 chip, which enabled the greatly-increased abilities of the Amiga and Atari ST series (in the UK, the Sinclair QL was built around
28336-409: The vice president, Shunkichi Kisaka, to develop a personal computer, and Kisaka called on Kazuyasu Maeda of Matsushita R&D Center. Maeda requested Nishi to assist with the development. They were already close to each other. When they met at a seminar held by NEC, they noticed both were from Kobe and had graduated from the same university. They often talked to each other about home computers. At
28512-487: The video game consoles market. Sharing the plus range's enhanced hardware characteristics, it represents the bare minimum variant of the range without a keyboard or support for mass storage devices. It came bundled with 2 paddle controllers and the racing game Burnin' Rubber . During the August holidays of 1985, Spain briefly introduced an import tax of 15 000 pesetas ( €90.15 ) on computers containing 64 KB or less of RAM (Royal Decree 1215/1985 and 1558/1985), and
28688-492: The world. Due to the "price wars" being waged in the USA home computer market during the 1983-85 period, MSX computers were never marketed to any great extent in the USA. Eventually more advanced mainstream home computers and game consoles obsoleted the MSX machines. The MSX computers were built around the Zilog Z80 8-bit processor, assisted with dedicated video graphics and audio coprocessors supplied by Intel , Texas Instruments , and General Instrument . MSX computers received
28864-573: Was also used for expansion or upgrades such as fast loaders . Application software on cartridge did exist, which loaded instantly and eliminated the need for disk swapping on single-drive setups, but the vast majority of cartridges were games. From the introduction of the IBM Personal Computer (ubiquitously known as the PC) in 1981, the market for computers meant for the corporate, business, and government sectors came to be dominated by
29040-402: Was available. The CPC series was pitched against other home computers primarily used to play video games and enjoyed a strong supply of game software. The comparatively low price for a complete computer system with dedicated monitor, its high-resolution monochrome text and graphic capabilities and the possibility to run CP/M software also rendered the system attractive for business users, which
29216-503: Was billed more as a digital music tool than a standard personal computer. MSX spawned four generations. The first three, MSX (1983), MSX2 (1985), and MSX2+ (1988), were all 8-bit computers based on the Z80 microprocessor. The MSX2+ was exclusively released in Japan. A new MSX3 was originally scheduled to be released in 1990, but delays in the development of its Yamaha-designed VDP caused it to miss its time to market deadline. In its place,
29392-411: Was introduced on 25 April 1985 in the UK. Initial suggested retail prices for the CPC 664 were £339.00/DM1198.00 with a green screen and £449.00/DM1998.00 with a colour monitor. After the successful release of the CPC 464, consumers were constantly asking for two improvements: more memory and an internal disk drive. For Amstrad, the latter was easier to realise. At the deliberately low-key introduction of
29568-529: Was named after the MX missile . According to his book in 2020, he considered the name of the new standard should consist of three letters, like VHS . He felt "MSX" was fit because it means "the next of Microsoft", and it also contains the first letters of Matsushita ( Panasonic ) and Sony. Before the success of Nintendo 's Family Computer , the MSX was the platform that major Japanese game studios such as Konami and Hudson Soft developed for. The first two games in
29744-424: Was not emphasized by users or manufacturers, as the systems' limited RAM capacity, graphics abilities, and storage options had a more perceivable effect on performance than CPU speed. For low-price computers, the cost of RAM memory chips contributed greatly to the final product price to the consumer, and fast CPUs demanded expensive, fast memory. As a result, designers kept clock rates only adequate. In some cases, like
29920-486: Was part of the standard; any MSX expansion or game cartridge would work in any MSX computer. Nishi's standard was built around the Spectravideo SV-328 computer. The standard consisted primarily of several off-the-shelf parts; the main CPU was a 3.58 MHz Zilog Z80 , the Texas Instruments TMS9918 graphics chip with 16 KB of dedicated VRAM , sound and partial I/O support was provided by
30096-474: Was reflected by a wide selection of application software. During its lifetime, the CPC series sold approximately three million units. The philosophy behind the CPC series was twofold, firstly the concept was of an "all-in-one", where the computer, keyboard and its data storage device were combined in a single unit and sold with its own dedicated display monitor. Most home computers at that time such as ZX Spectrum series, Commodore 64 , and BBC Micro relied on
30272-417: Was that while those TV-monitors had difficulty displaying the clear and readable 80-column text that became the industry standard at the time, the only consumers who really needed that were the power users utilizing the machine for business purposes, while the average casual consumer would use the system for games only and was content with the lower resolution, for which a TV worked fine. An important exception
30448-474: Was the Radio Shack TRS-80 , the first mass-marketed computer for home use, which included its own 64-column display monitor and full-travel keyboard as standard features. This " peripherals sold separately" approach is another defining characteristic of the home computer era. A first-time computer buyer who brought a base C-64 system home and hooked it up to their TV would find they needed to buy
30624-501: Was the TI-99/4 , announced in 1979 with a 16-bit TMS9900 CPU. The TI was originally to use the 8-bit 9985 processor designed especially for it, but this project was cancelled. However, the glue logic needed to retrofit the 16-bit CPU to an 8-bit 9985 system negated the advantages of the more powerful CPU. Another exception was the Soviet Elektronika BK series of 1984, which used the fully-16-bit and powerful for
30800-455: Was the English counterpart of this and other Japanese services offered by D4 Enterprise , which also announced in August 2006 the launch of a new MSX2 compatible system called the " one chip-MSX ", a system based on an Altera Cyclone EP1C12Q240C8 FPGA . The one chip-MSX" is similar in concept to the C-One , a Commodore 64 clone also built on the basis of a single FPGA chip. The new MSX system
30976-424: Was the first place to see the appearance of new retail stores dedicated to selling only computer hardware, computer software, or both, and also the first place where such stores began to specialize in particular platforms. By 1982, an estimated 621,000 home computers were in American households, at an average sales price of US$ 530 (equivalent to $ 1,673 in 2023). After the success of the Radio Shack TRS-80 ,
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