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TK-80

From NEC Retro

Revision as of 10:23, 5 October 2024 by Saad (talk | contribs) (→‎Hardware)
TK80.jpg
TK-80
Manufacturer: NEC
Release Date RRP Code
Template:TK80 JP ¥88,50088,500[1]

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The TK-80 (Training Kit μCOM80) is a hobbyist microcomputer released in 1976 by NEC. It is considered NEC's first meaningful foray into the home computer market.

Hardware

The TK-80 is a simple device designed to help Japanese consumers learn how to use computers. By default it is merely just a printed circuit board with eight seven segment VFD displays and twenty-five keys, however with expansions it can be given a full stroke keyboard, a cassette loader and can be hooked up to a television to run rudimentary software.

The TK-80, like many NEC home computers that succeeded it, had a limited western release in the form of the the TK-80A, available in the North American market.[2] the TK-80 was also available in Australia through Tecnico Electronics.[3]. Both of the releases used the hardware of the TK-80E.

Due to its suprising success, the TK-80 had many later revisions, such as the cheaper TK-80E, the TK-80BS expansion kit, the TK-85 and The COMPO BS/80, and even copycats, eventually culminating in NEC releasing its first real home computer, the PC-8001.

Technical Specifications

  • Main processor: μPD8080A[4] clocked at 2MHz
  • RAM: 512B
  • ROM: 768B
  • Floppy Disk drive(s): None

Promotional material

Physical scans


μCOM Training Kit series hardware
TK-80 (1976) | TK-80E (1977) | COMPO-BS/80 (1979) | TK-85 (1980)
Components and Expansion Units
TK-M20K | TK-80BS (μCOM Keyboard)