{"id":21828,"date":"2025-07-21T15:15:50","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T19:15:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/?page_id=21828"},"modified":"2025-07-21T15:29:13","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T19:29:13","slug":"vin98","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/vintage-computing\/item\/vin98\/","title":{"rendered":"Tandy Color Computer 16K"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Tandy Color Computer 16K<\/h2>\n<p>[Vin98]<\/p>\n<p>The Tandy Color Computer 16K, popularly known as the &#8220;CoCo,&#8221; was a notable early 1980s home computer recognized for its use of the powerful Motorola 6809E CPU and its ability to display color graphics when connected to a standard television. It stood out for its affordability, flexible cartridge-based expansion, and the inclusion of Microsoft\u2019s Color BASIC in ROM, making it accessible for both gaming and educational programming applications.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Manufacturer<\/strong>: Tandy Corporation (Radio Shack)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Type<\/strong>: Home computer<\/li>\n<li><strong>Released<\/strong>: 1980<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cost at release<\/strong>: USD $599 (CAD ~$2,575 adjusted for inflation)<\/li>\n<li><strong>MIPS<\/strong>: 0.35 (350 KIPS)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW169789978 BCX0\">Hardware Specifications<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>CPU: Motorola 6809E, 8-bit, running at 0.895MHz<\/li>\n<li>Memory: 16KB RAM (expandable internally up to 32KB or 64KB on later models)<\/li>\n<li>ROM: 8KB Microsoft Color BASIC, with optional 8KB Extended Color BASIC<\/li>\n<li>Keyboard: 53-key &#8220;chiclet&#8221; keyboard (QWERTY layout with function and arrow keys)<\/li>\n<li>Video Output: RF modulated for standard TV; resolutions up to 256&#215;192 pixels; 8 colors maximum<\/li>\n<li>Sound: 6-bit digital-to-analog converter for one-voice sound<\/li>\n<li>Graphics Modes: 32\u00d716 text, and multiple low\/high-res graphics modes, with color and semigraphics capability<\/li>\n<li>I\/O Ports:\n<ul>\n<li>Cassette tape interface (1500 baud)<\/li>\n<li>Two analog joystick ports<\/li>\n<li>Cartridge slot for software\/program expansion<\/li>\n<li>RS-232 serial interface (modem\/printer connection)<\/li>\n<li>Operating System: Microsoft Color BASIC (with optional Extended BASIC); supported OS-9 from third parties<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Weight: Approximately 4.75lbs (2.15kg)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"TextRun SCXW50331614 BCX0\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-contrast=\"auto\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW50331614 BCX0\">Operating System &amp; Programming Languages<\/span><\/span><span class=\"EOP SCXW50331614 BCX0\" data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;335559685&quot;:0}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>O\/S<\/strong>:\n<ul>\n<li>Standard ROM-based OS:\n<ul>\n<li>All models of the Tandy Color Computer ran Microsoft Color BASIC (provided in ROM), which boots directly at power-up.<\/li>\n<li>Many units were also upgraded with Extended Color BASIC, offering enhanced graphics and program features.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Optional Disk and Advanced Operating Systems:\n<ul>\n<li>Disk Extended Color BASIC (DECB): Added disk support for floppy drives.<\/li>\n<li>OS-9: A multitasking, multiuser operating system sold by third parties, notable for its Unix-like features and support for more advanced programming environments. Required upgraded RAM (typically 64K or more).<\/li>\n<li>Other operating systems such as FLEX were also ported to the system by the community<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Programming Languages<\/strong>:<\/li>\n<li>BASIC:\n<ul>\n<li>Microsoft Color BASIC (in ROM)<\/li>\n<li>Extended Color BASIC (in ROM, larger models)<\/li>\n<li>Disk Extended Color BASIC (with floppy disk support)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Assembly Language:\n<ul>\n<li>Motorola 6809 assembly language<\/li>\n<li>Programs could be created using tools like EDTASM+ (Editor\/Assembler\/Debugger) cartridges and various machine language monitors<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Other High-Level Languages (usually via cartridge or disk):\n<ul>\n<li>BASIC09: Advanced structured BASIC, included with the OS-9 operating system<\/li>\n<li>Pascal: Available from third parties for OS-9<\/li>\n<li>C: Available for OS-9<\/li>\n<li>FORTH: Community and commercial cartridges<\/li>\n<li>COBOL, LOGO: Less common, but available through user groups or third-party vendors<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Machine Code\/Hex:\n<ul>\n<li>Directly loaded or assembled machine code programs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3>Notables<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Firsts: Among the earliest affordable home computers with true color graphics and sound, supporting up to eight colors while connected to a regular TV.<\/li>\n<li>Advanced CPU: Featured the Motorola 6809E, one of the most sophisticated 8-bit CPUs of its era, offering advanced addressing and instruction capabilities for home use.<\/li>\n<li>Cartridge Slot: Popularized \u201cProgram Pak\u201d ROM cartridges, making commercial games and educational software easy to load and run.<\/li>\n<li>Multitasking OS: Supported OS-9 a Unix-like, multitasking operating system, which was rare for home computers at the time.<\/li>\n<li>A competitor of the Commodore VIC-20 and Atari 400\/800 in the consumer market.<\/li>\n<li>Unique \u201cchiclet\u201d keyboard and silvery, futuristic styling made it stand out in the showroom.<\/li>\n<li>Although labeled a TRS-80, it was completely incompatible with other TRS-80 computers, an early source of consumer confusion.<\/li>\n<li>Longevity: Its architecture was so flexible that the line survived for more than a decade and inspired a strong software ecosystem.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Donated by<\/strong>: Arlen Michaels<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tandy Color Computer 16K [Vin98] The Tandy Color Computer 16K, popularly known as the &#8220;CoCo,&#8221; was a notable early 1980s home computer recognized for its use of the powerful Motorola 6809E CPU and its ability to display color graphics when connected to a standard television. It stood out for its affordability, flexible cartridge-based expansion, and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":19704,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Tandy Color Computer 16K - School of Computer Science<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Tandy Color Computer 16K The Tandy Color Computer 16K, popularly known as the &quot;CoCo,&quot; was a notable early 1980s home computer recognized for its use of\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/vintage-computing\/item\/vin98\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/vintage-computing\/item\/vin98\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/vintage-computing\/item\/vin98\/\",\"name\":\"Tandy Color Computer 16K - 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