{"id":22102,"date":"2025-08-21T09:41:56","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T13:41:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/?page_id=22102"},"modified":"2026-01-15T21:16:39","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T02:16:39","slug":"vin109","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/vintage-computing\/item\/vin109\/","title":{"rendered":"Tandy TRS-80 Model II"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Tandy TRS-80 Model II<\/h2>\n<p>[Vin109]<\/p>\n<p>The Radio Shack TRS-80 Model II, launched in October 1979, was a notable vintage computer designed specifically for the small-business market rather than personal or hobbyist use. It featured a high-speed 4 MHz Z80A processor, Direct Memory Access (DMA), vectored interrupts, a built-in 12-inch 80&#215;25 text display, and a unique architecture with a detachable keyboard and multiple expansion slots, making it well-suited for business tasks like accounting and word processing. Its claim to fame was being a professional-grade business machine from a company known for hobbyist computers, offering advanced features at a lower price compared to contemporaries like IBM systems. While it was respected for its design and expandability, it remained less popular than the earlier TRS-80 Model I in home and hobbyist markets, partly due to its focus on business and a smaller software library.<a href=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-scaled.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignright size-large wp-image-23245\" src=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-400x300.jpg\" alt=\"TRS-80 Model II\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-400x300.jpg 400w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-240x180.jpg 240w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-160x120.jpg 160w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-768x577.jpg 768w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-1536x1153.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-2048x1538.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-800x600.jpg 800w, https:\/\/carleton.ca\/scs\/wp-content\/uploads\/PXL_20260114_145902372-360x270.jpg 360w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Manufacturer<\/strong>: Tandy Corporation (sold through Radio Shack stores)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Type<\/strong>: Personal computer<\/li>\n<li><strong>Released<\/strong>: 1979<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cost at release (base price)<\/strong>: USD $3,450 (CAD ~$16,000 adjusted for inflation)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cost at release (with peripherals)<\/strong>: USD $4,898 (CAD ~$23,000 adjusted for inflation)<\/li>\n<li><strong>MIPS<\/strong>: 0.33\u00a0 (330 KIPS)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXW169789978 BCX0\">Hardware Specifications<\/span><\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>CPU<\/strong>: Zilog Z80A running at 4 MHz<\/li>\n<li><strong>Memory<\/strong>: Standard 32 KB or optionally 64 KB RAM<\/li>\n<li><strong>Display<\/strong>: Built-in 12-inch CRT monitor with 80&#215;25 character text display<\/li>\n<li><strong>Storage<\/strong>: Used 8-inch floppy disk drives (dual floppy drives common)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Keyboard<\/strong>: Full-stroke detachable keyboard with numeric keypad<\/li>\n<li><strong>Expansion<\/strong>: Multiple internal expansion slots for peripheral cards<\/li>\n<li><strong>Input\/Output<\/strong>: Serial and parallel ports for printers and other peripherals<\/li>\n<li><strong>Additional features<\/strong>: Direct Memory Access (DMA), vectored interrupts<\/li>\n<li><strong>Weight<\/strong>: ~13.6 kg (30 lbs)<\/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>:\u00a0 primarily ran the operating system called\u00a0<strong>TRSDOS-2<\/strong>, a disk-based OS designed specifically for business use. Later, it also supported\u00a0<strong>CP\/M<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Programming Languages<\/strong>: BASIC (Business BASIC was common for business-related programming), BASCOM (a form of BASIC compiler), COBOL (used widely for business applications), FORTRAN, Assembly language (Zilog Z80 assembly) for more advanced and performance-sensitive programming, Pascal was also available through third-party vendors<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Notables<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>The TRS-80 Model II was the first TRS-80 designed specifically as a small-business computer, not a hobbyist machine.<\/li>\n<li>It featured Direct Memory Access (DMA) and vectored interrupts, advanced features uncommon in early personal computers.<\/li>\n<li>Nicknamed sometimes as the &#8220;business TRS-80,&#8221; it was positioned to compete with more expensive systems like IBM PCs but at a lower cost.<\/li>\n<li>It was among the earliest microcomputers to include a built-in 80-column by 25-line text display, suited for professional applications.<\/li>\n<li>Unlike the original Model I, the Model II had a detachable keyboard, which was unusual for its time.<\/li>\n<li>It helped popularize business use of microcomputers before the IBM PC&#8217;s dominance.<\/li>\n<li>The Model II&#8217;s architecture paved the way for more advanced Tandy business systems such as the TRS-80 Model 12 and 16.<\/li>\n<li>The Model II was not as popular as the Model I among hobbyists, but highly respected in business computing history and vintage computing museums for its professional focus and technical innovations.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Donated by<\/strong>: Engineer working for National Defense and worked on the Avro Aero and also worked on some rocket engines and used this computer during his time at National Defense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tandy TRS-80 Model II [Vin109] The Radio Shack TRS-80 Model II, launched in October 1979, was a notable vintage computer designed specifically for the small-business market rather than personal or hobbyist use. It featured a high-speed 4 MHz Z80A processor, Direct Memory Access (DMA), vectored interrupts, a built-in 12-inch 80&#215;25 text display, and a unique [&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 TRS-80 Model II - 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