The is a line of
personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...
s developed for the
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
market by
NEC
is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It provides IT and network soluti ...
. The PC-8001 model was also sold in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
as the PC-8001A.
Original models of the NEC PC-8001B (or sometimes the NEC PC-8000) were also sold in some European countries like in the
UK,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
and
the Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
and in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
as well.
PC-8001
The first member of the PC-8000 series, the PC-8001 was first introduced on May 9, 1979, and went on sale in September 1979 for
¥168,000.
Its design combines the
keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Musi ...
and the
mainboard
A motherboard (also called mainboard, main circuit board, mb, mboard, backplane board, base board, system board, logic board (only in Apple computers) or mobo) is the main printed circuit board (PCB) in general-purpose computers and other expan ...
into a single unit. At a time when most
microcomputer
A microcomputer is a small, relatively inexpensive computer having a central processing unit (CPU) made out of a microprocessor. The computer also includes memory and input/output (I/O) circuitry together mounted on a printed circuit board (PC ...
s were sold as "semi-kits" requiring end user assembly, the fully assembled PC-8001 was a rarity in the market. Peripherals included a
printer
Printer may refer to:
Technology
* Printer (publishing), a person or a company
* Printer (computing), a hardware device
* Optical printer for motion picture films
People
* Nariman Printer (fl. c. 1940), Indian journalist and activist
* James ...
, a
cassette tape storage unit, and a
CRT interface. Although it is often believed to be the first domestically produced personal computer for the Japanese market, it was preceded by both the
Hitachi
() is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...
and the
Sharp
Sharp or SHARP may refer to:
Acronyms
* SHARP (helmet ratings) (Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme), a British motorcycle helmet safety rating scheme
* Self Help Addiction Recovery Program, a charitable organisation founded in 19 ...
.
![PC-8001 character set](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/PC-8001_character_set.png)
The PC-8001A was released in the United States in August 1981, and was priced at (32 KB of RAM). It is modified to reduce
electromagnetic interference to comply with
FCC
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdictio ...
regulations. The
Katakana
is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji and in some cases the Latin script (known as rōmaji). The word ''katakana'' means "fragmentary kana", as the katakana characters are derived fr ...
glyphs in the character ROM (see
JIS X 0201
JIS X 0201, a Japanese Industrial Standard developed in 1969 (then called JIS C 6220 until the JIS category reform), was the first Japanese electronic character set to become widely used. It is either a 7-bit encoding or an 8-bit encoding, altho ...
) are replaced by
Greek alphabet
The Greek alphabet has been used to write the Greek language since the late 9th or early 8th century BCE. It is derived from the earlier Phoenician alphabet, and was the earliest known alphabetic script to have distinct letters for vowels as we ...
.
Specification
The PC-8001 has an
NEC μPD780C-1
is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It provides IT and network solut ...
(
Z80
The Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor introduced by Zilog as the startup company's first product. The Z80 was conceived by Federico Faggin in late 1974 and developed by him and his 11 employees starting in early 1975. The first working samples were ...
-compatible processor) clocked at 4 MHz, 16 KB of RAM (expandable to 32 KB), CRT video output, cassette port, parallel port for a printer, serial port and an expansion bus. The built-in
BASIC
BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College ...
interpreter, called N-BASIC, fits in 24 KB of ROM. This is a variant of
Microsoft Disk BASIC 4.51. Optional DISK BASIC allows disk I/O for an external floppy drive. The video output is provided by an NEC μPD3301 CRT controller and a μPD8257C (
Intel 8257
The Intel 8257 is a direct memory access
Direct memory access (DMA) is a feature of computer systems and allows certain hardware subsystems to access main system memory independently of the central processing unit (CPU).
Without DMA, when the C ...
clone)
DMA controller. It has various text modes, and the maximum screen is 80×25 text with 8×8 pixel font. Each character has two attributes chosen from blinking, highlight, reverse, secret, vertical line, over line, under line and RGB colors, and up to 20 different attributes per line can be set. The attribution also supports
semigraphics
Text-based semigraphics or pseudographics is a primitive method used in early text mode video hardware to emulate raster graphics without having to implement the logic for such a display mode.
There are two different ways to accomplish the emu ...
, and each characters have a 2×4 matrix.
The PC-8011 Expansion Unit provides additional capabilities and interfaces, which has 32 KB RAM sockets for μPD416 DRAMs, 8 KB ROM sockets for 2716 PROMs, an
interrupt controller, an
interval timer, a serial port, a floppy drive controller, a parallel port and an
IEEE-488
IEEE 488 is a short-range digital communications 8-bit parallel multi-master interface bus specification developed by Hewlett-Packard as HP-IB (Hewlett-Packard Interface Bus). It subsequently became the subject of several standards, and is ...
port. Original floppy disk drives for the PC-8001 are the dual-unit PC-8031 and the additional dual-unit PC-8032, which use 143 KB single-sided 5.25-inch format. They were followed by the single-unit PC-8031-1V, the dual-sided PC-8031-2W and PC-8032-2W. These units are attached to the PC-8001 through the PC-8011 or the PC-8033 adapter.
Development
In Japan, Nippon Electric's Microcomputer Sales Section in the Electronic Device Sales Division released the
TK-80
The TK-80 (μCOM Training Kit TK-80) was an 8080-based single-board computer kit developed by Nippon Electric Company (NEC) in 1976. It was originally developed for engineers who considered using the '' μCOM-80 family'' in their product. It was ...
in 1976, a
single-board computer kit, and it became popular among hobbyists. American personal computers were expensive for personal use (Initial list price of the
Apple II
The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...
was 358,000 yen,
Commodore PET
The Commodore PET is a line of personal computers produced starting in 1977 by Commodore International. A single all-in-one case combines a MOS Technology 6502 microprocessor, Commodore BASIC in read-only memory, keyboard, monochrome monitor, an ...
was 298,000 yen, and the
TRS-80
The TRS-80 Micro Computer System (TRS-80, later renamed the Model I to distinguish it from successors) is a desktop microcomputer launched in 1977 and sold by Tandy Corporation through their Radio Shack stores. The name is an abbreviation of '' ...
was 248,000 yen). In 1978, the Hitachi Basic Master and
Sharp
Sharp or SHARP may refer to:
Acronyms
* SHARP (helmet ratings) (Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme), a British motorcycle helmet safety rating scheme
* Self Help Addiction Recovery Program, a charitable organisation founded in 19 ...
MZ-80K, both developed by consumer electronics companies, were released as personal computers targeted for hobbyists, not for business use.
In the summer of 1978, the Microcomputer Sales Section started developing the PC-8001, codenamed "PCX-1".
The development team consisted of 10 engineers including section manager and chief designer .
They had already planned to release a version of the
TK-80BS within a plastic case as a personal computer. It was released as the COMPO BS/80, but it failed in the market due to its poor built-in
BASIC
BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College ...
and slow clock speed. The PC-8001 was intended to be a high-performance and inexpensive computer for personal use.
When Goto visited
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...
to survey the application of microprocessors, he ran across
Kazuhiko Nishi
is a Japanese businessman and personal computer pioneer.
Nishi's father ran a private school. Nishi attended Waseda University but dropped out to help found the first Japanese computer magazine, ''I/O''. Shortly thereafter he launched ''ASCII ...
at a computer store. They only exchanged business cards, but Nishi introduced
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
to him after he returned to Japan. Goto thought of visiting Microsoft, but he worried that the trip wouldn't be accepted by his boss because Microsoft was a small company. Instead, he attended the fall 1978
West Coast Computer Faire
The West Coast Computer Faire was an annual computer industry conference and exposition most often associated with San Francisco, its first and most frequent venue. The first fair was held in 1977 and was organized by Jim Warren and Bob Reil ...
during its first day. The next day, he met
Bill Gates
William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American business magnate and philanthropist. He is a co-founder of Microsoft, along with his late childhood friend Paul Allen. During his career at Microsoft, Gates held the positions ...
at the airport in
Albuquerque
Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
. After lunch, they went to Microsoft's office, and then Gates told him the importance of having a
de facto standard
A ''de facto'' standard is a custom or convention that has achieved a dominant position by public acceptance or market forces (for example, by early entrance to the market). is a Latin phrase (literally " in fact"), here meaning "in practice b ...
. Goto agreed.
The team had already been developing a BASIC interpreter, but Watanabe decided to adopt
Microsoft BASIC
Microsoft BASIC is the foundation software product of the Microsoft company and evolved into a line of BASIC interpreters and compiler(s) adapted for many different microcomputers. It first appeared in 1975 as Altair BASIC, which was the first ve ...
because it was widely used in the North American market. At that time, Microsoft and
ASCII
ASCII ( ), abbreviated from American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is a character encoding standard for electronic communication. ASCII codes represent text in computers, telecommunications equipment, and other devices. Because of ...
(the main Microsoft dealer in Japan) intended to expand
OEM
An original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is generally perceived as a company that produces non-aftermarket parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. It is a common industry term recognized and used by many professional or ...
business in Japan, so N-BASIC was provided for NEC with a very low licence fee.
It had been developed at Microsoft's office in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, and NEC provided a wirewrapped prototype, known as the PC-8001g.
The Electronic Device Group only had a small distribution network of electronic parts stores, and the Information Processing Group only had corporate customers who purchased expensive mainframe computers. Also, they didn't have the capability for mass production. They asked New Nippon Electric (NEC Home Electronics since 1983) to sell the personal computers through their consumer distribution network. The system unit, displays and storage devices were all developed by NEC, and manufactured by New Nippon Electric.
Printers were provided from Tokyo Denki (
Toshiba TEC
Subsidiaries of Toshiba. Together, these companies form the Toshiba Group.
Subsidiaries
As of April 2020, Toshiba is organized into six groupings as follows:
*Electronic Devices & Storage Solutions
**Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporat ...
) because NEC had only developed expensive printers for mainframes.
Other NEC divisions didn't appreciate the project before the PC-8001 went on sale. Most people, even in NEC, didn't know about microcomputers, and they couldn't understand what the Microcomputer Sales Section aimed for. The TK-80 sold well for computer enthusiasts, but the computer division regarded it as a toy. Their projects were often criticized inside the company. Watanabe recalled that engineers of the computer division criticized microcomputers didn't have
parity bit
A parity bit, or check bit, is a bit added to a string of binary code. Parity bits are a simple form of error detecting code. Parity bits are generally applied to the smallest units of a communication protocol, typically 8-bit octets (bytes) ...
checking, and they assumed the microprocessors of the time were not suitable for computing due to their lack of performance and reliability. He believed microprocessors were more reliable than wirewrapped
minicomputer
A minicomputer, or colloquially mini, is a class of smaller general purpose computers that developed in the mid-1960s and sold at a much lower price than mainframe and mid-size computers from IBM and its direct competitors. In a 1970 survey, ...
s. When he circulated the contract with Microsoft for approval, computer division's director criticized they planned to purchase the software from a small company. Inside the company, it was considered engineers were confident in their softwares and had to develop softwares themselves. He explained to the director, "It's profitable, so there is no problem. We are salesmen." Watanabe knew importance of the industrial standard and third party developers, but his perception was against company's practice.
Watanabe's bosses, Electronic Device Sales Division manager and executive director , let him do what he wanted. When he suggested the TK-80 project, Sawanobori supported him in anticipation that it would expand the microprocessor market, and Ouchi trusted their decision. When he planned to develop the personal computer, Ouchi wavered. It would become a computer product involved in NEC's core business, and would influence their corporate image. Watanabe also hesitated to develop it in the device division instead of the computer division, but he saw the burgeoning personal computer market in America, and then he decided to continue the project. As the project progressed, Watanabe, Sawanobori and Ouchi discussed their thoughts about marketing, planned a method for mass production, and reached an agreement they devoted all their energies to the project. In January 1979, Goto submitted the first mass production request to New Nippon Electric. They were sure the product would sell, but planned to educate and increase dealers little by little.
Success in Japan
The PC-8001 was introduced on May 9, 1979, and its prototype went to the public at the held from May 16 to 19 at the Tokyo Ryūtsū Center. Soon after the exposition, NEC received thousands of orders. It took half a year to ship about 10,000 backorders after shipment began on September 20, 1979.
By 1981, it dominated 40% of the Japanese personal computer market. About 250,000 units were shipped until production stopped in January 1983. NEC also succeeded in expanding their personal computer chain in Japan. The chain owned 7 stores in 1979, 15 stores in 1980, more than 100 stores in 1981, and reached 200 stores by 1983.
The PC-8001 sold well in the educational market because NEC advertised that the PC-8001 used the industrial standard of Microsoft BASIC. Kanagawa Prefectural Chigasaki Nishihama High School was the first futsu-ka school (upper secondary schools with a focus on a common course) to purchase PC-8001 computers (buying 17 units) and started teaching programming as an elective subject in 1981. In April 1982,
NHK Educational TV started the television program "" using the PC-8001. Its textbook "" sold 700,000 copies.
PC-8001mkII
A higher-performance, more graphically capable revision of the PC-8001, the Mark II debuted in March 1983 for a price of 123,000 yen.
While its most obvious improvement was in its graphical capabilities, the Mark II also included an internal 5.25"
floppy disk
A floppy disk or floppy diskette (casually referred to as a floppy, or a diskette) is an obsolescent type of disk storage composed of a thin and flexible disk of a magnetic storage medium in a square or nearly square plastic enclosure lined w ...
interface as well as two internal expansion slots, doing away with the need for an "expansion box" to permit upgrades. The internal BASIC was changed as well, from the 24KB N-BASIC to a 32KB "N80-BASIC" that added new conditional statements as well as graphics commands.
While the price of the PC-8001mkII was comparable with other 8-bit computer offerings at the time, its graphics were notably worse than its competitors (most likely an attempt on NEC's part to avoid competing with their own, higher-powered
PC-8800 series
The , commonly shortened to PC-88, are a brand of Zilog Z80-based 8-bit home computers released by Nippon Electric Company (NEC) in 1981 and primarily sold in Japan.
The PC-8800 series sold extremely well and became one of the three major Japan ...
). This led to a relative dearth of software produced for it, particularly
games.
PC-8001mkIISR
A games-oriented revision of the PC-8001mkII with significantly better graphics and sound, making its debut in January 1985 for 108,000 yen.
The mkIISR increased the frame-buffer memory from 16KB to 48KB, allowing for 640×200-pixel graphics or 320×200-pixel
double-buffered graphics modes. Additionally, the primitive
PC speaker
A PC speaker is a loudspeaker built into some IBM PC compatible computers. The first IBM Personal Computer, model 5150, employed a standard 2.25 inch magnetic driven (dynamic) speaker. More recent computers use a tiny moving-iron or pie ...
was replaced by an
FM synthesis
Frequency modulation synthesis (or FM synthesis) is a form of sound synthesis whereby the frequency of a waveform is changed by modulating its frequency with a modulator. The frequency of an oscillator is altered "in accordance with the amplitud ...
audio system. Its internal BASIC was also updated to allow usage of this new hardware, as well as providing mkII and PC-8001 compatibility modes (although a significant proportion of older software would not run properly under these modes). Other changes included the change of one general-purpose expansion slot to a
Kanji
are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese family of scripts, Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese language, Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese ...
character
ROM
Rom, or ROM may refer to:
Biomechanics and medicine
* Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient
* Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac
* ...
expansion slot, a
PC-8800 series
The , commonly shortened to PC-88, are a brand of Zilog Z80-based 8-bit home computers released by Nippon Electric Company (NEC) in 1981 and primarily sold in Japan.
The PC-8800 series sold extremely well and became one of the three major Japan ...
keyboard connector, and an
Atari
Atari () is a brand name that has been owned by several entities since its inception in 1972. It is currently owned by French publisher Atari SA through a subsidiary named Atari Interactive. The original Atari, Inc. (1972–1992), Atari, Inc., ...
-style
joystick
A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal cont ...
connector.
Reception
The Japanese personal computer magazine
ASCII
ASCII ( ), abbreviated from American Standard Code for Information Interchange, is a character encoding standard for electronic communication. ASCII codes represent text in computers, telecommunications equipment, and other devices. Because of ...
concluded in 1979 that "Although some problems remain, at present, we can guarantee it is the strongest machine for both software and hardware."
Sawanobori recalled why the PC-8001 became a long seller that "The biggest factor is the price setting of 168,000 yen. The major opinion insisted 220,000 to 230,000 yen was appropriate for value of the product, but Kazuya Watanabe never withdrew 168,000 yen. After all, Watanabe's proposal was accepted by the executive director Ouchi's decision, but his stubbornness was admirable."
Although handicapped by the lack of English documentation, ''
BYTE
The byte is a unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character of text in a computer and for this reason it is the smallest addressable unit ...
''s American reviewers concluded in January 1981 after evaluating a unit purchased in Japan that "the PC-8001 appears to be an attractive, well-planned, and well-made personal computer ... Most people who have seen our PC-8001 feel that, if it were sold in our country, it would provide strong competition for any of the color-based home computers currently being sold".
References
External links
Available software at 2012 and picture of NEC PC-8001PC-8001, Oldcomputer.com
*
NEC PC-8001 / 8801 games
{{NEC computers
NEC personal computers
Z80-based home computers
Computer-related introductions in 1979