--- title: RABBIT COMPUTER RX83 categories: - Computers types: - Home Computer origins: - Hong Kong years: - '1983' cpus: - Zilog Z80A params: name: RX83 image: /media/museum/photos/rabbit-computer_rx83_1s.jpg company: /companies/rabbit-computer company_name: RABBIT COMPUTER specs: - label: NAME value: RX83 - label: MANUFACTURER value: Rabbit Computer - label: TYPE value: Home Computer - label: ORIGIN value: Hong Kong - label: YEAR value: '1983' - label: END OF PRODUCTION value: Maybe 1984 - label: BUILT IN LANGUAGE value: Rabbit Standard BASIC V1.0 - label: KEYBOARD value: |- 50 blue rubber keys QWERTY keyboard\ BACKSPACE, RESET, LINE FEED, CTRL, SPACE, SHIFT, RETURN, RUBOUT - label: CPU value: Zilog Z80A - label: SPEED value: 3.58 MHz - label: CO-PROCESSOR value: Motorola MC 6847P (video) - label: RAM value: 2 Kb, up to 64 Kb - label: ROM value: 8 Kb - label: TEXT MODES value: 32 x 16 - label: GRAPHIC MODES value: 256 x 192 - label: COLORS value: '8' - label: SOUND value: AY-3-8910 from General Instruments, 3 channels (8 octaves) + white noise - label: SIZE / WEIGHT value: |- 270 x 175 x 72 mm\ 600 gr - label: I/O PORTS value: Tape interface (1200 baud), expansion port, 2 x joystick ports, RF Video output - label: OS value: CP/M with vaporware 5''1/4 disk-drive - label: POWER SUPPLY value: External PSU, 9V DC 1A - label: PERIPHERALS value: |- RAM expansions (16 Kb/64 Kb)\ Joysticks\ Centronics printer interface\ Floppy disk (96 Kb)\ Coleco & Atari VCS carts adaptater ! - label: PRICE value: $99 (USA, 1983) forum_thread: 1293 oc_id: 1328 source: url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230130122650/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=1328 date: '2023-01-30' --- A quite little strange computer, which appeared under different designs... The Rabbit Computer RX83 was announced at the 1983 CES. It looks like the computer was produced in Hong-Kong and then proposed to several companies in the rest of the world to market the computer under their own brand. See the [GEM 1000 computer](/museum/gem-1000-junior-computer-charlemagne-999/) entry for such an example. However no such computers have been found so far, maybe proving that the original company failed to produce the computer, or that it canceled the project at last minute, or that so few were sold that it's difficult to find a specimen today... But if you look at the pictures section of the [GEM 1000 computer](/museum/gem-1000-junior-computer-charlemagne-999/), you'll notice the that the computer evolved in different plastic cases. The "Charlemagne" picture, shows a case and keyboard identical to the [CCE MC1000 computer](/museum/cce-mc-1000/). This could mean that the project was finally marketed in Brazil, exclusively for CCE. Moreover, the games advertised in the 1983 promotional leaflet were indeed released for the CCE MC-1000. Thus we can say for certain that Rabbit RX83 computer eventually evolved into the CCE MC-1000. Adam Trionfo reports in Digital Press forum ([source link](https://forum.digitpress.com/forum/showthread.php?109595-Rabbit-Computer-RX83-Anyone-Heard-of-It)), about the RX83 flyer: "This flyer was handed out to Bob Fabris at, I think, the Summer CES show in June of 1983. Bob was the the editor of the Arcadian newsletter (for the Bally Arcade/Astrocade) in 1983. He was extremely interested in the Rabbit RX83, as he felt he could provide software for this quite-limited machine. Like the Astrocade, which had 1.8K available to BASIC, the Rabbit RX83 shipped with just 2KB of RAM. In fact, Robert was working out a deal in which programs that had been previously written for the Astrocade would be ported to the Rabbit RX83 computer. The final deal would have cost Rabbit computer $2,500-$5,000 for each program ported to the RX83. I do have all of the paperwork exchanged between Rabbit Computer's president, Daniel Young, in Hong Kong and Bob Fabris; it's quite fascinating! Unfortunately, the Rabbit RX83 was not released in the United States. The system was released in Belgium as the GEM 1000 and in Hong Kong as the Rabbit RX83. It also was released as the CCE MC-1000 in Brazil in 1985. Other documentation in the Bob Fabris collection includes flyers for the Rabbit II, which had a proper full-stroke keyboard and 80K RAM (which sounds like they were including ROM and RAM)."
We need more info about this computer ! If you designed, used, or have more info about this system, please send us pictures or anything you might find useful.