--- title: Texas Instruments Computer 99/8 categories: - Computers types: - Home Computer origins: - U.S.A. years: - '1983' cpus: - TI TMS 9995 params: name: Computer 99/8 image: /media/museum/photos/texas_instrument_ti99-8_1.jpg company: /companies/texas-instruments company_name: Texas Instruments specs: - label: NAME value: Computer 99/8 - label: MANUFACTURER value: Texas Instruments - label: TYPE value: Home Computer - label: ORIGIN value: U.S.A. - label: YEAR value: '1983' - label: END OF PRODUCTION value: '1983' - label: BUILT IN LANGUAGE value: TI Extended Basic II - label: KEYBOARD value: QWERTY full-stroke keyboard, 54 keys - label: CPU value: TI TMS 9995 - label: SPEED value: 10,7 MHZ - label: CO-PROCESSOR value: TMS 9918A (Video Generator) - label: RAM value: |- 64 kb (up to 15Mb !)\ 61 kb free with Basic - label: VRAM value: 16 kb - label: ROM value: 220 Kb - label: TEXT MODES value: 32 x 24 (16 colors) / 40 x 24 (2 colors) - label: GRAPHIC MODES value: 64 x 48 (with 4x4 graphic symbols), 256 x 128 (16 colors), 256 x 192 (16 colors) - label: COLORS value: '16' - label: SOUND value: 3 channels & 5 octaves, speech synthesizer built-in - label: I/O PORTS value: Tape, RGB video out (DIN), Joystick, HexBus connector, Expansion port (16 bits), Cartridge slot (GROM port) - label: OS value: P-System - label: PRICE value: planned for 600$ tabs: - photos - emulators - links - docs - videos forum_thread: 278 photos: - title: KEYBOARD/LABEL subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/texas_ti99_8_closeup_1.jpg emulators: - title: Mess emulator url: http://www.mess.org platform: MS DOS text: Emulates all of the TI-99 versions, including the Geneve card - title: PC99 url: http://pw2.netcom.com/~mjmw/index.html platform: MS DOS text: Quality emulator for the TI 99/4A - title: Classic99 url: http://www.harmlesslion.com/software/Classic99 platform: Windows text: Open Source & freeware TI-99/4A emulator for Windows 9x - title: Win994a url: http://www.99er.net/win994a.shtml platform: Windows text: Win994a is a TI-99/4A simulator written by Cory Burr that installs and runs in Windows - title: MacV9T9 official homepage url: http://perso.club-internet.fr/pytheas/english/MacV9T9.html platform: Apple text: MacV9T9 is a TI99 emulator for the Macintosh links: - title: planet-99.net url: http://www.planet-99.net/ text: Lots and Lots of 4A software on this site. Disks, Cartridges, Articles - the lot! - title: Somtimes url: http://sometimes.99er.net/ text: Demo cartridges - title: TI-99 4/A Forever ! url: http://www.ti99.com text: Excellent site with special pages about the Computer 99/8 - title: TI-99 4/A Webring url: http://e.webring.com/hub?ring=ti994a text: You know what it is ;-) - title: TI-99 Forever ! url: http://www.ti99.com text: Excellent site by Fabrice Montupet - title: TI-99/4 Home Page at 99er.Net url: http://www.99er.net/ text: THE us site to visit ! - title: Web Wiz CAPTCHA url: http://www.webwizcaptcha.com text: Discussion about Texas Instruments computers docs: - title: USER'S REFERENCE GUIDE url: http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ti/index.htm cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_user-reference-guide.jpg text: |- [**USER'S REFERENCE GUIDE**](http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ti/index.htm)written by Texas Instruments  compiled/archived by Dave Dunfield\  type of document : PDF\  source : [Daves Old Computers](http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/) - title: BEGINNER'S BASIC url: http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ti/index.htm cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_beginners-basic.jpg text: |- [**BEGINNER'S BASIC**](http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ti/index.htm)written by Texas Instruments  compiled/archived by Dave Dunfield\  type of document : PDF\  source : [Daves Old Computers](http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/) - title: BASIC REFERENCE CARD url: http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ti/index.htm cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_basic-reference-card.jpg text: |- [**BASIC REFERENCE CARD**](http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/ti/index.htm)written by Texas Instruments  compiled/archived by Dave Dunfield\  type of document : PDF\  source : [Daves Old Computers](http://www.classiccmp.org/dunfield/) - title: GETTING STARTED WITH THE TEXAS INSTRUMENTS TI99/4A url: http://shawweb.myzen.co.uk/stephen/book.htm cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/vide.gif text: |- [**GETTING STARTED WITH THE TEXAS INSTRUMENTS TI99/4A**](http://shawweb.myzen.co.uk/stephen/book.htm)written by Stephen Shaw  compiled/archived by Stephen Shaw\  type of document : HTML\  source : [Stephen's Main Web Page](http://shawweb.myzen.co.uk/stephen) - title: PROGRAMMING DISCOVERY IN TI BASIC STUDENT GUIDE url: http://www.99er.net/docs.html cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_programming_discovery.jpg text: |- [**PROGRAMMING DISCOVERY IN TI BASIC STUDENT GUIDE**](http://www.99er.net/docs.html)written by Texas Instruments Computer Advantage Club  compiled/archived by Rich at www.99er.net\  type of document : Unknown\  source : [TI-99/4A Home Computer Page](http://www.99er.net/) - title: TI-99/4A CONSOLE & PERIPHERAL EXPANSION SYSTEM TECHNICAL DATA url: http://www.99er.net/docs.html cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_technical_data.jpg text: |- [**TI-99/4A CONSOLE & PERIPHERAL EXPANSION SYSTEM TECHNICAL DATA**](http://www.99er.net/docs.html)written by Texas Instruments  type of document : PDF\  source : [TI-99/4A Home Computer Page](http://www.99er.net/) - title: SPEECH SYNTHESIZER MANUAL url: http://www.99er.net/docs.html cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_speech-module-manual.jpg text: |- [**SPEECH SYNTHESIZER MANUAL**](http://www.99er.net/docs.html)written by Texas Instruments  type of document : PDF\  source : [TI-99/4A Home Computer Page](http://www.99er.net/) - title: DISK MEMORY SYSTEM MANUAL url: http://www.99er.net/docs.html cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_disk-memory-system.jpg text: |- [**DISK MEMORY SYSTEM MANUAL**](http://www.99er.net/docs.html)written by Texas Instruments  compiled/archived by Rich at www.99er.net\  type of document : Unknown\  source : [TI-99/4A Home Computer Page](http://www.99er.net/) - title: RS232 INTERFACE CARD MANUAL url: http://www.99er.net/docs.html cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_rs232.jpg text: |- [**RS232 INTERFACE CARD MANUAL**](http://www.99er.net/docs.html)written by Texas Instruments  compiled/archived by Rich at www.99er.net\  type of document : Unknown\  source : [TI-99/4A Home Computer Page](http://www.99er.net/) - title: DATA RECORDER MANUAL url: http://www.99er.net/docs.html cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/texas-instruments_ti99-4a_data-recorder.jpg text: |- [**DATA RECORDER MANUAL**](http://www.99er.net/docs.html)written by Texas Instruments  compiled/archived by Rich at www.99er.net\  type of document : PDF\  source : [TI-99/4A Home Computer Page](http://www.99er.net/) videos: - title: TV commercial featuring Bill Cosby url: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OhsgvW9P7tI text: 'Length: 30 s' related: - /museum/texas-instruments-ti-99-2 - /museum/texas-instruments-ti-99-4a - /museum/texas-instruments-ti-99-4a-beige oc_id: 268 source: url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230606203013/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=268 date: '2023-06-06' --- The 99/8 was intended as an upmarket companion to the [TI 99/4A](/museum/texas-instruments-ti-99-4a/) . Something like a small business computer. However, at TI they didn't think it would generate any income, so it was never released. It has built-in features which were optional in the 4A : The speech synthesiser and the Pascal UCSD ROM card. It is a prototype computer and was never marketed. --- Very interesting information from **CC Clarke**\ As a young electronic technician at TI, I labored in the "trenches" during the Home Computer Wars of the early eighties. It was brutal. Our 99/4A was technologically superior to the Comodore 64, but was marketed against the VIC 20 in price.\ The 99/8 (codenamed: **Roadrunner**) was supposed to remedy that situation. It was more advanced, cheaper to produce, (the bottom line was ALWAYs the decisive factor in corporate decision-making) and used the existing TI HexBus interface, touted as the emerging interface standard at TI.\ Unfortunately, TI got a very bloody nose when it voluntarily recalled thousands of 99/4A AC transformers due to a perceived fusing issue. Thousands of 99/8s were built and warehoused (before being destroyed) after it was discovered they couldn't meet FCC EMI specs without expensive design changes.\ In 1982/83, TI was losing more money in their Lubbock Consumer Products Division than they could justify. and the 99/8's problems made it cheaper to bury than bring to market. A few escaped and are considered collector's items.