--- title: Tandy Radio Shack Color Computer 2 categories: - Computers types: - Home Computer origins: - U.S.A. years: - '1983' cpus: - Motorola 6809E params: name: Color Computer 2 image: /media/museum/photos/tandy_coco2_3s.jpg company: /companies/tandy-radio-shack company_name: Tandy Radio Shack specs: - label: NAME value: Color Computer 2 - label: MANUFACTURER value: Tandy Radio Shack - label: TYPE value: Home Computer - label: ORIGIN value: U.S.A. - label: YEAR value: '1983' - label: KEYBOARD value: |- Full-stroke keyboard, 53 keys.\ Arrow keys, BREAK, CLEAR, SHIFT (x2) - label: CPU value: Motorola 6809E - label: SPEED value: 0,89 Mhz (1,8 Mhz by programming the clock generator) - label: RAM value: 16 KB, 32 KB or 64 KB, depending on models - label: ROM value: 8 KB (Color Basic), but later models had 16 KB (Extended Color Basic) - label: TEXT MODES value: 32 x 16 - label: GRAPHIC MODES value: 256 x 192 (2 colors), 128 x 192 (2 and 4 colors), 128 x 96 (4 and 2 colors), 32 x 64 (8 colors) - label: COLORS value: '9' - label: SOUND value: 1 voice (6-bit DAC) - label: SIZE / WEIGHT value: 9 x 35 x 37,5 cm - label: I/O PORTS value: Expansion/Cartridge connector, two analog joystick connectors, cassette interface (1500 bauds), RS232 serial port, TV RF connector - label: OS value: OS9 Level 1 with disk-drives - label: POWER SUPPLY value: PSU built-in - label: PRICE value: |- 16k standard model : $159.95 (USA, 84)\ 16k extended model : $199.95 (USA, 84)\ 64k extended model : $259.95 (USA, 84) tabs: - photos - adverts - hardware - connectors - emulators - links forum_thread: 502 photos: - title: COLOR COMPUTER 2 subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/tandy_coco2_3.jpg - title: COLOR COMPUTER 2 subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/tandy_coco2_2.jpg - title: DETAIL subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/tandy_coco2_detail.jpg - title: REAR subtitle: '' text: |- From left to right: \- Tape Interface (cass)\ \- Serial I/O\ \- Right joystick connector\ \- Left joystick connector\ \- TV channel select switch\ \- TV video output\ \- Power on/off button image: /media/museum/photos/tandy_coco2_rear.jpg - title: BOX subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/tandy_coco2_box_1.jpg adverts: - title: PROMOTIONAL LEAFLET subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/pubs/tandy_coco2_leaflet_1.jpg hardware: - title: TRS-80 COLOR COMPUTER DISK SYSTEM subtitle: '' text: It includes single external disk drive (uses standard DS, DD 5.25” floppy) with plug in disk interface, and 92 page users guide. image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_color1_fd500_2.jpg - title: FD-501 subtitle: 5''1/4 disk-drive text: |- This picture show the case housing a double disk-drive, the controler cartridge and the box. The cartridge has the "Microsoft Extended Color Basic 2.1" in ROM. image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco_fd501-disk_1.jpg - title: PLUG AND POWER subtitle: Domotic hardware ! text: An incredible extension for any Coco computer ! It turns your lights and other equipment on and off at designated times. image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco_plug-and-power.jpg - title: PLUG'N'POWER subtitle: 'Pic #2' text: This is the x10 (x-10) "Plug 'n Power Appliance and Light Controller" that goes with the cartridge of the same name. This can be used to program lights and other electrical devices in your home or office to turn on or off using the x10 protocol (you need to have x10 controllers on devices you would like to control) image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_plugnpower_2.jpg - title: RS232 PACK subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco_rs232-pack.jpg - title: SPEECH & SOUND CARTRIDGE subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco_speech-sound-cartridge_1.jpg - title: SPEECH-SOUND PAK subtitle: cat. no 26-3144 text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_speech-sound-pak.jpg - title: SERIAL TO PARALLEL CONVERTER subtitle: '' text: |- It is a serial to parallel converter (DB25 connectors). A sticker on the bottom tells of all of the DIP switch settings, and a little LED shows the power status image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_serial-parallel_converter_1.jpg - title: 512K TURBO RAM subtitle: from Speech Systems text: This board installs in a coco 3 to give it a whopping 512k of ram ! image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco3_speech-system-512k-turbo-ram.jpg - title: WICO JOYSTICK ADAPTER subtitle: '' text: The Wico TRS-80 adapter allows you to use Atari 2600 joysticks (and other various controllers using the Atari standard) on your Color Computer image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_vcsadapt_1.jpg - title: TRS80 COLOUR MOUSE subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_trs80colormouse_1.jpg - title: TRS-80 TOUCH PAD subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_trs80-touch-pad.jpg - title: TANDY JOYSTICK subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_color1_joystick_1.jpg - title: GT-116 subtitle: Tandy graphic tablet text: A4 size. It is used for transfering pictures or drawings, and also as a menu pointing system. image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_color1_tablet_1.jpg - title: VINYL KEYBOARD COVER subtitle: '' text: Suitable for models 2 and 3. image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_plastic-cover_1.jpg - title: DC-2212 subtitle: 1200-baud modem with automatic dialing and answer text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_color1_modem2212_s1.jpg - title: MULTI-PACK INTERFACE subtitle: Model 26-3124 text: The Multi-Pack plugs into the cartridge slot on the side of the Color Computer and allows up to four devices to be plugged into the computer at the same time. A switch on the front of the MPI allows to switch between the 4 ROM Paks. This can be done also with software commands. With the MPI, a disk drive, an RS-232 Program Pak, and a game cartridge could be used simultaneously. image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco_multipack-interface_1.jpg - title: OLDER MODEL subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_multipack-old_1.jpg - title: OLDER MODEL subtitle: Box text: '' image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_coco2_multipack-old_box_1.jpg - title: TANDY COLOUR PRINTERS subtitle: '' text: |- **CGP 220** : (left) 7 colours Inkjet printer\ **CGP 115** : (right) 4 colours plotter image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_color1_printers_1.jpg - title: 'CGP 115 #2' subtitle: '' text: |- 4-pen color graphic printer.\ Cat. 26-1192A image: /media/museum/hardware/tandy_color1_4penprinter_s1.jpg connectors: - title: JOYSTICK CONNECTOR subtitle: '' text: |- Looking at the outside of the Joystick jack on the computer **(1)** Comparator input (Right-Left)\ **(2)** Comparator input (Up-Down)\ **(3)** Ground\ **(4)** Fire button 1, High when open, Low when closed\ **(5)** Vcc, current limited +5VDC\ **(6)** Fire button 2 image: /media/museum/connectors/tandy_color3_con_joystick_s1.jpg - title: SERIAL RS232 CONNECTOR subtitle: '' text: |- Looking at the outside of the DIN socket on the computer **(1)** **CD** Carrier detect (Status input line)\ **(2)** **RD** Receive Data\ **(3)** **GROUND** Zero voltage reference\ **(4)** **TD** Transmit Data Out image: /media/museum/connectors/tandy_color3_con_serial_s1.jpg - title: TAPE RECORDER CONNECTOR subtitle: '' text: |- **(1)** Remote control\ **(2)** Signal ground\ **(3)** Remote control\ **(4)** Input from recorder\ **(5)** Output to recorder image: /media/museum/connectors/tandy_color3_con_taperec_s1.jpg emulators: - title: TRS-80 Colour Computer 2 Emulator url: http://www.vavasour.ca/jeff/trs80.html#coco2 platform: MS DOS text: This DOS emulator (freeware) will run original CoCo as well as CoCo 2 software - title: Virtual CoCo for MacOS url: http://www.maya.com/Local/phil/coco/ platform: Apple text: '' - title: MOCHA url: http://members.cox.net/javacoco/ platform: Other platform text: TRS-80 Color Computer (CoCo) Emulator Written In Java - title: MESS url: http://www.mess.org platform: Multiplatform text: MESS emulates Coco systems, among many other computers links: - title: Cloud-9 url: http://www.cloud9tech.com/Order/index.html text: The place where you can even buy a brand new CoCo3 - title: CoCo Quest Color Computer Games and More! url: http://www.prowler-pro.com/coco/ text: '' - title: Coco Webring url: http://nav.webring.yahoo.com/hub?ring=CoCo&id=40&list text: It says it all ! - title: CoCo Zonz url: http://www.bat-soft.com/coco/ text: '' - title: Color Computer Links url: http://coco3nuts.tripod.com/ text: '' - title: Color Computer Transfer Utility url: http://home.netcom.com/~tlindner/CTU.html text: '' - title: NitrOS9 url: HTTP://NITROS9.LCURTISBOYLE.COM text: Various Coco webpages, including 100+ downloadable games - title: RadioShackCatalogs.com url: http://www.RadioShackCatalogs.com text: Here, you can actually/virtually flip-through the pages to view the content of every RadioShack catalog. - title: www.coco3.com url: http://www.coco3.com text: The title speaks for itself ! It includes among many things, a Coco FAQ - title: Web Wiz CAPTCHA url: http://www.webwizcaptcha.com text: Discussion about Tandy computers related: - /museum/tandy-radio-shack-color-computer - /museum/tandy-radio-shack-color-computer-3 oc_id: 508 source: url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230604031933/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=508 date: '2023-06-04' --- The Color Computer 2 (coco2) replaced the [Color Computer "Model 1"](/museum/tandy-radio-shack-color-computer/) in 1983. It has the same characteristics than the Model 1 but has a better keyboard and a more integrated circuitry. There were several models of the Coco2, some with only 8k ROM (Color Basic) called Standard Color Computer 2, and others with 16k ROM (Extended Color Basic) called the Extended Color Computer 2. Some later models differ also in RAM capacity (16k, 32k or 64k). It was replaced with the [Color Computer 3](/museum/tandy-radio-shack-color-computer-3/) in 1986. --- About the double speed, **Gary Clouse** specifies:\ The double speed mode was not really accomplished by changing the clock speed. The Synchronous address multiplexor (SAM) chip by default generated memory refresh cycles for the entire address space. the "double speed poke" disabled the refresh cycle for the upper 32k memory address, where the ROM was mapped. Since the ROM was static, it didn't need this and since BASIC spent most of its time in the rom routines, it would appear to nearly double the speed. The flip side of this was that many I/O functions that relied on timing loops would be unusable, such as saving data to a tape. Also if you were using the upper 32k of ram, the double speed poke would wipe the memory.