--- title: Interact Home Computer System categories: - Computers types: - Home Computer origins: - U.S.A. years: - '1979' cpus: - Intel 8080 A params: name: Home Computer System image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_system_s2.jpg company: /companies/interact company_name: Interact specs: - label: NAME value: Home Computer System - label: MANUFACTURER value: Interact - label: TYPE value: Home Computer - label: ORIGIN value: U.S.A. - label: YEAR value: '1979' - label: END OF PRODUCTION value: '1979' - label: BUILT IN LANGUAGE value: None (EDU-BASIC on cassette tape) - label: KEYBOARD value: QWERTY, chicklet keyboard 53 keys - label: CPU value: Intel 8080 A - label: SPEED value: 2 MHz - label: RAM value: 8 or 16 KB - label: ROM value: 2 KB - label: TEXT MODES value: 17 chars. x 12 lines - label: GRAPHIC MODES value: 112 x 78 in 4 colors - label: COLORS value: '8' - label: SOUND value: 1 voice, 4 octaves - label: SIZE / WEIGHT value: 46.3 (W) x 26.5 (D) x 10 (H) cm / 5.8 kg - label: I/O PORTS value: 2 joystick sockets, TV output - label: BUILT IN MEDIA value: Tape recorder (1200 bauds) - label: POWER SUPPLY value: External AC transformer - label: PERIPHERALS value: 32 KB RAM card, stringy floppy drive - label: PRICE value: 300$ (USA, 1980) tabs: - photos - adverts - hardware - software - emulators - links - docs forum_thread: 978 photos: - title: LARGE VIEW subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_system_s3.jpg - title: RIGHT SIDE subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_system_s1.jpg - title: LEFT SIDE subtitle: '' text: Notice the external power transformer and the empty connector location. In fact the main board featured neither parallel nor serial port. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_leftside_s1.jpg - title: KEYBOARD CLOSE-UP subtitle: '' text: The 'chicklet' keyboard was really impractical for intensive typing. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_keyboard_s1.jpg - title: 'INSIDE #1' subtitle: '' text: |- Thanks to its really efficient protection against magnetic shields, the Interact was FCC and UL approved.\ **(1)** Keyboard connector\ **(2)** Power supply connector\ **(3)** Reset and power switch connector\ **(4)** Cassette drive connector image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_inside_s1.jpg - title: 'INSIDE #2' subtitle: '' text: |- **(1)** Joystick DB9 connectors\ **(2)** SN 76477 sound generator\ **(3)** Intel 8080A processor\ **(4)** 2 KB ROM chip. A second ROM socket is available\ **(5)** RF TV modulator\ **(6)** 16 KB RAM chips - 8 x Mostek 4115 image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_inside_s2.jpg - title: 'INSIDE #3' subtitle: '' text: RAM chips close-up image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_inside_s3.jpg - title: ORIGINAL INTERACT MODEL subtitle: '' text: Thanks to [http://hectorvictor.free.fr/](http://hectorvictor.free.fr/) for this picture. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_homecomputer_1.jpg - title: INTERACT LABEL subtitle: '' text: Thanks to [http://hectorvictor.free.fr/](http://hectorvictor.free.fr/) for this picture. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_homecomputer_label_1.jpg - title: SOFTWARE CASSETTES subtitle: '' text: |- Original Interact and MicroVideo software cassettes.\ Among the MicroVideo cassettes:\ • EZEDIT program editor\ • 16K diagnostic tape\ • Microsoft 8K fast graphics BASIC\ • Level II BASIC image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_cassettes_s1.jpg - title: ORIGINAL INTERACT PACKING subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_package_s1.jpg - title: THE BOX subtitle: '' text: '' image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_box_s1.jpg - title: MANUALS subtitle: '' text: Interact owner's guide and Microsoft 8K BASIC manual sold separately by MicroVideo. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_model1_basicmanual_s1.jpg - title: KEYBOARD OVERLAY subtitle: '' text: This is the chicklet keyboard overlay used for the “Compute-A-Color” paint program. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_computeacolor_overlay.jpg - title: MECHANICAL KEYBOARD subtitle: '' text: This is an original Interact with an optional mechanical keyboard from MicroVideo added later. image: /media/museum/photos/interact_computers_mech-keyboard.jpg adverts: - title: INTERACTION NEWSLETTER subtitle: '' text: Three issues of this 'Newsletter Detroit Interact Group' were published during the first semester of 1980 image: /media/museum/pubs/interact_model1_fanzine_s1.jpg - title: SALES CATALOG subtitle: '' text: In this catalog, NEWMAN COMPUTER EXCHANGE from Ann Arbor sold various Interact packages, from $44.95 for an incomplete and inoperative 8K model, to $299.95 for a 16K system along with 30 software cassettes and a complete documentation including the service manuals set. image: /media/museum/pubs/interact_model1_brocker_s1.jpg - title: US ADVERT FROM PROTECTO subtitle: '' text: taken from Popular Science nov. 1980 image: /media/museum/pubs/interact_computer_protecto-pub_nov1980.jpg hardware: - title: THIS IS IT subtitle: '' text: The numeric keypad was of course optional, and you had to modify/hack the Interact keyboard to connect it. image: /media/museum/hardware/interact_numkeypad_1.jpg - title: CONNECTOR subtitle: '' text: The numeric keypad was of course optional, and you had to modify/hack the Interact keyboard to connect it. This is the hacked connector. image: /media/museum/hardware/interact_numkeypad_2.jpg emulators: - title: DCHector url: http://dchector.free.fr/ platform: Windows text: Excellent Interact/Hector emulator ! - title: James the Animal Tamer's Interact Emulator url: http://www.geocities.com/emucompboy/ platform: Windows text: James stroke again and developped a partially working Interact emulator links: - title: Hector! L'ordinateur personnel français url: http://hectorvictor.free.fr/ text: French website dedicated to Hector / Victor Lambda computers docs: - title: BASICALLY SPEAKING url: /media/museum/docs/interact_basically_speaking.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_basicaly-speaking.jpg text: |- [**BASICALLY SPEAKING**](/media/museum/docs/interact_basically_speaking.pdf)written by Micro Video  compiled/archived by oldcomputers.net\  type of document : PDF\  size : 9 Mb\  source : [oldcomputers.net](http://oldcomputers.net/) - title: INTERACT SERVICE MANUAL url: /media/museum/docs/interact_service_manual.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_service-manual.jpg text: |- [**INTERACT SERVICE MANUAL**](/media/museum/docs/interact_service_manual.pdf)written by Interact  compiled/archived by oldcomputers.net\  type of document : PDF\  size : 20 Mb\  source : [oldcomputers.net](http://oldcomputers.net/) - title: INTERACT SCHEMATICS url: /media/museum/docs/interact-schematics.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_computer_schematics_pdf-cover.jpg text: |- [**INTERACT SCHEMATICS**](/media/museum/docs/interact-schematics.pdf)written by Interact  compiled/archived by Ed Anuff\  type of document : PDF\  size : 29 MB - title: LEVEL II BASIC LANGUAGE url: /media/museum/docs/level_ii_basic.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_basic-levelii.jpg text: |- [**LEVEL II BASIC LANGUAGE**](/media/museum/docs/level_ii_basic.pdf)written by Interact  compiled/archived by oldcomputers.net\  type of document : PDF\  size : 23 Mb\  source : [oldcomputers.net](http://oldcomputers.net/) - title: INTERACT NETWORK NEWSLETTER - VOL.1 - N°1 url: /media/museum/docs/interact_network_newsletter-vol%20i-1.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact-network-newsletter_vol1-1.jpg text: |- [**INTERACT NETWORK NEWSLETTER - VOL.1 - N°1**](/media/museum/docs/interact_network_newsletter-vol%20i-1.pdf)written by Micro Video Corporation  compiled/archived by Olivier Boisseau (www.old-computers.com)\  type of document : PDF\  size : 2,4 Mb\  source : www.old-computers.com - title: INTERACT NETWORK NEWSLETTER - VOL.1 - N°2 url: /media/museum/docs/interact_network_newsletter-vol%20i-2.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_network-newsletter_1-2.jpg text: |- [**INTERACT NETWORK NEWSLETTER - VOL.1 - N°2**](/media/museum/docs/interact_network_newsletter-vol%20i-2.pdf)written by Micro Video Corporation  compiled/archived by Olivier Boisseau (www.old-computers.com)\  type of document : PDF\  size : 3,8 Mo\  source : www.old-computers.com - title: MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.2 - N°1 url: /media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20ii-1.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_network-newsletter_2-1.jpg text: |- [**MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.2 - N°1**](/media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20ii-1.pdf)written by Micro Video Corporation  compiled/archived by Olivier Boisseau (www.old-computers.com)\  type of document : PDF\  size : 2,8 Mb\  source : www.old-computers.com - title: MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.2 - N°2 url: /media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20ii-2.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_micro-video_ram-pages_vol2-2.jpg text: |- [**MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.2 - N°2**](/media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20ii-2.pdf)written by Micro Video Corporation  compiled/archived by Olivier Boisseau (www.old-computers.com)\  type of document : PDF\  size : 6 Mb\  source : www.old-computers.com - title: MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.3 - N°1 url: /media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20iii-1.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_micro-video_ram-pages_vol3-1.jpg text: |- [**MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.3 - N°1**](/media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20iii-1.pdf)written by Micro Video Corporation  compiled/archived by Olivier Boisseau (www.old-computers.com)\  type of document : PDF\  size : 5,3 Mb\  source : www.old-computers.com - title: MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.3 - N°2 url: /media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20iii-2.pdf cover: /media/museum/docs/couvs/interact_micro-video_ram-pages_vol3-2.jpg text: |- [**MICRO VIDEO RAM PAGES - VOL.3 - N°2**](/media/museum/docs/microvideo%20ram%20pages%20-%20vol%20iii-2.pdf)written by Micro Video Corporation  compiled/archived by Olivier Boisseau (www.old-computers.com)\  type of document : PDF\  size : 5,2 Mb\  source : www.old-computers.com software: - /software/breakthrough-also-known-as-le-mur-de-briques oc_id: 1004 source: url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230401010105/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=1004 date: '2023-04-01' --- The Interact computer had a very short life in USA. It had only just got in production when the Interact Co. of Ann Arbor MI, went bankrupt. Several thousand machines were produced though. Some of them were sold by Protecto Enterprizes of Barrington, IL, the liquidator, but the main part was sold by MicroVideo, also of Ann Arbor. Protecto bought lots of back-of-the-magazine ads for years, always printed with "WE LOVE OUR CUSTOMERS". The Interact shipped with 2 joysticks, a built-in tape recorder, a TV RF modulator and 2 KB of ROM. Everything, including BASIC, must be loaded from tape. A little trivia: The tape unit did include an erase head, but it was not connected! Tapes had to be erased on a regular cassette recorder before being reused. Another surprising feature is that the "1" key is after the "0" key at the far right of the keyboard. Thus the row is starting from 2 and finishing by 1... See explanation in the "Read more" page. MicroVideo supported the machine for two years, 1979-80, making some hardware expansions (32K RAM card and stringy floppy drive), replacing the original minimalist EDU-BASIC language with a Microsoft 8K graphic version, and even publishing 3 issues of 'Interaction', a newsletter of the Detroit Interact Group. The Interact computer finally vanished from the US market in late 1980. However, a French company bought the rights of the machine and started to sell the Interact under **Victor Lambda** name in French market. See the rest of the story [here](/museum/micronique-victor-lambda/). For five years, several improved sequels of the Interact, called **Hector**, were launched in France. The last version, the [Hector MX](/museum/micronique-hector-mx/), featured high resolution graphics and 4 built-in languages! **If you got tapes for the Interact or Victor Lambda (or Hector/Victor), please contact us. We are trying to save all programs released for this computer before there are lost forever.**