---
title: Sharp MZ 5500 - 5600
categories:
- Computers
types:
- Professional Computer
origins:
- Japan
years:
- '1983'
cpus:
- Intel 8086
params:
  name: MZ 5500 - 5600
  image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz5500_1.jpg
  company: /companies/sharp
  company_name: Sharp
  specs:
  - label: NAME
    value: MZ 5500 - 5600
  - label: MANUFACTURER
    value: Sharp
  - label: TYPE
    value: Professional Computer
  - label: ORIGIN
    value: Japan
  - label: YEAR
    value: September 1983
  - label: KEYBOARD
    value: Full-stroke keyboard
  - label: CPU
    value: Intel 8086
  - label: SPEED
    value: 4 MHz
  - label: RAM
    value: 256 KB (up to 512 KB) (Sharp MZ 5521), 128 KB (MZ 5501, MZ 5511)
  - label: VRAM
    value: from 96 KB to 1932 KB (3 or 6 graphic pages of 640 x 400)
  - label: ROM
    value: Unknown
  - label: TEXT MODES
    value: 80 x 25 / 40 x 25
  - label: GRAPHIC MODES
    value: 640 x 400 - 320 x 200
  - label: COLORS
    value: monochrom
  - label: SOUND
    value: 3 voices / 8 octaves
  - label: I/O PORTS
    value: Centronics, RS 232c
  - label: BUILT IN MEDIA
    value: One 5.25'' FDD
  - label: OS
    value: EOS 16 - MS DOS
  - label: POWER SUPPLY
    value: Built-in PSU
  tabs:
  - photos
  - hardware
  - emulators
  - links
  photos:
  - title: A PHOTO OF THE MZ 5500 ADVERTISING IN A JAPANESE MAGAZINE
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/photos/mz_5500.jpg
  - title: CP/M 86 MANUALS
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz5600_cpm86.jpg
  hardware:
  - title: FRENCH FDD UNIT
    subtitle: ''
    text: Instead of selling the original Sharp FDD unit, the Sharp French subsidiary (Sharp Burotype Machines) preferred to made their own unit. The case could hold up to 4 drives. The drives were Canon models.
    image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80b_frenchfdd_s1.jpg
  - title: MZ 80P3 - DOT MATRIX PRINTER
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_printer.jpg
  - title: MZ-P4 PRINTER
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_printer_80b.jpg
  - title: MZ-P6 PRINTER
    subtitle: ''
    text: ''
    image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80_gp6.jpg
  emulators:
  - title: EMUZ-2000
    url: http://www5d.biglobe.ne.jp/~object/
    platform: Windows
    text: SHARP MZ-80B / 2000 / 2200 emulator for Windows
  links:
  - title: Sharp Games
    url: http://sharpgames.atspace.com
    text: Some homebrew games in develoment for the MZ
  - title: The Sharp Users Club
    url: http://sharpusersclub.org
    text: Very useful web site done by the UK Sharp Users Club
  - title: www.sharpmz.org
    url: http://www.sharpmz.org
    text: THE website for all MZ fans !!
  comments:
  - author: ukl (germany)
    date: Friday 18th July 2008
    text: hello, i have lot of service manuals from an former sharp employ - so if any one interested - pls contact me.
  - author: Maximiliano Abad (Argentina)
    date: Friday 6th August 2004
    text: |-
      I have a Sharp MZ-5521K. Please i need Help about this product. I need Software, manuals. etc. ANY HELP.\
      The MZ5521k it´s original and excelents.\
      Thanks

      Hola, Mi nombre es Maximiliano Abad. Tengo una Sharp MZ-5521K en excelente estado y deseo conseguir toda la informacion posible respecto a ella... Software, Manuales... Drivers ... Lo que sea que sepan o tengan podria ayudarme a restaurarla. Desde ya muchas Gracias
  related:
  - /museum/sharp-mz-2000
  - /museum/sharp-mz-2200
  - /museum/sharp-mz-2500
  - /museum/sharp-mz-2800
  - /museum/sharp-mz-3500
  - /museum/sharp-mz-700
  - /museum/sharp-mz-800-mz-1500
  - /museum/sharp-mz-80a-mz-1200
  - /museum/sharp-mz-80b
  - /museum/sharp-mz-80c
  - /museum/sharp-mz-80k
  oc_id: 296
  source:
    url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230608212419/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=296
    date: '2023-06-08'
---

This computer wasn't 100% MS-DOS compatible, but is intended to work under EOS 16.\
EOS 16 is an operating system, which looks like UNIX and is fully compatible with Concurrent CP/M and CP/M 86 and can execute programs for MS-DOS 1.4 or MS-DOS 2.0.

Sharp developed a Z80 card for the MZ 5600, with this card, EOS 16 can execute programs written for EOS V3 (EOS for 8 bit systems) or CP/M 80.

The EOS 16 shell is very powerful and uses UNIX features.

The MZ 5600 supports several disk formats: 640 KB (when it is used with MSDOS), 800 KB (to use programs written for the MZ 3541) or 320 KB (old MS-DOS format).