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yann64andClaude Opus 5.5 b274874139 All machines linked to their forum thread (full comment import) 
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Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 5.5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
Claude-Session: https://claude.ai/code/session_01YDRjtmAiNpo5mK5N3d7QwZ
2026-10-13 17:26:43 +02:00

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---
title: Sharp MZ 80K
categories:
- Computers
types:
- Home Computer
origins:
- Japan
years:
- '1979'
cpus:
- Sharp LH-0080
params:
name: MZ 80K
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_system_1.jpg
company: /companies/sharp
company_name: Sharp
specs:
- label: NAME
value: MZ 80K
- label: MANUFACTURER
value: Sharp
- label: TYPE
value: Home Computer
- label: ORIGIN
value: Japan
- label: YEAR
value: '1979'
- label: BUILT IN LANGUAGE
value: Sharp Basic available on tape
- label: KEYBOARD
value: Strange transparent square keys. 78 keys. Numeric keypad
- label: CPU
value: Sharp LH-0080 (Zilog Z80 A compatible)
- label: SPEED
value: 2 MHz
- label: RAM
value: |-
20 KB (up to 48 KB)\
MZ-80K2 & K2e: 32 KB
- label: ROM
value: 4 KB
- label: TEXT MODES
value: 40 x 25 (8 x 8 character matrix)
- label: GRAPHIC MODES
value: 80 x 50
- label: COLORS
value: built-in 10'' black & white monochrome monitor
- label: SOUND
value: one channel
- label: SIZE / WEIGHT
value: 410 (W) x 470 (D) x 270 (H) mm / 13 kg
- label: I/O PORTS
value: Expansion bus
- label: BUILT IN MEDIA
value: Tape recorder
- label: POWER SUPPLY
value: Built-in PSU
- label: PERIPHERALS
value: RAM expansions, printer, Floppy drives unit, color display
- label: PRICE
value: |-
MZ-80K: 198,000 yen (1978, japan)\
MZ-80K2: 198,000 yen (1980, japan)\
MZ-80K2e: 148,000 yen (1981, japan)
tabs:
- photos
- hardware
- software
- emulators
- links
- videos
forum_thread: 184
photos:
- title: MZ 80K2
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k2.jpg
- title: MZ 80K2E
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k2e.jpg
- title: MZ 80K2E - FRONT VIEW
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k2e_1.jpg
- title: MZ 80K2E - PLAYING A GAME
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k2e_2.jpg
- title: FRONT VIEW
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_system_2.jpg
- title: TOP VIEW
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_topview_1.jpg
- title: 'SIDE VIEW #1'
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_leftside_1.jpg
- title: 'SIDE VIEW #2'
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_rightside_1.jpg
- title: KEYBOARD CLOSE-UP
subtitle: ''
text: |-
Notice the MZ logo that will be used in all of the computers of the MZ series. About this logo, MZ 80K user manual says:
From ancient times people have been fascinated by the lights from outer space.\
That's why through times people would have the lad in Greek mythology dreamt of lights spreading over the vistas of space.\
Then he sailed for the Golden Fleece, aiming at a bright future. Indeed, Argo Navis is such a constellation clearly shining over the horizon in the south. This constellation is symbolized by the ship sailing with youth; the ship representing courage, future, search and longing.\
Just like the ship of youth, the MZ 80K will sail before long. To realize your dreams in such a manner, we have created this Sharp's original mark.
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_keybcloseup_1.jpg
- title: IN USE
subtitle: ''
text: MZ 80K running a demo program delivered with the BASIC cassette.
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_inuse_1.jpg
- title: REAR VIEW
subtitle: ''
text: Except the power switch and mains plug **(1)**, only one expansion connector **(2)** was available on the MZ-80K, mainly intended for the Sharp I/O unit, although several interfaces were built by third companies.
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_back_1.jpg
- title: OPENED
subtitle: ''
text: |-
**(1)** Tape recorder mechanism\
**(2)** Power supply and transformer\
**(3)** Video board and adjustment knobs\
**(4)** Keyboard
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_opened_1.jpg
- title: MAINBOARD
subtitle: ''
text: |-
**(1)** Video connector\
**(2)** Expansion connector\
**(3)** Tape recorder connectors\
**(4)** I/O chip. Manages video, cassette I/O and expansion bus\
**(5)** Characters generator 2 KB ROM\
**(6)** Z80A microprocesseur, a Sharp version\
**(7)** 2 KB monitor ROM\
**(8)** RAM memory area. 3 x 16 KB banks (8 x 4116 chips each)
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_mainboard_1.jpg
- title: USER MANUAL
subtitle: ''
text: Actually, a very pedagogic BASIC course for beginners.
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_manual_1.jpg
- title: THE BOX
subtitle: ''
text: Special thanks to **B. Clayton** who gave us this box... along with a MZ-80K inside
image: /media/museum/photos/sharp_mz80k_box_1.jpg
hardware:
- title: MZ-80FB - DOUBLE 5.25" FDD
subtitle: ''
text: It uses 5.25" floppy disks drives (143 KB, double side, 35 tracks, 16 sectors per track, 128 bytes per sector
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_floppy2.jpg
- title: MZ-80FB - DOUBLE 5.25" FDD - INTERNAL VIEW
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_floppy1.jpg
- title: FLOPPY DISK INTERFACE
subtitle: ''
text: This card is plugged into the IO Expansion box. The MZ-80FB FDD is connected to this card.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_floppy_card.jpg
- title: MZ 80SDF 5.25" FDD
subtitle: ''
text: The single FDD uses 143 KB floppy disks.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_sfd143.jpg
- title: 'IO EXPANSION BOX - VIEW #1'
subtitle: ''
text: The MZ 80K has only one bus extension. To remedy to this problem, Sharp developped the MZ80 I/O Port device. This heavy device can support up to five boards (floppy controller, EPROM programmer, Centronics, etc...). A parallel interface was developped by Sharp to use the Seikosha printers.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_iobox.jpg
- title: 'IO EXPANSION BOX - VIEW #2'
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_iobox2.jpg
- title: CENTRONICS INTERFACE CARD
subtitle: ''
text: This card is plugged into the IO Expansion box. It allows any Centronics printer (the MZ80P3 for example) to be connected onto the MZ 80K.
image: /media/museum/hardware/sharp_mz80k_printer_card.jpg
- 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
screenshots:
- title: BUG FIRE
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_bugfire_1_ss.gif
- title: COSMIC CRUISER 1
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_cosmic-cruiser1_ss.gif
- title: CRAZY CLIMBER
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_crazy-climber_ss.gif
- title: CROSS RALLY
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_cross-rally_ss.gif
- title: RANGER SPECIAL
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_ranger-special_ss.gif
- title: SPACE DRIVE
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_space-drive_ss.gif
- title: SPACE MOUSE
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_space-mouse_ss.gif
- title: UFO HUNTER
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_ufo-hunter_ss.gif
- title: VIEW FINDER
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_view-finder_ss.gif
- title: WESTERN
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80k_western_ss.gif
- title: BOXING
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_boxing.jpg
- title: ZIGZAG
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_zigzag.jpg
- title: SPACE INVADERS
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_space_invaders.jpg
- title: PENGUIN
subtitle: ''
text: This game uses the optional graphic card.
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_penguin.jpg
- title: STAR TREK
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_startrek.jpg
- title: RALLYE X
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_rallyex.jpg
- title: CUBIX MAZE
subtitle: ''
text: ''
image: /media/museum/software/sharp_mz80_cubicmaze.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 !!
videos:
- title: Pac-Man played on Sharp MZ-80K2
url: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJZSODc_lNg
text: 'Length: 28 s'
related:
- /museum/sharp-mz-2000
- /museum/sharp-mz-2200
- /museum/sharp-mz-2500
- /museum/sharp-mz-2800
- /museum/sharp-mz-3500
- /museum/sharp-mz-5500-5600
- /museum/sharp-mz-700
- /museum/sharp-mz-800-mz-1500
- /museum/sharp-mz-80a-mz-1200
- /museum/sharp-mz-80b
- /museum/sharp-mz-80c
oc_id: 174
source:
url: https://web.archive.org/web/20230608163530/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=174
date: '2023-06-08'
---
The MZ-80K was, alongside the [Apple II](/museum/apple-ii/), the [Commodore PET](/museum/commodore-pet-2001/) and the [Tandy TRS 80](/museum/tandy-radio-shack-color-computer/)’s one of the best known computer in the early 80's. Its name stands for "M" from MICRO and Z-80 from the computer it uses.
It has no language in ROM, and BASIC has to be loaded from tape. Sharp called this "clean design", as you could choose what you wanted to put in your computer, the MZ-80K being delivered clean... Though a 5.25" floppy disk unit was later available, most people never used anything else than the built-in tape recorder (1200 bps).
There is no colour, no high resolution and characters sets can't be redefined. But the pre-defined characters set was very complete offering a lot of different graphical symbols, and people (mainly japanese) created great games, overcoming the main flaw of the MZ-80 serie... A graphic card was later designed for this computer, allowing to redefine the characters set resulting in a virtual "high resolution" of 320 x 192 pixels.
The MZ-80K is equiped with a real clock and a built-in speaker.
First MZ-80K were sold in Japan as assembly kits (1978). In 1980, Sharp released the **MZ-80K2** which is basicaly a MZ-80K with 32 KB RAM, a non-reflective keyboard and and a volume control at the rear of the system. One year later, a cost reduced version, the **MZ-80K2e**, was marketed as an anniversay model when MZ serie sales reached one hundred thousand machines.
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