website/content/museum/sharp-x1-cz-800c.md

title, categories, types, origins, years, cpus, params

title	categories	types	origins	years	cpus	params
Sharp X1 (CZ-800C)	Computers	Home Computer	Japan	1982	Sharp Z80 A	name image company company_name specs tabs forum_thread photos hardware links videos related software oc_id source X1 (CZ-800C) /media/museum/photos/sharp_x1_normal_1.jpg /companies/sharp Sharp label value NAME X1 (CZ-800C) label value MANUFACTURER Sharp label value TYPE Home Computer label value ORIGIN Japan label value YEAR 1982 label value KEYBOARD Full-stroke keyboard label value CPU Sharp Z80 A label value SPEED 4 MHz label value RAM 64 KB label value VRAM 4 KB (up to 48 KB) label value ROM 6 KB label value TEXT MODES 40 / 80 x 25 label value GRAPHIC MODES 320 x 200 / 640 x 200 label value COLORS 8 label value SOUND 3 voices PSG label value SIZE / WEIGHT Unknown label value I/O PORTS 2 x I/O ports, 2 x joysticks (Atari), audio out, keyboard, printer label value BUILT IN MEDIA Tape label value OS CP/M ? label value POWER SUPPLY Built-in PSU label value PRICE 155,000 yen (Japan) photos hardware software links videos 319 title subtitle text image GREY MODEL /media/museum/photos/sharp_x1_2.jpg title subtitle text image RED MODEL /media/museum/photos/sharp_x1_red-model_1.jpg title subtitle text image REAR /media/museum/photos/sharp_x1_rear_1.jpg title subtitle text image INSIDE /media/museum/photos/sharp_x1_rear_inside_1.jpg title subtitle text image TOP VIEW This original extension was at least usable with the X1 Turbo serie... /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_turbo_businesscardreader.jpg title subtitle text image I/O EXPANSION BOX This box was used to multiply the input/output connectors and thus, possibilities of the X1 systems. /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_cz81ebs_1.jpg title subtitle text image FRONT /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_io-box_2.jpg title subtitle text image BACK This extension box offers 4 I/O ports. /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_io-box_3.jpg title subtitle text image FRONT This extension was used to generate titles for video-tapes, among other things... /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_telopper-front.jpg title subtitle text image BACK A lot of connectors can be found at the back of the unit... /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_telopper-back.jpg title subtitle text image FRONT /media/museum/hardware/sharp_x1_tape-recorder-cz8rl1.jpg title url text Class X1 http://www2s.biglobe.ne.jp/~ITTO/x1/x1menu.html In Japanese title url text Japanese Computer Emulation Center http://www.jcec.co.uk/x1games.htm Lot of games for X1 title url text Sharp X1 japanese commercial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QxhgniF8Pg Length: 15 s /museum/sharp-x1-c-cz-801c /museum/sharp-x1-ck-cz-804c /museum/sharp-x1-cs-cz-803c /museum/sharp-x1-d-cz-802c /museum/sharp-x1-turbo /museum/sharp-x1-turbo-iii /museum/sharp-x1-turbo-z-cz-880c /museum/sharp-x1-turbo-z-iii /software/hydlide-3-the-space-memories 313 url date https://web.archive.org/web/20230604003944/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=313 2023-06-04

This is the first member of the X1 family. Difficult to locate this computer in the Sharp family, it has some characteristics of the MZ 2000 but is not compatible with it.

The X1 family had a very great success in Japan, and the last models were very powerful. Go figure why Sharp didn't market these computers outside Japan… The most famous and strong feature of the X1 series is its Programmable Charactor Generator(PCG).

Tape Basic and Disk Basic were available but had to be loaded from tape. This is a concept that Sharp called "Clean Computer". X1 and MZ system (even X68000) do not have any Basic ROM or other OS ROM. They only have an "IPL ROM"(Initial Program Loader + IOCS) and a BIOS ROM. So if you want to use any OS with the X1 or MZ serie, you have to load it from external storage devices.

Sharp designed the X1 serie as an innovative multimedia system which could work with TV and video. The X1 serie has advanced features to display graphics and text over TV screens (superimpose feature). The X1 could achieve teletext functions without any additional peripherals (only the special X1 TV monitor which can be also used as a TV).

Sharp also released a "color image board" which was video capturing unit. Though it was working with 8 colours only, the result was astonishing for the time! The X1 was a real pionneer in multimedia market, but most people in Japan never realized this. The X68000 serie inherited from the X1 features.

Joe Repka reports :
Bought one of these amazingly ahead-of-its-time computers when they first came out in Japan. First floppy device was a single-sided double-drive unit that cost 100,000 yen! SS floppy disks sold for about 1000 yen (USD 10.00) at that time.

We need more info about this computer ! If you designed, used, or have more info about this system, please send us pictures or anything you might find useful.