website/content/museum/zenith-data-systems-z-160-pc.md

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

title	categories	types	origins	years	cpus	params
Zenith Data Systems Z-160 PC	Computers	Transportable	U.S.A.	1984	Intel 8088	name company company_name specs tabs photos comments oc_id source Z-160 PC /companies/zenith-data-systems Zenith Data Systems label value NAME Z-160 PC label value MANUFACTURER Zenith Data Systems label value TYPE Transportable label value ORIGIN U.S.A. label value YEAR 1984 label value KEYBOARD QWERTY full-stroke keyboard, 84 keys, 10 function keys. label value CPU Intel 8088 label value SPEED 4.78 MHz ? label value RAM 128 KB (upgradable to 640 KB) label value VRAM Unknown label value ROM Unknown label value TEXT MODES 80 x 25 / built-in amber screen (23cm) label value GRAPHIC MODES 320 x 200 (CGA) label value COLORS Yes (Color graphic board included, but built-in monitor is monochrom) label value SOUND Beeper label value SIZE / WEIGHT approx. 24'' (W) x 10'' (H) x 28'' (D) / 33 lbs label value I/O PORTS 2 serial ports, parallel port, 4 x IBM extension slots label value BUILT IN MEDIA 2 x 5''1/4 disk-drives (360k each) label value OS CP-M, MS-DOS, Z-DOS, PC-Dos. label value POWER SUPPLY Unknown label value PERIPHERALS optional 20 MB hard disk label value PRICE $2799 (USA, 1984)\ 128 KB model : 4565 (France, 1984) photos title subtitle text image Z-160 PC Another picture of this beast null author date text Tim Friday 31st January 2020 I just started restoring a Z-160. It was sold to me as not having the keyboard cable. Turn out it did have the keyboard cable. It was located in the compartment which is revealed by sliding the panel to the left of the monitor. Neither the description here nor anywhere else mentions this sliding panel. author date text caerhl irey (United States) Sunday 7th October 2018 I do still have one. I can''t seem to message anyone. If you are interested, message me at bamfylde@yahoo.com author date text caerhl irey (United States) Saturday 30th June 2018 I have one too. I found mine in an alley. I had a sticker from the University of Minnesota Computer Lab. It was being thrown out. It has a modem installed in it! It works great and weighs a ton! author date text maximilian elseroui (Austria) Saturday 2nd December 2017 Do you still have this Zenith Z-160? I am interestet in buying it ?\ Maximilian author date text ZeroCool235 (United States) Thursday 14th September 2017 I would love to have the Zenith, if you could just shoot me an email about shipping and handling that would be cool! author date text Bob Gregory (USA) Monday 11th September 2017 Hi Everyone, After 30 years of running my business I am retiring by the end of the year. For the first 8 years or so we were a ZDS dealer and I have seen them all. Z150m Z160, Z386, Z86, the whole offering. The purpose of this post is that I have a Z160 in pristine running condition with a 20MB hard drive $ 5.25" FDD that I am willing to GIVE AWAY at no cost other than packaging $ shipping fees. I also have a Compaq Portable in the same shape. There are no strings, I just think it would be nice for Zenith people to get the Z160. author date text Robert Carnevali (USA) Monday 24th April 2017 This was my first real computer. My employer at the time had one and wanted to get a different model. They sold it to me by letting me pay weekly with a little out of my paychecks for a year. It had 384K RAM that I expanded to 640K. I also took out a floppy drive and added a 20MB hard drive. It did have a socket for an 8087 chip. The monochrome monitor was clear, but the PC released a ton of radio interference from the video adapter. The neighbor upstairs complained that when I''d load a video game on it, he could see the video on his television overpowering his own antenna reception. I gave it to a friend after I got a Northgate 386 PC. When she passed away, I helped clear out her apartment and it wound up getting thrown away. I still regret doing that as I''d love to have it back again. One day I''ll find one somewhere for sale. author date text Michael (Newcastle upon Tyne) Wednesday 27th July 2011 I still have one of these in running order! From time to time I get it out to prove the point that despite all the GigaHertz of CPU ... I can enter information ''almost'' as fast today as I could in the mid-80''s !! Roll on the semantic web when we ca re-use information... I think that will make a big difference. In the meantime, I gracefully concede when I compare modern browsing to the Z-160 capability... compuserve on 300 baud was sloooooowwwwwww! $-) author date text Gary Crunk (Arizona, USA) Saturday 23rd July 2011 I just bought one of these. The unit has a Yellow Bar across the CRT when on, cant see anything else....\ I read William Pociengel had one and he overclocked it, but had to adjust the video... I think thats what I need to do... William Pociengel, can you shed some light on this for me???? Thanks\ Gary Crunk\ garycrunk@amtimes.com author date text A Man (Computer Desk, Living Room) Saturday 14th February 2009 I think it looks really awsom, a perfict example of old computer awsomeness author date text Dan (London) Thursday 16th February 2006 I picked one of these up a year or so ago. It's been pretty heavily upgraded with 640k + 1MB of RAM and a 40MB HDD. If anyone has any advice on networking this beast I'd love to hear it... Think it's about timt it got on the net... 465 url date https://web.archive.org/web/20230331120249/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=465 2023-03-31

A (trans)portable PC-XT computer made by Zenith, with double 5''1/4 disk drives and amber monitor built-in (23cm).

The computer is unusual in that the 2 built-in disk drives are mounted in a tilting case, on top of the computer. The keyboard folded up over the CRT (if you look at the picture just rotate the keyboard in place so that the spacebar is at the top of the machine). It forms the cover over the CRT. the cable went into the pop top.

To the right of the two 5.25" floppys is a dark rectangular area. That is an open space for the keyboard and power cable.

The Z-160 was equiped with a color graphic board which could be used with external monitor.

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William Pociengel reports:
You could remove one of the floppys and add a hard drive (with an additional card?), you had to format the HD with debug. You could also change the occilator crystal for overclocking but then you had to retune the video circuitry to get the image back to full screen. Original speed was approx 4.78Mhz? same as a standard PC of the day but by changing the crystal you could get up to (on mine at least) a blazing ~5Mhz (whoopie! ;-). I _think_ there was a IC socket for an 8087 on the motherboard (if memory serves me correctly). I ran DR-dos and Desqview (no mouse at the time but it had a serial port, so later you could add one -when they became available-). This was one heavy machine as I recall running through JFK trying to catch a flight while hauling this puppy.

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.