website/content/museum/bandai-gundam-rx-78.md

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

title	categories	types	origins	years	cpus	params
Bandai Gundam RX-78	Computers	Home Computer	Japan	1983	Zilog Z80A	name company company_name specs tabs photos adverts screenshots emulators links comments oc_id source Gundam RX-78 /companies/bandai Bandai label value NAME Gundam RX-78 label value MANUFACTURER Bandai label value TYPE Home Computer label value ORIGIN Japan label value YEAR September 1983 label value BUILT IN LANGUAGE BS-BASIC delivered on cartridge label value KEYBOARD QWERTY chicklet keyboard, 61 keys label value CPU Zilog Z80A label value SPEED 4.1Mhz label value RAM 30 kb label value ROM 8 kb label value TEXT MODES 30 x 23 label value GRAPHIC MODES 192 x 184 label value COLORS 27 label value SOUND 3 voices (4 octaves) + 1 noise generator label value SIZE / WEIGHT 286 x 210 x 48.5 mm / 1.5kg label value I/O PORTS 2 joysticks sockets, 2 x cartridge slots, RF video, video & sound (RCA) label value POWER SUPPLY DC 10.6V, 820mA label value PRICE 59800 yens (Japan, 1983) photos adverts software emulators links title subtitle text image RX-78 - ZOOM ON KEYBOARD null title subtitle text image COMPLETE WITH BOX & JOYSTICKS null title subtitle text image THE BOX Thanks to J. Kubota for this picture\ Please, visits its [site](http://www3.wind.ne.jp/toragiku/kopa.htm) ! null title subtitle text image PROMOTIONAL LEAFLET - COVER null title subtitle text image PROMOTIONAL LEAFLET - INSIDE null title subtitle text image PROMOTIONAL LEAFLET - INSIDE #2 null title subtitle text image CARTRIDGES null title subtitle text image GAME #1 null title subtitle text image BASEBALL GAME null title url platform text eRX-78 http://www1.interq.or.jp/~t-takeda/top.html Windows TAKEDA, toshiya's RX-78 emulator title url text ASSEMBLER SITE http://assembler.roarvgm.com/Gundam/gundam.html Another picture here with accessories title url text Personal Computer Nostalgia (Japanese) http://member.nifty.ne.jp/s-kato/rx78.html Another japanese page with some infos author date text $ 1 3 8 $ Wednesday 14th March 2018 If I may suggest an alternative introductory sentence- I would replace\ "The Gundam RX-78 was originaly a very popular manga animation movie from the 80''s. Bandai then marketed a personal computer under this name..." with\ "The Bandai RX-78 was named after the titular mecha from the 1979 anime series Mobile Suit Gundam" or something along those lines. author date text Chester Tuesday 21st March 2017 (btw, I posted here because the link on the page for adding info is broken upon submission) author date text Chester Tuesday 21st March 2017 Ok, hope *this* works: http://bit.ly/2mpepcY author date text Chester Tuesday 21st March 2017 Here is the correct URL: https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id$91032493$40N00$sort$date-taken-desc$text$rx-78$view_all$1 author date text Chester Tuesday 21st March 2017 Here are some pics (creative-commons, feel free to use them) of an RX-78 I took in Japan recently (they had it exposed at Shosen Book Tower in Akihabara, Tokyo): https://www.flickr.com/search/?user_id$91032493$40N00$sort$date-taken-desc$text$rx-78$view_all$1 478 url date https://web.archive.org/web/20230609172241/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=478 2023-06-09

The Gundam RX-78 was originaly a very popular manga animation movie from the 80's. Bandai then marketed a personal computer under this name...

Little is known about this small computer. Since the Gundam Rx-78 was only sold in Japan nearly all the information currently comes from Japanese websites.

The capabilities of the RX-78 were not bad at all for 1983, and the space between the keys offered the possibility to use keyboard overlays with games or applications, except maybe for complaints about the poor keyboard quality.

It appears that there were two cartridge slots at the back of the system. One slot was often used for the BS Basic programming language and the other could be used for special expansion cartridges (to connect a printer for example).

The BS-Basic cartridge was also equipped with connectors to plug a tape-recorder into the RX-78.

While games were the main software developed for this computer an asian brand word processor was also available.

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.