website/content/museum/ice-felix-hc-85.md

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

title	categories	types	origins	years	cpus	params
Ice-Felix HC-85	Computers	Home Computer	Romania	1985	Z80	name company company_name specs tabs photos hardware links docs comments related oc_id source HC-85 /companies/ice-felix Ice-Felix label value NAME HC-85 label value MANUFACTURER Ice-Felix label value TYPE Home Computer label value ORIGIN Romania label value YEAR 1985 label value BUILT IN LANGUAGE Spectrum Basic interpreter label value KEYBOARD Mechanical 40 keys + Reset switch label value CPU Z80 label value SPEED 3.5 Mhz. label value RAM 48 KB label value ROM 16 KB label value TEXT MODES 32 columns x 24 lines label value GRAPHIC MODES 256 x 192 pixels label value COLORS 16 (8 colours in mormal or bright modes) label value SOUND Beeper (10 octaves) label value SIZE / WEIGHT 34 (W) x 25 (D) x 4 (H) cm. label value I/O PORTS Tape recorder, Joystick x 2, RGB, TV aerial, AC adaptor label value POWER SUPPLY External AC adaptor. Built-in power regulation label value PRICE 15000 LEI / 300$ (Romania, 1987) photos hardware links docs title subtitle text image EARLY MODEL #1 This picture was found by **Grecu Cristi** in a Romanian math book released in 1989. It was probably the very first case version. null title subtitle text image EARLY MODEL #2 The case is different from the more common HC-85. But are they internal differences? Thanks to the [Pocket Computer Museum](http://pocket.free.fr/) for this picture.\ This model is Arthur's property. null title subtitle text image COMPLETE SYSTEM Photo taken from first HC-85 brochure. Thanks to **Zeno Mateescu** from Romania null title subtitle text image HC-85 LOGO null title subtitle text image KEYBOARD CLOSE-UP Even if the key were not very well aligned, the quality of the keyboard was better than that of the Spectrum.\ The keys arrangement and the functions of each key was exactly the same as those of the Spectrum but in only one colour, which was not very convenient.\ Note the reset switch located beside the 'Zero' key. null title subtitle text image MOTHERBOARD All the active components (chips) mounted on this board seem to have been manufactured in Eastern Europe. **(1)** Tape recorder audio signal filter area\ **(2)** 32 KB RAM memory area\ **(3)** 16 KB RAM memory area\ **(4)** Video signals management area\ **(5)** TV-UHF modulator\ **(6)** Video RGB connector\ **(7)** 2 x joystick connectors\ **(8)** 16-pin keyboard connector\ **(9)** Z80-A processor\ **(10)** Expansion / Bus connector\ **(11)** 16 KB ROM area\ **(12)** Power connector\ **(13)** Tape recorder DIN plug null title subtitle text image PROCESSOR & ROM CLOSE-UP null title subtitle text image REAR CONNECTORS CLOSE-UP Inside the TV-UHF modulator.\ RGB and joysticks connectors. null title subtitle text image REAR CONNECTORS **(1)** Tape recorder DIN plug\ **(2)** Expansion / bus connector\ **(3)** 2 x joystick DB-9 connectors\ **(4)** RGB video output DB-15 connector\ **(5)** TV-aerial output plug null title subtitle text image WARRANTY SEAL This small cup filled with pink wax covers one of the six screws used to close the case.\ If the cup is empty, the warranty is void! null title subtitle text image ICE JOYSTICK INTERFACE ICE Felix made several peripherals for its HC series, among them:\ • this joystick interface,\ • A Sinclair comptatible joystick,\ • A tape recorder\ • And even an optical pen. The joystick interface is Sinclair Kempston compatible; it uses port 1 of the computer. The jack is used to plug in an optical pen. Thanks to **Grecu Cristi** null title subtitle text image ICE SINCLAIR COMPATIBLE JOYSTICK Thanks to **Grecu Cristi** null title subtitle text image ICE TAPE RECORDER The mecanical part of this tape recorder looks strongly "inspired" with the one from Spectrum +2. Thanks to **Grecu Cristi** null title subtitle text image ICE LIGHT PEN The light pen is a very simple device, containing a photodiode. It is connected to the jack of the joystick interface. When the electron beam is crossing the area of the screen where the light pen is positionend, it sends a signal to the interface, that resets bit 1 of port 191 of the HC. Thanks to **Grecu Cristi** null title url text Bucharest university http://www.csit-sun.pub.ro/research/history/ Technical files about some computers manufactured by Ice-Felix (Romanian) title url text Ice-Felix company http://www.felix.ro Website and history of the Ice-Felix company (Romanian) title url text Romanian users group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RomanianHomeComputer/ They have rare documentations, programs and useful PC utilities for Romanian computers title url cover text INTERFATA 1 HC - USER'S MANUAL http://george.chirtoaca.googlepages.com/ null [**INTERFATA 1 HC - USER'S MANUAL**](http://george.chirtoaca.googlepages.com/)written by Ice-Felix  compiled/archived by George Chirtoaca\  type of document : PDF\  size : 3 MB\  source : [george.chirtoaca.googlepages.com](http://george.chirtoaca.googlepages.com/) author date text Anton (Bucharest) Sunday 13rd April 2014 The price was 14.000, that$s mean 1120$ in that times author date text wolfy (bucharest / romania) Friday 24th August 2012 Actually the best Romanian Spectrum clone was Cobra, the computer designed and built at ITC Brasov. It was able to run both Basic and CP/M and used only cheap integrated circuits which were much easier to be found by enthusiasts who wanted to build their own computer.\ Actually a whole black market industry existed which reused defective motherboards dumped by the factory and chips imported from DDR or URSS. I am quite proud to say that I assembled a few systems myself... author date text Ciprian (Bucharest Romania) Thursday 27th August 2009 I''d like to add that the keyboard was really low quality . It had a couple of steel blades that were kept apart when the key was not pressed. When you pressed the key a plastic spacer $ped down and the springs would come together and close the circuit. Well, the blades used to get stuck apart and not touch even if you pressed the key. This used to happen very often. author date text Ion Tzuica (Chisinou) Wednesday 14th July 2004 Between the HC-85 and HC-91 weren't major aspect differences. But the mainboard is completely different at these two computers. HC-85 had a MMN-80 CPU, eight ROM chips... totally more than 50 chips, more than the HC-91. The performance was the same. The computers from ICE Felix were the best roumanian Spectrum clones. They give no errors, comparative with their rivals, CIP, JET, etc. We can still find HC-85, HC-91, CIP-03 , sometimes JET for sale, at second hand, in Roumania, for a very low price: about 50.000 lei (1,6 USD). CIP-04 and HC-2000 are very rare models. There are a few people who had such wonderful computers, but they will never sell them! After 50..100 years, I think these rare computers (eventually working) will cost ten times their weight in gold! author date text Bogdan (Iasi, Romania) Tuesday 10th December 2002 Actually, the image represent a HC-90, a latter model; the first one was even more poor quality in manufacture and had some significant differences in exterior design. However, it was identical with the HC-90, shown here. /museum/ice-felix-hc-2000 /museum/ice-felix-hc-91 629 url date https://web.archive.org/web/20221203204323/http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=629 2022-12-03

In 1985, despite of the severe limitations of the political system, the Romanian computer company ICE-Felix, located in Bucharest, started to design and produce Sinclair Spectrum compatible computers.

The company was founded in 1970 and became the main computer equipments manufacturer in Romania. Several mini and microcomputers were developed, based initially on the French C.I.I. company licence.

The HC-85 was the first manufactured model. It was primarily intended for the Romanian schools and universities. As the engineers could not use the Spectrum / Feranti gate-array chip, they replaced it by a whole of logical chips that carried out exactly the same tasks.

The plastic case and the keyboard were of poor manufacture quality. However, the machine looked solid and the motherboard printed circuit was same quality level as the Western productions of the time.