MSX computers were not very common in the United States, and we didn’t know what we were missing when they were popular. [Re:Enthused] shows us what would have been a fine machine in its day: a Panasonic FS-A1FM. Have a look at the video below to see the like-new machine.
The machine isn’t just an ordinary MSX computer. The keyboard is certainly unique, and it has an integrated floppy drive and a 1200-baud modem. The case proudly proclaims that the floppy is both double-sided and double-density. Like most MSX computers, it had a plethora of ports and, of course, a cartridge slot. Unfortunately, the machine looks great but has some problems that have not been repaired yet, so we didn’t get to see it running properly.
He was able to get to the MSX-DOS prompt to show along with the BIOS menu. We hope he manages to get the keyboard working, and we were glad to see another computer from that era we had not seen before.
We don’t think anyone made one at the time, but we’ve seen a modern take on a luggable MSX. Of course, you can emulate the whole thing on a Pi and focus on the aesthetics.
I have a fully functional A1 (it looked pretty) but couldn’t really get on with. A lost “could have been”.
The A1 must have been competing with the Commodore ‘Plus/4’.
The ‘Space Bar’ is marked “SPACE”? That’s unique.
Where’s the “ANY” key? :-)
I think I’ll order a TAB.
This is the kind of computer I could only dream of growing up in the mid 80s through the 90s. 32 bit systems had so much shiny that 16 and 8 bit options seemed antiquated and were promptly sent to basement storage. Except now I can only dream of a even seeing a real surviving retro PC. Somewhere in a basement 1000 miles away is a Tandy Deskmate and a VTech with a Z80. Def snagging those next time I visit home, who knows if these puppies would even turn on now.
Near the end of the 80s, the MSX computers made quite some developments.
In Japan, there also was MSX2+ and TurboR standard after MSX and MSX2.
What made MSX stand out was that it provided compatibility between different home computer manufacturers,
which some of also were from TV and entertainment industry rather than being PC manufacturers.
By comparison, all the big players had their proprietary systems,
with only Epson being sort of an exception and building NEC PC-9801 compatibles.
In some ways, MSX platform was the DOS world on Z80 basis.
You had MSX-BASIC (like ROM-BASIC) and MSX-DOS (like MS-DOS).
They also used FAT12 filesystem as being used by MS-DOS 1.25 on PC at the time.
MSX was being invented by Microsoft Japan in early 80s as an open specification, if I understand correctly.
Not too much unlike DOS/V was an idea by IBM Japan in late 80s.
DOS/V had been Japanese IBM-DOS 4 using VGA graphics, originally.
From early on, IBM developers had tried to make it compatible with AT clones, too, rather than merely IBM hardware.
But that’s another story. I don’t mean to go off-topic too much.
It’s just interesting to see how the different standards came to be.
MSX2 was quite mature for what it was, and many classics such as Snatchers, Snatchers SD or Jesus: Kyōfu no Bio-Monster or Puyo Puyo still saw the light on this platform.
It was the smallest of the popular platforms at the time.
Others were PC-88, PC-98, Sharp X68000 as well as Sharp X1, FM-7 and FM Towns etc.
Here in Europe/western hemisphere, the MSX computers still have a community to this day,
with many homebrew projects and forum discussions going on.
I’m just a layman here, though.
MSX involved Bill Gates’s OTHER plan for world computer domination in the 80’s: the 8bit world. MSX-DOS was a proprietary superset of the CP/M OS only available from Microsoft. (He kept Tim Patterson busy writing a “Z80-version of MS-DOS”, presumably to keep his hands off the 16-bit OS.) Then helped write the MSX “standard” for a group of Japanese manufacturers so they’d all build machines with that OS & Microsoft Basic.
Gates logically assumed that cheap Japanese computers would flood the market like they did other electronics, so he wanted to jump in before it started. Unfortunately for him, Jack Tramiel of Commodore was just as ruthless and thought the same thing, only his plan was “WE’ll be the Japanese!” It was Commodore machines that flooded the 8-bit market, destroying a lot of companies. The MSX machines got lost in the flood. (Gates still got rich because the 16-bit market got flooded by clones from Taiwan instead of Japan, and MS-DOS was already available for those.)
MSX never made it as popular in the UK, despite them being available. The Spectrum and C64 had a stranglehold on the market.
Didn’t the UK also have computers such as Sharp MZ and the BBC micros?
The ZX81 and Atari 800 also had some users, I believe.
It did, and a huge amount of others too, but the Spectrum and C64 had the vast majority of the market. I’d put the BBC in a poor third place – despite its clear technical superiority, it was eye-wateringly expensive.
That’s not just an MSC computer, but an MSX2 computer!
“The Panasonic FS-A1FM is a MSX2 with 2 cartridge slots (one at the top, one at the back)
and a Z80A integrated in the MSX-Engine T9769 from Toshiba.
The floppy disk controller is the Toshiba TC8566F.
The SRAM is a NEC D4364CX-15L chip.
It is mainly used by the modem software. ”
Source: https://www.msx.org/wiki/Panasonic_FS-A1FM
MSX2 was were the fun starts, IMHO.
The VDP (Yamaha V9938) is so much more capable, floppy drives got more common.
MSX2 games and applications were much more sophisticated than their MSX1 counterparts.
The MSX1 was an underpowered, ugly duckling. Like a TI99, I think.
Or the Nabu computer, which is pretty but has same old VDP (TI TMS9918).
Here in Europe, both MSX and MSX2 saw light of day, as far as I know.
But only a few MSX2 computers still made it, after the original MSX1 specification had left such a bad impression on home users.
There also were many MSX “1.5” computers,
which had the new VDP and more RAM but the old MSX1 software and no mapper.
There are projects to upgrade them to MSX2 level.