The website of Havok, Talia, Society Lex and the paul dini / joe benitez Poison ivy: The history of Tandy and that most hateful, damnable, justifiably most-hated of stores.. "Radio Shack"..

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

The history of Tandy and that most hateful, damnable, justifiably most-hated of stores.. "Radio Shack"..

1978 - Now businesses of all sizes can computerize their various operations with the TRS-80 - the low-cost, expandable microcomputer from Radio Shack!
The Biggest Name in Little Computers™

Bill Gates on Tandy 2000 Personal Computer

1985 - Bill Gates shows off a pre-release version of Microsoft Windows version 1.0 operating system on the Tandy 2000 personal computer.

Do you know what Radio Shack's computer name "TRS-80" Stood for?In 1977, Lewis Kornfeld, former president of the Radio Shack Division of Tandy Corporation, named Radio Shack's first computer the "TRS-80".

• TRS stood for Tandy Radio Shack,
the company that created the TRS-80. Zilog Z80 microchip

• 80 was taken from the Zilog Z80 microprocessor used in the original
TRS-80 Model 1.

Kornfeld saw a unique opportunity to make Radio Shack a manufacturing name as well as a successful retailer. So he used the name "Radio Shack" instead of "Micronta", their usual brand.

In the years to follow, Tandy Corporation continued to use the TRS-80 name for their computers, even for ones that didn’t use the Z80 microprocessor.

For example:
• The TRS-80 Color Computer 1 used
   a Motorola 6809
• The TRS-80 Model 16 used both a
   Z80 and a Motorola 68000
• The TRS-80 Model 100 used an
   Intel 8085
• The TRS-80 Model 2000 used an
   Intel 80186

In 1983, Tandy phased out the TRS-80 name after the TRS-80 Model 2000 computer. And as you can see in the 1985 computer catalogs, began to use "Tandy" as the manufacturer.

Radio Shack Star Wars promotion introducing the TRS-80!

1978 Introducing the new TRS-80 computer, this storefront display in Baltimore was voted one of the most impressive in the country. Note the Star Wars poster and figurines of C3P0 & R2D2.

RADIO SHACK TRS-80 and
TANDY COMPUTER CATALOGS

''TRS-80'' was Tandy Corporation's desktop microcomputer model line, sold through Tandy's Radio Shack stores in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The first units were rolled out to thestores the third week of December 1977. The line won popularity with hobbyists, home users, and small-businesses.

Tandy Corporation's leading position in what ''Byte'' Magazine called the "1977 Trinity" (Apple, Commodore and Tandy) had much to do with Tandy's retailing the computer through more than 3000 of its Radio Shack (Tandy in Europe) storefronts. Notable features of the original TRS-80 included its full-stroke QWERTY keyboard, small size, its Floating Point BASIC programming language, an included monitor, and a starting price of $600. The pre-release price was $500 and a $50 deposit was required, with a money back guarantee at time of delivery which was a bit of a steep price. One major drawback of the original system was the massive RF interference it caused in surrounding electronics, violating FCC regulations. This lead to the Model 1's phase-out in favor of the new Model III.

You can read more about the progression of the Tandy computer line, as well as that of other manufacturers, within the catalogs below.

For the best viewing experience, this archive of RadioShack & Tandy catalogs can be viewed in three formats: LARGE or SMALL (in Adobe Flash), or HTML (non-Flash). Also see Instruction Manual.

Many thanks to Steve for generously donating the complete archive of
"RSC" TRS-80 and Tandy Computer Catalogs to this site.

1977 TRS-80 Intro. Catalog(RSC-1)	1978 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-2)	1979 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-3)	1981 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-4)
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1981 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-5)	1982 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-6)	1982 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-7)	1983 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-8)
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1983 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-9)	1984 TRS-80 Catalog(RSC-10)	1984 TRS-80 Computer Catalog (RSC-11)	1985 TRS-80 Computer Catalog (RSC-12)
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1985 Computer Catalog (RSC-13)	1985 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-14)	1986 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-15)	1986 Reference & Computer Guide (RSC-16)
.	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
.	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1987 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-17)	1987 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-17B)	1987 Radio Shack Software (RSC-18)	1987 Radio Shack Software (RSC-18E)
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1988 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-19)	1988 Radio Shack Software (RSC-19E)	1989 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-20)	1989 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-20A)
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1989 Educational Products Guide(RSC-20E)	1990 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-21)	1990 Educational Products Guide(RSC-21E)	1991 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-22)
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)

1991 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-22A)	1991 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-22E)	1992 Tandy Computer Catalog (RSC-23)	More Radio Shack and Tandy Computer Literature Coming Soon!
(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	(LARGE) (SMALL)	.
(HTML)	(HTML)	(HTML)	.