HC (computer)
The HC (Home Computer) is a series of Romanian home computers manufactured by ICE Felix in Bucharest from 1985 to 1994. The computers were based on the Z80 processor or its Romanian clone, the MMN80CPU, and derived from the ZX Spectrum. The series comprised five main variants with several sub-variants.
HC 85
The HC 85 was developed in 1985 as a laboratory model by Prof. Dr. Ing. Adrian Petrescu and Ing. F. Iacob at the Politehnica University of Bucharest (Computer Science Department). It was subsequently redesigned for mass production at ICE Felix by Ing. E. Dobrovie and Ing. Mihai Berindei.
The platform uses a Z80 microprocessor running at 3.5 MHz, with 16 KB of ROM and 64 KB of RAM. Early cases were metal; later models used a plastic enclosure (34 × 25 × 4 cm) with 40 keys plus a reset button.
The HC 85 ran BASIC loaded from cassette. Display devices could include television sets or computer monitors (CRT, LCD, or plasma). Text mode offered 32 columns by 24 rows; graphics mode provided 256 × 192 pixels in 8 colours (each in normal and bright variants, effectively 16). A built-in speaker produced sound across 10 octaves. Ports were provided for TV, monitor, cassette recorder, joystick, and expansion.
Price: 15,000 lei (1987).
HC 85+
The HC 85+ (also HC 85 extins, "extended") added three interfaces to the HC 85 via a supplementary board connected to the expansion port:
- connection for one or two 5¼-inch floppy disk drives (320 KB, up to 128 files);
- a serial RS-232/CCITT V.24 interface for printers or connecting two HC computers;
- a networking interface allowing up to 63 HC units to be connected via twisted pair cables—primarily intended for educational use.
The BASIC interpreter was extended with corresponding commands for these features.
HC 88
The HC 88 was designed in 1989 at ICE Felix by Ing. T. Mihu, Ing. E. Dobrovie, and Ing. V. Cososchi. It featured a dedicated enclosure with 86 keys in three categories: standard (white), extended (grey), and function keys (red).
The HC 88's distinguishing feature was dual compatibility: it could operate both as a BASIC machine (Spectrum-compatible) and as a CP/M system, replacing the CUB-Z as the standard CP/M workstation.
Hardware comprised: Z80 processor, 80 KB RAM (64 + 16) and 2 KB ROM, RGB/PAL encoder, ports for monochrome and colour monitors (usable simultaneously), two 5¼-inch floppy disk drives, cassette recorder, and dot matrix printer. Optional expansion boards for I/O, EPROM programming, and RAM extensions to 256 KB or 1 MB were available.
Text display: 32 columns (BASIC) or 80 columns (CP/M) by 24 rows, in 8 colours (normal and bright variants, excluding bright black—15 colours total).
HC 90 and HC 91
The HC 90 used a Zilog-manufactured Z80A clone with Motorola memory chips.
The HC 91 (1991) ran a Z80-A at 3.5 MHz, available in 40- or 50-key variants. With 16 KB ROM and 64 KB RAM, its specifications essentially matched the HC 85: 256 × 192 pixels in 16 colours, speaker with 10-octave range. Dimensions: 34 × 25 × 4 cm.
Price: 7,000 lei (1991).
HC 2000
The HC 2000 (1992–1994) was the final model in the series before being superseded by PC-compatible systems. It retained the Z80A at 3.5 MHz but featured 64 KB RAM and an expanded 48 KB ROM (16 KB BASIC interpreter, 8 KB CP/M BIOS, 8 KB disk interface).
Compared to its predecessors, it offered a larger enclosure (50 × 20 × 6 cm), a full 51-key keyboard, a built-in 3½-inch floppy disk slot, and ports for RS-232 and a second external drive. The HC 2000 could operate in either Spectrum BASIC or CP/M mode.
Text display: 32 × 24 characters (Spectrum) or 80 × 25 characters (CP/M).
Price: 5,500 lei (1992).
Bibliography
- A. Petrescu, N. Țăpuș, T. Moisa, Gh. Rizescu, V. Harabor, M. Marșanu, T. Mihu, abc de calculatoare personale și …nu doar atât, Editura Tehnică, Bucharest, 1990.
External links
- Romanian home computers at homecomputer.de
See also
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