1st October 1984
Philips releases the VG5000

On 1st October 1984, Philips released the VG5000. It was sold under the Philips, Radiola and Schneider brands, and was in production until 1986.

The different brands were identical, apart from the colour of the case. Both the Radiola and the Schneider had white cases, whereas the Philips had a black or very dark brown case.

The technical specifications of the VG5000 were as follows:

• Zilog Z80 4 MHz processor
• RAM: 24KB, including 8KB reserved for display
• ROM: 18KB containing the VG5000 BASIC, derived from Microsoft Basic 80
• Video processor: SGS Thomson EF9345
• Graphics: 320 × 250 in 8 colors, with 8 × 10 pixel characters
• 1 voice over 5 octaves
• Built-in keyboard 63 keys AZERTY with keyboard shortcut to Basic instructions
• Connector for the cassette player, 1200/2400 baud
• SCART connector
• Bus connector 2×25 pins

Related information:

• Centre for Computing History: Philips

Images:

• Philips VG5000, with the attached 5612 add-on
• Radiola VG5000
• Philips VG5000
  Credit: Unknown. Images remain the copyright of the original copyright holder. Used under fair use policy for educational purposes only.