The VG5000μ is a computer created by

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...

in 1984. It was manufactured in Le Mans by

Radiotechnique Radiotechnique (RT) was a French electronics company that made radio transmitting and receiving vacuum tubes, and later more advanced components such as integrated circuits and solar panels. At first it was a subsidiary of the French Compagnie gé ...

(RTS) and marketed under the

, Radiola and Schneider brands. Not compatible with any other machines, it offered VG5000 BASIC (derived from

Microsoft BASIC Microsoft BASIC is the foundation software product of the Microsoft company and evolved into a line of BASIC interpreters and compiler(s) adapted for many different microcomputers. It first appeared in 1975 as Altair BASIC, which was the first v ...

-80) as the

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common daemon (computing), services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems scheduler (computing), schedule tasks for ...

upon boot, with

Logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...

available on cartridge. Graphic ability was limited to a semigraphic symbol display, with the equivalent resolution of 320 x 250 pixels in 8 colors. It had some hardware compatibility with the Philips VG 8000, such as power supply connectors, cassette player interface and cartridges.

History

Aimed at schools, it was unsuccessful and production ended in 1986. 300 000 units were sold in 1984 according to an internal Philips report, with 500 000 predicted for 1985. There are about forty games available for the system. As of 2022, enthusiasts remain active in developing new homebrew software and

emulator In computing, an emulator is Computer hardware, hardware or software that enables one computer system (called the ''host'') to behave like another computer system (called the ''guest''). An emulator typically enables the host system to run sof ...

s for the system.

Peripherals

Several peripherals were developed to support the VG5000μ operation: * VY0030:

cassette player A cassette deck is a type of tape machine for playing and recording audio cassettes that does not have a built-in power amplifier or speakers, and serves primarily as a Transport (recording), transport. It can be a part of an automotive entertai ...

* VG5200: joystick interface * VU0001:

joystick A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Also known as the control column, it is the principal control devic ...

(see

Magnavox Odyssey 2 The Magnavox Odyssey 2 (stylized as Magnavox Odyssey2), also known as Philips Odyssey 2, is a home video game console of the second generation that was released in 1978. It was sold in Europe as the Philips Videopac G7000, in Brazil and Peru as ...

) * VU0011:

RF modulator An RF modulator (radio frequency modulator) is an electronic device used to convert signals from devices such as media players, VCRs and game consoles to a format that can be handled by a device designed to receive a modulated RF input, such ...

* VU0022: power supply * VG5216: 16KB RAM memory expansion with joystick and printer ports * VU0031: 16KB RAM memory expansion * VW0010: 40 column printer * VW0020: 80 column printer * VW0030: 80 column printer

Specifications

Zilog Z80A The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog that played an important role in the evolution of early personal computing. Launched in 1976, it was designed to be software-compatible with the Intel 8080, offering a compelling altern ...

processor running at 4

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base u ...

* RAM: 24 KB, including 16KB of system memory (expandable to 48KB) and 8KB of dedicated memory for the video processor * ROM: 18KB, including 16KB containing the VG5000 BASIC (derived from

-80) and 2KB of character

bitmaps In computing, a bitmap (also called raster) graphic is an image formed from rows of different colored pixels. A GIF is an example of a graphics image file that uses a bitmap. As a noun, the term "bitmap" is very often used to refer to a partic ...

built into the video processor * Video processor: SGS

Thomson EF9345 The EF9345 from SGS-Thomson Microelectronics, Inc., was a semigraphic single chip microprocessor for video image control, encapsulated in a 40-pin DIP and used primarily in the Matra Alice 32, Matra Alice 90 and Philips VG5000 microcomputers. It ...

P * Graphics: semigraphics based on 8 × 10 pixel characters (equivalent to 320 × 250 pixels) in 8 colors * Sound: 1 voice, 5

octave In music, an octave (: eighth) or perfect octave (sometimes called the diapason) is an interval between two notes, one having twice the frequency of vibration of the other. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referr ...

range * Keyboard: Built-in 63 keys

AZERTY AZERTY ( ) is a specific layout for the characters of the Latin alphabet on typewriter keys and computer keyboards. The layout takes its name from the first six letters to appear on the first row of alphabetical keys; that is, ( ). Like oth ...

keyboard with BASIC keywords * Ports: DIN5

connector (1200/2400

baud In telecommunications and electronics, baud (; symbol: Bd) is a common unit of measurement of symbol rate, which is one of the components that determine the speed of communication over a data channel. It is the unit for symbol rate or modulat ...

), DIN8

SCART SCART (also known as or , especially in France, 21-pin EuroSCART in marketing by Sharp Corporation, Sharp in Asia, Euroconector in Spain, EuroAV or EXT, or EIA Multiport in the United States, as an EIA interface) is a French-originated standard ...

connector * Expansion: 2×25 pins bus connector

List of video games

There are 33 commercial video games for Philips VG5000.VG5K
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References

External links

Old Computers:

French VG5000μ fan site

Logiciels et développement 2017 (VG5000μ)

My VG5000 - site dedicated to the VG5000 micro

Emulation of VG5000

The VG5000 shop

pages dedicated to programming the VG5000
{{Philips VG5000μ Z80-based home computers Computer-related introductions in 1984