Tandy 1000 HX

The Tandy 1000 HX is powered by an Intel 8088-class processor running at a clock speed of 4.77 MHz. This made it fully compatible with the vast library of IBM PC software available during the late 1980s. The system was aggressively marketed by Radio Shack as an affordable and accessible home computer.

The machine features proprietary Tandy-compatible color graphics and a 3-voice sound chip that were significantly superior to standard IBM CGA graphics of the era. Many classic MS-DOS games were specifically programmed to detect and utilize these enhanced Tandy graphics and audio modes. This results in crisper visuals and better sound than on standard generic clones.

The HX in the Tandy 1000 HX designates that the unit features an integrated 3.5-inch floppy disk drive and MS-DOS built directly into the system ROM. This allowed the computer to boot faster without needing a dedicated system disk for basic file navigation. It also featured an all-in-one design with the main computer hardware housed directly beneath the keyboard.

The Tandy 1000 HX shipped from the factory with 256 KB of RAM installed directly on the motherboard. Users could expand the memory up to 640 KB using memory expansion cards placed into the computer's proprietary expansion slots. This maximum memory configuration was essential for running later, more demanding MS-DOS business applications.