TRS-80 Model I
A ready-to-use home computer that Radio Shack announced in August 1977, sold from $399, and that drew 250,000 waiting-list deposits.
Tandy announced the TRS-80 at a press conference in New York on August 3, 1977. Radio Shack was a chain of more than 3,000 electronics stores. The computer cost $399 alone, or $599 with a 12-inch monitor and a cassette tape recorder.
It came with 4 kilobytes of memory, which could grow to 48 kilobytes, and a built-in BASIC language interpreter. It used a Zilog Z80 processor, which gave the name: Tandy Radio Shack Z80. Programs loaded from cassette tape. Owners nicknamed it the "Trash-80."
Why it matters
Radio Shack had thousands of stores, so many people saw their first computer there. After the announcement more than 15,000 people called to buy one, which paralyzed the company switchboard, and 250,000 joined a waiting list with a $100 deposit.
Key facts
- Announced August 3, 1977, in New York.
- Priced at $399, or $599 with a monitor and tape recorder.
- Name comes from Tandy Radio Shack and the Zilog Z80 processor.
- 4 kilobytes of memory, expandable to 48 kilobytes.
- 250,000 people joined the waiting list with a $100 deposit.
Sources
- Wikipedia, "TRS-80", en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRS-80, accessed October 14, 2026.
- Mimms Museum of Technology and Art, "Exhibits", mimmsmuseum.org/exhibits/, accessed October 14, 2026.