DATAMATH CALCULATOR MUSEUM |
Texas Instruments Buddy
Date of introduction: | 1980 | Display technology: | Fluorescent |
New price: | Display size: | 8 alphanumeric | |
Size: | 10.0" x 7.0" x 1.3" 254 x 177 x 34 mm3 |
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Weight: | 16.7 ounces, 474 grams | Serial No: | |
Batteries: | 4*C cells | Date of manufacture: | wk 49 year 1981 |
AC-Adapter: | Origin of manufacture: | Italy | |
Precision: | Integrated circuits: | TMC0270/CD2702, TMC0280/CD2801, CD2345 and CD2346 | |
Memories: | |||
Program steps: | Courtesy of: | Joerg Woerner | |
Download manual: | (DE: 2.4M Bytes) |
You are familiar with this blue Buddy? It is the German version of the well known Speak & Spell (Type 2).
Don't miss the French La Dictée Magique, Italian Grillo Parlante and Spanish Speak & Spell.
Dismantling the Buddy manufactured in December 1981 by Texas Instruments in their Rieti, Italy facility reveals a small surprise: The green fluorescent display of the Buddy uses only 8 alphanumeric characters compared to the 9 characters of the 2nd generation Speak & Spell manufactured in the same timeframe in the United States. Please visit "Inside a Speak & Spell" and find more pictures about various Speak & Spell versions. The design of the Buddy is centered around four Integrated Circuits:
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TMC0270/CD2702: 4-bit microcontroller with 2k*9 Bits ROM and 9*64 Bits RAM • TMC0280/CD2801: TMS5100 VSP (Voice Synthesis Processor) • TMC0350/CD2345, TMC0350/CD2346: TMS6100 VSM (Voice Synthesis Memory) with 128k Bits, each |
Press the
Play button and
listen Buddy tunes. Find more sound samples in the DOWNLOAD section. Powered by Yahoo Media Player. |
Buddy Tunes |
Deutsch |
Composer: | Martin Pscherer |
Contact info: | Martin Pscherer |
Permission by: | Martin Pscherer |
If you have additions to the above article please email: joerg@datamath.org.
© Joerg Woerner, December 5, 2001. No reprints without written permission.