Keyboard Builders' Digest / History
Compucolor II
MellowMartian found his uncle's Compucolor II computer from 1979.
Published May 3, 2023
In the series of Elusive Keyboards I'll Never Own, let's take a look at fellow redditor MellowMartian's latest find, who shared a photo of his uncle's Compucolor II computer from 1979.
The Compucolor II may have been the first computer system with color text, color graphics, AND a built-in 5.25" floppy drive for programs and data storage.
At the time, the Apple II was probably the only other computer system available with built-in color graphics, but it did not have color text, only graphics - dots and lines – oldcomputers.net.
Announced in 1977, the Compucolor II was developed by Intecolor and sold by Compucolor, both divisions of ISC (Intelligent Systems Corporation) of Norcross, Georgia. By 1983 Compucolor was out of business. Only 1000-2000 Compucolor II units were sold.
Keyboard
A computer with all the color features deserved a colorful keyboard, right? Well, according to the Instruction Manual, there were three keyboard options: the standard, extended and deluxe versions.
On geekhack, loftonis has a gallery with some pics of a gorgeous Compucolor II Deluxe keyboard:
Further reading
Published on Wed 3rd May 2023. Featured in KBD #121 (source).
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