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<NAME>
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hardware
Kim 1 experiment board
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General
KIM-1 (MOS Technology Inc. later Commodore) is a complete, self-contained
computer including a small keyboard and six 7-segment character display
units. Only a 5V and a 12V power supply are needed to get the computer
operational. It is built around the 6502 processor (also used in the
Apple II), and has 1k of RAM, a TTY interface, an audio tape interface
(for data storage) and an expansion connector (4k and 65k memory expansions
were available). (1)
It is one of the more inexpensive early kit computers. Based on the
8-bit MOS 6502 CPU (which sold for $25, compared to $150 for the Intel
8080), the KIM came with built-in hex display and hexadecimal keyboard.
It had a clock speed of about 1.8 mhz and could address up to 2 kilobytes
of RAM. This KIM-I "homebrew" (picture 2) was heavily modified,
and was hooked up to a black-and-white TV as a monitor, as well as a
Teletype and electrostatic printer.(2)
The kit sold for 245US$
The KIM-1 was a popular micro for a long time, both in
hobbyist and professional circles. In many university laboratories,
for instance, the KIM-1 was used for experiments, control and
data acquisition. Programming was done entirely in machine code.(1)
Chronology
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