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COMPUTOPEDIA / PERSONAL COMPUTERS / TANDY / 2000

Tandy 2000

Tandy Corporation released the Tandy 2000 as a high-performance personal computer built around a 16-bit CPU, offering significantly faster operation and higher-resolution graphics than the IBM PC, though constrained by limited software compatibility.

The Tandy 2000 pursued technical ambition beyond the IBM PC. Equipped with a "next-generation" 16-bit CPU4, it delivered performance that was "noticeably faster" than the IBM PC3, with benchmarks suggesting two to three times the speed2. Its graphics subsystem provided high-resolution monochrome and color output, with resolution twice that of the IBM PC or COMPAQ2 and twice as many colors2, a substantial leap at a time when display fidelity was tightly bound to business application usability. The system shipped with 128K bytes of RAM as standard3, expandable via pigguback boards each adding 128K3, though only about 75K remained available after system overhead when configured with the base memory3.

Storage was another arena of superiority. Each Tandy 2000 disk drive offered 720K of capacity, double that of a standard IBM PC drive2, and the system included a second drive as standard4. A 10-megabyte hard disk version (Model 26-5104) was available for $3999.0012. The drives could read and write IBM PC disk formats2, but the reverse was not true: IBM PCs and even the later Tandy 1000 could not read Tandy 2000 disks3. This asymmetry highlighted a broader compatibility dilemma. While the Tandy 2000 runs MS-DOS9, programs that access hardware directly (particularly copy-protected titles) often fail6.

The machine's modular, low-profile design allowed an RGB or monochrome monitor to be placed directly atop the system unit3, and an optional floor stand reduced desk footprint7. The thin, detachable keyboard was widely praised as "superior"3, and the system included four user-accessible expansion slots2, offering more room for upgrades than its contemporaries3. A large white connector on the left side linked to the expansion bus board3, a detail service technicians would quickly come to know.

Despite its technical merits, the Tandy 2000's software ecosystem remained constrained. While Tandy offered its own versions of around 40 initial software packages for the Tandy 10003, no such commitment was documented for the 2000. Still, specific applications were available: the Lynx Word Processing System retailed for $59513, and Multiplan13 and ViaNet (Model 26-1220)1 were supported. The XENIX operating system was also available from Tandy136.

The Tandy 2000 was marketed as a premium machine, with the base unit priced at $27504 and a 256K two-disk configuration (Model 26-5103) listed at $999.00 as of June 30, 198612. It was sold through more than 1,000 Radio Shack Computer Centers and participating dealers47, backed by Tandy’s reputation for quality and support4. BYTE magazine put the matter plainly: "the 2000 is the superior computer"3, though it cautioned that buyers must weigh raw performance against software availability3. The machine was, in essence, a high-water mark of Tandy’s ambition to lead rather than follow: technically excellent, commercially niche, and ultimately constrained by the gravitational pull of IBM PC compatibility.

Specifications

Manufacturer Tandy Corporation347
CPU Next-generation 16-bit CPU4
RAM (base) 128K bytes3
RAM (expanded) via pigguback boards (each 128K)3
Available RAM (base) Approximately 75K after system load3
Disk storage 720K per drive (two drives included)4; 10MB hard drive option12
Graphics High-resolution monochrome and color12
Expansion Four user-accessible card slots2
Keyboard Thin, detachable, "superior" design3
Operating system MS-DOS9; XENIX available613
BASIC GW-BASIC interpreter loaded entirely into RAM from disk3
Display support Monochrome or RGB monitor; display/printer adapter included34
Form factor Low-profile, modular unit; optional floor stand37
Base price $27504
256K 2-Disk model $999.00 (Model 26-5103, as of 30/6/86)12
10MB HD model $3999.00 (Model 26-5104)12
Monochrome monitor $2494

References

  1. 1987.04 Your Computer (1987)
  2. 1987.04 Your Computer (1987)
  3. 1984 12 BYTE 09-13 Communications (1984)
  4. 1984 02 BYTE 09-02 Benchmarks (1984)
  5. two-sixteen magazine 3 1 May-Jun 1984 (1984)
  6. 1984 03 BYTE 09-03 Simulation (1984)
  7. two-sixteen magazine 3 2 July-Aug 1984 (1984)
  8. Archive item #2600104
  9. The Rainbow Vol. 04 No. 04 - November 1984 (1984)
  10. Archive item #2600172
  11. Interface Age-1981-06 (1981)
  12. remark-issue4-1978 (1978)
  13. SCO Price List Dec84
  14. Archive item #2600121