Tandy TRS-80 Model 4D computer overview & software

A look at the final member of the Radio Shack TRS-80 series of computers, the Tandy Model 4D, sold from 1985 until at least 1990 (possibly even later). Its unique all-in-one form factor was a favorite of schools and businesses. The inclusion of Deskmate also made it one of the first computers to come with e-mail capability!

[@billv4987]

The sound capabilities of this machine actually exceeded my expectations.

[@undeadelite]

3:45 "...being very careful".....bang

[@tieline1333]

Was just going to post this!

[@InsanePsychoRabbit]

WARNING: DO NOT watch this video while half-asleep. VWestlife's soothing voice will ensure you drift off, and then you WILL be awakened by the loud blaring Frogger music and it WILL scare the piss out of you.

[@mrlocalhost-is5ke]

XD

[@miked4377]

very true

[@zeddie4153]

Holy hell xD This just happened to me.

[@vwestlife]

The C64 was a home computer designed for games. The TRS-80 Model 4 was a rugged workhorse designed for schools and businesses -- a completely different marketplace category. Schools did not like the C64 because it had too many wires to hook up, and was too easy to steal or knock on the floor.

[@VenturiLife]

I think the TRS-80's were heavily used at one point at US phone companies, probably in accounting departments etc.

[@danieldougan269]

I had a Tandy Color Computer 2 that was based on the TRS-80. It was pretty awful to use. The CoCo 3 was a significant improvement, but I never had one.

[@laranitasantana]

In 1985 I got mine with Cobol and Pascal compiler and Visical spreadsheet software. Later added an external 15 megabytes hard drive. Wrote some business programs for our familiy business. A very reliable machine

[@jackilynpyzocha662]

1992, RLX 1000, QBASIC!

[@zestydude87]

Takes me back to my high school days... gotta love the 80s

[@StevesCraziness]

This was my first computer! I used it for basic.

[@edstar83]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/iGXbl2hmlrqrl6c

[@rbanister100]

I started my computer journey back in 1981, on the Color Computer 1, 16K RAM, but I upgraded it to 64K RAM, and also had the Model 4P. I remember all you have in your video VERY WELL, and brings back lots of memories. Thanks for sharing. Enjoyed the walk down memory lane.

[@idksomethingedgy2265]

That computer looks beautiful

[@BuhdaPunk]

I remember buying a model 4P when they first hit the market. Ran a Wildcat BBS on that machine for almost 2 years. I ran CPM on a second machine and Montezuma MPM on a Altos running RBBS

[@CrplCon]

The first time I saw one of these was shortly after they came out. A friend of mine had one and was bragging on the word processing capabilities. I still laugh thinking of him showing me a VERY long paper he had written, more like a book, and demonstrating how easy it was for him to change all the letter A's to E. Immediately, he regretted doing so when he tried to change those E's back to A and found that EVERY E was changed! I guess he hadn't saved it yet and had to go through and proofread the entire thing, changing letters as needed. I don't think it would have occurred to him to restore a saved version even if he had done so. That PC captured my imagination from then on. I knew I would get one and eventually ended up with a TRS 80 color computer. Good times.

[@elhistoriero1227]

What a good looking piece of hardware.

[@m4ttr4w3som3]

I've always loved the way command driven user interfaces looked. I would love to own this computer or the original IBM PC cause it looks awesome.

[@jgrant5255]

This was a wonderful computer. I learned Basic programming on this. I got Online with this, Genie I believe. I accessed a few Bulletin board a if my memory serves me right.

[@kj4daq]

This model sold in India by DCM Data Products as DCM Tandy TRS 80 Model 4 from 1985 to 1990. Very stable and can be booted with TRSDOS or CPM+ Operating systems

[@ZILOGz80VIDEOS]

I find it amazing that tandy still had these things around and a copy of LDOS coming out on it in 1991.

[@WAQWBrentwood]

Dec Both the Apple II and Commodore 64 likewise existed into the early 1990s! There was a large user base still around then before it all became Windows/Mac.

[@IrishCarney]

I find it more amazing that they didn't bother to upgrade it. By the late 80s they should have made the high-resolution graphics upgrade, the Orchestra 90, hard drive controller card, all included as standard. Plus add a speaker, make the lower drive be a hard disk, and make the upper drive slot either have two half-height 5¼" floppy drives or one half-height 5¼" and one 3½" drive. Instead they let it stagnate.

[@trueopsimath]

Fun video. Early in my career I got a contract with a company that had three or four disparate PC's (all different brands), that included a TRS-80 model 4. This was in 1987 or so. I don't remember the details of what they wanted, but I do remember it involved writing a script for their communication software that would upload a comma-delimited file to some mainframe somewhere. I had never seen a TRS-80 model 4, but I found it easy and fun to work with.

[@laranaarana]

We used that model in all RS stores to run the daily sales reports and weekly orders. Sure brings back memories!

[@tomknapp6194]

The Model I was originally limited to 3,500. Just in case it bombed, Tandy had that many RS stores that they could be use in. In the first year, RS sold 55,000, outselling Apple 5:1.

[@retrocjt]

I just happen to own a TRS-80 model IV and this video was very helpful and I learned a good few things about my system! I also happen to own a copy of Scarfman for it, not that it matters very much the ghost character's eyes disappear whenever they are edible.

[@prepperminded5732]

I used to work at Radio Shack back in the late 80's. I remember this unit sold for $999. lol

[@vwestlife]

Not by hand... I took the full-size cartoons and downscaled them to 128x48 monochrome BMP images on my PC, and then took the pixel data from the BMP files to create BASIC programs to draw them on the screen.

[@npgtom]

I learned on one of these in high school back in like 85/86.

[@gettingpast4391]

When we were C64 owners we mostly laughed at how bad these machines were compared to our Commodore 64's... but now I have two of them along with my C64's. They are not better in any way, but VERY cool in their own way.

[@Saboteur709]

My first three computers were the Model 1, Model 1 Level 2, and Model 4. Thanks for taking me back. Good times!

[@ReviewTechUSA]

holy crap you drew all those?!?!?! In basic?!?!?!

[@cyndicorinne]

I love your in-depth coverage of machines from around my childhood. The Frogger and Scarf-Man games on the Model 4 are surprisingly sophisticated. I especially like the way the developers of Frogger made crisp, almost vector-like graphics out of such low-resolution character building blocks. They must’ve used a good abstraction layer to avoid going crazy.

[@unicornsnkittens]

I actually sat here and watched this in my yard in the middle of the night. I really enjoyed it.

[@SeaJay_Oceans]

Wonderfully well built, seriously solid and stable computing machine - not a toy !

[@soteful9949]

I remember using one of these in the 8th grade. The teacher would get pissed when somebody would cause the floppy drive to initiate with no floppy in it.

[@bobns509]

Excellent video about TRS 80 capabilities. Great Work!

[@gerrycrisostomo6571]

The Deskmate is awesome! It's like having Microsoft Office in the early days of personal computing.

[@amoesys]

I remember back in the day spending all my allowance playing frogger...man, I'm old...:D

[@tracymerton609]

Good God man. This takes me back. I started learning on these in 1980. I actually worked in the micro computer lab. Thanks for posting.

[@310McQueen]

For Model III I used to PEEK the keyboard for the arrow keys and use the input to SET the graphics points to draw. When the drawing was done you could PEEK the screen memory and save your graphics as text. The save file for a screen full of art was only 1K for (I think it was about) 164x48.

[@floatpvnk]

PEEK?

[@DappieKS80]

I was just given a trs80 coco. It was erratic ,till I lifted and reset the socketed IC's. I felt bad breaking the warranty sticker to open her up, but now she works great! I love an easy fix!! Under the top shell, was scribbled a name and date from '82! Quality control, I guess?

[@JarOfRats]

+DappieKS80 I got a 16k Coco for Christmas in 1982. The next Summer, I'd replaced the "chiclet" keyboard with a real computer keyboard, got Extended BASIC, and upped the RAM to 64k... and that was back when Radio Shack claimed it could only go to 32k. My only issue was it tended to run a little warm. Aftermarket side-mounted cooling fans were expensive, so I ended up setting a tray of ice cubes on the top of the case. Ahh, the 80s...

[@rokairala]

The classical music in the background is so sweet

[@ian_b]

My earliest computer memory is the TRS80 in the window of the Tandy shop, running the Dancing Demon. It was before I even knew personal, let alone "home" computers were a thing. I just remember looking at this computer and thinking how incredible it was to see a computer in the flesh.

[@vwestlife]

I like how the TRS-80 DOSes will automatically search all drives for a file or program. If you want a specific drive you can add the :0 or :1, but you don't need to. And wildcards are automatic, too; typing "DIR UXW" will list all files beginning with UXW, on all drives. It also supports password protection for both individual files and an entire disk. There is no fan, and since the cassette output can do polyphonic music, it's quite flexible!

[@seanshay6573]

the instruction set was very well made

[@LarryRobinsonintothefog]

Awesome, owned a Model-4 but never heard of the Model-4D. Though Deskmate was only on the Model-1000, but guess this was the precursor. Had a Model-1 version of Scarfman, guess I ordered out of a computer magazine (cassette at that). Thanks for the video.

[@markwiygul6356]

This is the DEFINITIVE Computer Style, all One Unit: keyboard, monitor, computer and drives. In the early 80s, if someone mentioned the word "computer" this is what I visualized. And with a phosphorous green monochrome monitor. I remember at my Dad's office, in the 80s, they got a Tandy 1000(?) and I saw it, with a detached keyboard, detached monitor, and this BOX !! It did Not look like what I thought a computer would look like. It looked odd, bizarre, weird, and Not Cool. To this day, I still like the Design of These TRS-80 computers. That's they way they are supposed to be. That's a COMPUTER !! :-)

[@vwestlife]

sluggotg Please fix your Google+ settings so people can reply to your comments. I never claimed the TRS-80 Model III / 4 was the *first* all-in-one computer. And by the time the Model 4D came out, it was not aimed at consumers like the Atari and Amiga, it was aimed at schools and businesses, who preferred its fully integrated design for its security (no loose parts people could steal or knock on the floor) and ease of setup.

[@harukatakahashi8822]

I was born in 1991? back then they had a game called "Free Ski" and it had color and it's a classic, this computer is bad

[@vwestlife]

Haruka Takahashi You mean "SkiFree" and arguing that a 1985 TRS-80 is "bad" just because it can't play a Windows game from 1991 is like arguing that a 2010 Nintendo Wii is "bad" today just because it can't play a new Sony PS4 game.

[@filipmac1545]

so is this a kids computer

[@rricci]

The first TRS-80 Model I was not an all-in-ine design. The Model III, which came out in 1980 was.

[@rricci]

Most likely, Free Ski (which I never heard of) was for the Color Computer (CoCo which was a different beast that the Black and White computers. There was a color modification in, I believe Micro 80, but I have never seen this in operation.

[@wayneaaron5818]

I love the video!! The Trs80 Model 4 was my first computer in high school.

[@StevesCraziness]

Mine too!

[@TheRealDanNguyen]

My first computer

[@kifhurlbut]

I think a cover was an accessory for this unit, which partially explains toe odd yellowing situation.

[@Raptor50aus]

I started doing work experience in 1983 at my local Tandy shop and then working there till 1990 and sold alot of the trash 80 computers. Was great times !!

[@qbertguy]

Wow that art was awesome, you are talented

[@jimb032]

I used to want one of those in the worlds worst way when I was young. In the end I got a Tandy Coco 2 then a 3 then a Tandy 1000.

[@THOMASSU63]

Awesome overview of that cool machine. It's fascinating to see what they could do with just character graphics. This machine reminds me of the computer used in my school years back in Sweden. It was called ABC80 and was also based on the Z80. But it did have a graphics mode; very low res though and mono. But it also had some terrific games, like Breakout and a PacMan clone called Glipp. It could be expanded to use CPM with a disk system hooked up to it. Later models came with built in drives.

[@spidergloo2708]

looks like a terminal computer of Fallout 4

[@harmonic5107]

DepressionTV exactly the reason I picked mine up, just a little bit of plastic in the right places and some paint. It's perfect. Sadly the one I found wasn't functional other than the logo, but it's good enough. I've heard that you can use a rasbery pi with the screen and keyboard though, that would be epic!

[@skypedog221]

Imagine seeing a basic Windows 8 logo on this computer. Be pretty weird in today's world. Very good demonstration of this old and very cool computer. I think by the time that PC and/or Apple manufacturers actually do what was used in the Tandy TRS-80 Model 4 computer, in terms of combining all the equipment (i.e, keyboard and/or mouse), all the people who watched will know that this was basically the first AIO computer, long before what could be released in the future.

[@Hellagoth654]

Im not that old but this is where it all started and im glad I watched this video

[@DrShawqee]

I really enjoyed watching your video. I have Model 4P and is still working! My old programs still working too after all those years! I doubt it very much that any of new computers can last that long! Thank you for posting a such nice demonstration.

[@sci3ntologist]

I love these old Tandys, my first computers were a coco2, coco3 and a 1000hd. They were given to me a kid.

[@100Underscores]

You help me sleep. I love your voice. So does my wife. Please never stop making videos

[@RetroGamerVX]

Great review, not seen one done in that detail before, I was still with you after the deskmate ;o)

[@Somnivore7]

this was my first computer! I had the one button joystick as well

[@77tubuck]

Actually there is a operating system called CP/M that uses A: , B: and C:. It will run on the TRS 80 Model D.

[@mitch19636]

I worked on these. Quality control at Mt Druitt Tandy warehouse / Head Office...

[@tezzaNZ]

There is something about an all-in-one green screen computer. I love them! Thanks for showing Deskmate. I'd read about it but had never seen it in action. I assume it needs the room afforded by the double sided drives for overlays, so won't work on my earlier Model 4 which has single sided drives?

[@rick420buzz]

Edible ghosts have their eyes closed, inedibles have open eyes.

[@kdw75]

My dad let us play 13 Ghosts on his. We still have a couple Model 4s a Model 3 and a Model 1.

[@cttv90108]

At school we had a room full of model 3's that were networked to a master model 3 computer though the rs-232 port. pretty advanced for the time (1985).

[@alynicholls3230]

when i was in high school one of the lads had a few 8" disc drives, his dad worked at ICL and made him special cables so he could use one as a second drive, he could get 5" too which is the one he got me i got a kempston disk interface for xmas that year, and the drive he got me was streets ahead of the one that came with the interface, i could have got an 8" but they did not work out of the box and modifying a brand new disk interface was not allowed in our house, besides 8" blank disks were hard to find here even then. we thought those huge drives were the coolest things ever.

[@vwestlife]

Telex was a network of mechanical teletype machines, dating back to the 1950s. The messages were printed out on paper. Some radio stations still play the sound effect of a teletype machine in the background, because that's how they used to get their news from the "wire services". Eventually computers took the place of the teletype machines.

[@captainmoore5835]

Oh the memories when I had one of these

[@ddostesting]

I was in grade 3 or 4 when I was programming graphics on these!

[@user-lb8do4ew6k]

me too

[@CRAZYHORSE19682003]

Such fun memories, I remember learning basic on one of these machines in school.

[@mspenrice]

As for the "only yellowing on the underside", that's an oddity that it shares with a few other machines of the era, like the ST and SNES... The top and bottom parts of the case seem to be made of different types of plastic, the upper one presumably treated to be more resistant to UV yellowing as it's more likely to get sun exposure... but many many years after they were last expected to be in use, the lack of protection for the lower half is starting to show through.

[@vwestlife]

The case was painted at the factory everywhere except the bottom. That's why only the bottom yellows.

[@mspenrice]

Dang. Well, so much for that theory :D

[@Chomakot]

When pressing the keys omg the sound is soooo statisfying (i like clicky keyboards :D)

[@vwestlife]

Actually the key switches are linear, not clicky. But the keys do make a "clicky" kind of sound when you type on them.

[@Chomakot]

yea anything clicky is good to go for me :D i have a membrane keyboard thats louder than most of these mx cherry blues clones i just like that clicky sound it makes

[@Psythik]

You can still buy modern mechanical keyboards. I typed this comment on one (Corsair K95)

[@ghostrecon420]

that's one sturdy pc never needed a repair

[@endorphinsmusic]

This was my first hand me down computer, and all I had was a spreadsheet program which I turned into a zelda style adventure game for my sister :) good times

[@jamesslick4790]

Programs on the first drive,data on the second drive. Just as nature intended! I do that to this day, Of course they are now two SSDs!

[@vwestlife]

There were a few computers with a built-in cassette deck: the original Commodore PET, and the EACA Video Genie (a.k.a. Dick Smith System 80). And the Compucolor 8001 used 8-track tapes for data storage; they called it "Floppy Tape", but it was very rare, and reportedly only 25 of the Floppy Tape drives were ever sold.

[@cambridgeport90]

I remember something very much like that when I was in elementary school back in the '90's. I never appreciated these beauties until now when I'm looking at them as pieces of history. I recall the use of these computers for instance during a second grade math class. We used to have lab, and I was never able to participate because whatever computer was being used didn't have any text-to-speech software on it, and since I'm blind, without that, I'll not be able to do anything.

[@3dprintwiz378]

Very Nice Vid man. I myself has used one of this machines back in my high school days. I'm old school as what this generation calls me, but I think having experience the earlier computer back in the days, makes me more appreciate the current technology. I make programmable robot arms now, by the way. Once again, thanks for bringing me back to the future.

[@pimpingmrli]

I want one of these. 1st computer I ever used was an apple II or IIe (I can't remember). But they had one in almost all classrooms at school.

[@TheRosemontag]

13:08 that processor sound......I love it!!

[@vwestlife]

VT = Video Terminal? Tandy actually did make a terminal in the same case as the Model 4... they just put a huge blank plate where the floppy drives would go.

[@charly80years]

thanks ... fue como volver en el tiempo !! esto que hiciste es parte de la historia y leyenda de las computadoras ... gracias ...

[@vwestlife]

DeskMate comes on a double-sided disk. I don't think it would fit on a single-sided disk, but you can retrofit double-sided drives into an earlier Model 4.

[@KlodFather]

@4:55 - That connector covered by the metal shield is where the MFM hard disk attached. There were 5 meg and 10 meg from Tandy available and you could hook up 20 meg for sure to it... I don't know anyone who put a bigger one on this computer than 20. I do not know what the upper limit was of the hard disk operating system. I know it had to be booted initially from floppy and from there I do not remember the procedures... By the time I got MFM drives for my model 4 they were obsolete and I bought a 40 meg for a PC board I had and went PC. I did have a 9600 baud MultiTech modem for my model 4 and the BBS people were surprised I run that relic on their BBS boards.

[@mr.nobody6829]

The sound of that keyboard sounds really good, almost like Model F.

[@areguapiri]

My favorite game to play on this computer was the Doctor J/Larry Bird one-on-one basketball game.

[@sonic1k]

I saw a tik tok of a lady discovering one of these in a abandoned warehouse , it was really dusty

[@vwestlife]

I don't know the exact sales figures, but the Model I sold a lot better than Radio Shack expected to, and created quite a following. It was one of the first personal computers ever introduced, along with the Apple II and Commodore PET.

[@seanshay6573]

the z80 processor was in a class by itself

[@LaughingBear85]

You're talented with those graphics on basic language coding.

[@NeilRoy]

Look at Scarfman again, the bottom of the ghosts change when you can eat them. ;) Kewl video, brought back SO MANY memories!!! I learned to program on one. A good game to get for it was Lunar Lander I recall loving it (and making my own version). I still remember how to print text to a specific line, the upper left corner was zero, then it went left to right, top to bottom, rather than an X and Y co-ordinate. Then you use something like PRINT@128 to start printing at a specific point. I recall the character graphics, with the 2x3 blocks you could calculate the character number you needed easily. The upper right block of that grid was 0, then the upper left, 1, middle left 2, middle right 4, bottom left 8, bottom right 16. Add up the blocks you wanted and that was the character to print, so upper right and bottom left "pixels" both on would be 1+8 or 9. I don't recall if you had to add a number to that or not. Anyhow... fun times. I still prefer how this looks over modern systems. :)

[@mspenrice]

Heh, never ceases to amaze me how ingenious people could be with trying to get recognisable, playable games on even the most graphically basic machines... Frogger and Pacman not looking anywhere near as bad as you'd first expect... And having something like Deskmate on your computer back in '85 probably would have made you top dog, I imagine... I mean, getting mail... on your computer! What a concept :D And having something that's essentially Microsoft Works, but running inside 64k RAM and off a sub-400k floppy, that's pretty cool.

[@Bioshot11]

The yellowing on the bottom is probably because the original owner used retro-brite on the top and sides, and skipped the bottom. Platic yellows over long periods of time regardless of UV light. Light just speeds it up a lot.

[@prismstudios001]

I love my HP Pavillion 23 All in one.... Cool to see a really old PC with that concept.

[@robertsteinbach7325]

On the Model 4s and 4Ds there was a way to add another 64Kb RAM to create a 64Kb RAM disk. Also Model 4s could run CP/M, the common microcomputer operating system before MS-DOS for PCs.

[@Anglynn74]

in 6th grade in 1985/86 we used the Model III to play oregon trail. in high school in my senior year 91/92 we used the model III or 4. I can remember it had "radio shack" imprinted on it. green text on the screen & everything. was a pain to use. nightmares of DOS. took forever to get something to print.

[@ohioterran7374]

On Scarfman, can tell if the ghosts are safe to capture by their eyes. If their eyes are open then they are not safe, if they are closed, they they are safe to capture

[@RonJohn63]

A demonstration of the TRS-80 Model 16 (which ran MS Xenix on an MC68000) would be really interesting!

[@Shamino0]

Agreed. The II/12/16 series was completely different from the I/III/IV series (and the CoCo 1/2/3 series). It would be really cool to compare them, since all were sold at about the same time.

[@MarcoZ1ITA1]

Now that would be a useful showpiece!

[@BlakeGJ]

I think I'll get over it;) Don't break the seal! This brought back fond memories and renewed my search for one.

[@amdintelxsniperx]

i do like these old units i still would love to have one :)

[@flynnz]

Man these things were everywhere back in the day. Loved messing with them. Oh and to detect when you can eat the ghosts in Scarfman, look for when they have eyes.

[@miked4377]

i like these all in one computers very nice . .