The Oric-1 was designed by the Tangerine Computer Systems under a new company name of Oric Products International Ltd. It is a simple 8-Bit computer, and is the predecessor to the Oric Atmos. The first thing you notice is how similar it is to the well-known ZX Spectrum, with the Oric computers designed to be direct competition.
Released 1st September 1982, and sold over 210,000 unit in 1983 between the UK and France. The Oric-1 cost £129 (16k RAM) or £169 (64k RAM) which is £460/£600 in 2020 ($610/$800).
Anyone who knows the ZX Spectrum will know how awful the keyboard is. The Oric-1’s best selling feature was the much-improved keyboard over the Spectrum, though as it turned out the improvement was only slight. This was sorted with the Oric Atmos.
The Oric-1 also contained a programmable sound chip, allowing for better sound reproduction while taking load off the CPU. Additional modem, printer and 3-inch floppy drive were available.
| Year | 1982 |
| Make & Model | Oric-1 |
| Generation | 4th |
| CPU | MOS 6502 |
| Speed | 1MHz |
| RAM & ROM | 16k ROM, 16k or 48k RAM |
| Power | 5V @ 600mA |
| Exhibit No. | 1328 |
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