Update [Thu 8th Aug, 2024 10:30 BST]: Dempa Micomsoft has announced more details on the upcoming miniaturized reproduction of the PC-8801 mkII SR, which was revealed earlier this year in May at the ALL ABOUT Microcomputer BASIC Magazine III event.
The information comes courtesy of the Japanese publication Game Watch and includes some basic specs, a price, and a rough release window.
As detailed in the announcement, the Pasocom PC-8801 mk IISR will be the third in a series of retro reissues, which originally started under HAL Laboratory and also includes the PasocomMini MZ-80C, a reproduction of Sharp's MZ-80C, and the PasocomMini PC-8001, a reproduction of NEC's PC-8001.
The body is being manufactured by the model kit company, AOSHIMA Cultural Teaching Materials Co Ltd, and will be a 1/4 recreation of the NEC's original PC-8801 mk IISR.
According to the announcement, it will measure 99.5 mm (width) x 85.7 mm (depth) x 31.0 mm (height) and specifically seems to be based on the PC-8801 mk IISR model 30, featuring two 5-inch floppy disk drives, where you can insert and eject miniature disks similar to the original machine. The announcement also mentions HDMI for video output, as well as a microSD slot, a headphone jack, a USB-C port for powering the device, and USB 3.0 Type-A and USB 2.0 Type-A for connecting a keyboard. This is in addition to a speaker built into the unit, which Pasocom's miniaturized version of the PC-8001 was released without.
As the announcement goes on to reveal, the machine will emulate the basic specs of the original PC-8801 mk IISR unit (with the CPU emulating μPD780C-1 with a clock speed of 4hz) and also incorporates Yamaha's YM2203 sound. But as noted in Game Watch's article, it will also introduce YM2608 (or Sound Board II) functionality too, which can support a greater number of sound sources for enhanced audio.
10 games will apparently be released with the miniaturized machine, with players also being able to load others to the machine via microSD. It will also cost ¥33,000 and is expected to be released in Spring 2025.
Original Article [Sat 18th May, 2024 11:30 BST]: Dempa Micomsoft has revealed that it is releasing a micro-console version of the PC-8801 mkⅡ SR.
More details will be revealed on August 8th. It's unknown if it will get a Western release.
Released in 1981, the PC-88 range of home computers was originally developed by NEC. The The PC-8801 mkII SR was the second revision of the PC-8801 and launched at the beginning of 1985.
While it was designed to be a personal computer, the PC-88 range was home to some massively influential Japanese games, such as Xanadu, Ys, Popful Mail and R-Type.