Sharp PC-1401

The Sharp PC-1401 is a small pocket computer manufactured by Sharp. It was introduced in 1983 and is one of the first combinations of scientific calculator and portable computer with BASIC interpreter/bytecode compiler. The PC-1402 has the same features but includes 10K of RAM.

Technical specifications

CPU: SC61860, 576 kHz clock frequency
4 KiB RAM
40 KiB ROM
Display: monochrome LCD 16 digits in 1 line
Integrated piezoelectric speaker
Keyboard: 76 keys, 1 switch on front, 1 key, 1 knob on back/side
11-pin serial connector for printer/cassette controller
Powered from two CR2032 batteries, power consumption is less than 0.03 W
Size: 170×72×9.5mm, weighing around 150 grams

Peripherals

The machine has an 11-pin serial connector, which is almost through-hole compatible. This connects to a proprietary thermal printer, such as a CE-126P. The printer will also serve as an adapter to connect to a tape recorder. The tape recorder provides program and data backup.

Variants

PC-1421

The PC-1421 is a variant of the PC-1401 for financial calculations. It differs from the PC-1401 in the contents of its ROM and higher CPU speed. The PC-1421 CPU clocks at 768kHz vs 576kHz for the PC-1401.

PC-1430

The PC-1430 is a stripped-down variant of the PC-1401. The display and case are mostly the same, but the PC-1430 lacks the calculator modus, it offers less functions, only 2 KB RAM, and no speaker or buzzer.

PC-1450

The PC-1450 supports user changeable RAM cards: CE-211M, CE-201M or CE-202M.

Program examples

10 "F" allows to start the program with DEF F
20 INPUT "N=?";N Ask for n
30 LET F=1 Set start value of F to 1
40 FOR I=1 TO N STEP 1 counts I from 1 to N
50 LET F=F*I calculates F=F*I
60 NEXT I repeats loop from line 40
70 PRINT USING "##";N;"!="; USING ;F print result - i.E. 5!=120
80 END end of program