Dick Smith Super-80

The Dick Smith Super-80 was an Australian single-board computer kit developed with Electronics Australia magazine. Construction articles guided readers through assembling a Z80 machine with 16KB of RAM, a 60-key keyboard, video output and cassette storage.

Owners could add BASIC in ROM, more memory, lower-case display and an S-100 expansion interface. More than 2,000 kits were sold, making it a notable bridge between electronics construction projects and practical home computing.

Notable Features

• Sold as a short-form kit to accompany a three-part Electronics Australia construction series.
• Optional S-100 interface accepted one expansion card.
• RAM, BASIC ROM, lower-case display and metal enclosure were available as upgrades.

Historical Significance

• A significant home-grown Australian computer rather than an imported rebadge.
• Introduced many electronics enthusiasts to building and programming a complete microcomputer.

Collector’s Notes

• Each owner selected and assembled options, so surviving configurations differ widely.
• Check socket quality, home wiring and power-supply construction before applying power.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	Dick Smith Super-80
Manufacturer	Dick Smith Electronics
Launched	Saturday, August 1, 1981
Launch Price	A$289.50
Country	Australia
CPU	Zilog Z80 at 2 MHz
Units Sold	More than 2,000 kits
Operating System	Machine-code monitor; optional Tiny BASIC-derived interpreter
I/O	Digital I/O connector and optional single-slot S-100 interface
Keyboard	60-key keyboard
Storage	300-baud Kansas City cassette
Sound	None in the standard design
Graphics	Character and block graphics
Display	32 x 16 uppercase monochrome text
ROM	2KB monitor; optional BASIC increased ROM to 12KB
RAM	16KB standard; expandable to 48KB
CPU Speed	2 MHz