Dick Smith VZ-300

The Dick Smith VZ-300 improved the popular VZ-200 with 16KB of main RAM, updated BASIC and a hard-key keyboard. It remained software-compatible with its predecessor while giving beginners more usable memory and a sturdier everyday machine.

Video Technology manufactured the computer as a relative of the Laser 310, while Dick Smith supported it with low pricing, software and peripherals across Australasia. Production continued into the late 1980s.

Notable Features

• Doubled standard main RAM to 16KB while retaining 2KB video RAM.
• Hard plastic keycaps replaced the VZ-200’s rubber keyboard.
• Backward compatibility preserved the established VZ software and peripheral library.

Historical Significance

• Extended the life of Dick Smith’s successful entry-level computer platform.
• Its very low retail price kept 8-bit programming accessible well into the later 1980s.

Collector’s Notes

• Several brown and cream keyboard styles appeared during production.
• The correct VZ-300 RAM expansion differs electrically from the earlier VZ-200 module.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	Dick Smith VZ-300
Manufacturer	Dick Smith Electronics
Launched	Monday, April 1, 1985
Launch Price	A$199
Country	Australia
CPU	Zilog Z80A at 3.58 MHz
Units Sold
Operating System	Microsoft BASIC in ROM
I/O	RF, composite video, cassette, memory and general expansion ports
Keyboard	32-key hard-key keyboard in several production styles
Storage	Cassette; optional floppy system
Sound	Piezoelectric speaker
Graphics	128 x 64 in 4 colours; VDG semigraphics modes
Display	32 x 16 text in 8 colours
ROM	Updated 16KB Microsoft BASIC
RAM	16KB main RAM plus 2KB video RAM; expandable to 32KB or banked 64KB
CPU Speed	3.58 MHz