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Cyhist Mar 04 1997 C
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Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 17:48:19 -0500
Reply-To: "CYHIST Community Memory: Discussion list on the History of
Cyberspace" <CYHIST@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU> Sender: "CYHIST Community Memory: Discussion list on the History of
Cyberspace" <CYHIST@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU> From: "David S. Bennahum" <davidsol@panix.com>
Subject: CM> "Merlin", first toy with a microprocessor?
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Community Memory: Discussion List on the History of Cyberspace ______________________________________________________________________
Merlin was a hand-held game from around 1978 which looked like a red "princess" telephone. It had a loudspeaker and a series of nine (perhaps 12) circular keypads arranged in a tic-tac-toe grid. These emitted red light (from red LEDs in the center of each circle). Merlin offered tic-tac-toe and a version of "simon says" where it would flash a pattern using the circles, and you would have to repeat it. Each time you did the pattern got harder and harder. I think there was also some sort of musical instrument game where you could press the circles and emit different tones.
My understanding is that Merlin is the first commercial toy to use a microprocessor.
Does anyone remember who made it? Or what kind of chip it used? What it cost?
I owned one at the time, and found it endlessly fascinating, that is until I got a hand-held car racing game built by Mattel sometime in 1978. Then there was a second Mattel game, involving hunting submarines. Does anyone remember the names of those products, and when they were released?
best,
db
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Reply-To: "CYHIST Community Memory: Discussion list on the History of
Cyberspace" <CYHIST@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU> Sender: "CYHIST Community Memory: Discussion list on the History of
Cyberspace" <CYHIST@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU> From: "David S. Bennahum" <davidsol@panix.com>
Subject: CM> "Merlin", first toy with a microprocessor?
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
______________________________________________________________________
Community Memory: Discussion List on the History of Cyberspace ______________________________________________________________________
Merlin was a hand-held game from around 1978 which looked like a red "princess" telephone. It had a loudspeaker and a series of nine (perhaps 12) circular keypads arranged in a tic-tac-toe grid. These emitted red light (from red LEDs in the center of each circle). Merlin offered tic-tac-toe and a version of "simon says" where it would flash a pattern using the circles, and you would have to repeat it. Each time you did the pattern got harder and harder. I think there was also some sort of musical instrument game where you could press the circles and emit different tones.
My understanding is that Merlin is the first commercial toy to use a microprocessor.
Does anyone remember who made it? Or what kind of chip it used? What it cost?
I owned one at the time, and found it endlessly fascinating, that is until I got a hand-held car racing game built by Mattel sometime in 1978. Then there was a second Mattel game, involving hunting submarines. Does anyone remember the names of those products, and when they were released?
best,
db
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