Pel Varazdin Orao | TechMuseum
Year of manufacture: 1985
Technical Specifications:
- Processor: MOS Technology 6502, 1 MHz
- RAM: 16 and 32 KB
- FDD: Floppy disk 5.25″
- HDD: –
- Audio: Three channels , speaker
- Connectors/Ports: TV, expansion, serial, video, cassette tape
- Case: Keyboard type
- Monitor: Color
- OS: Orao Basic
The Pel Varazdin Orao features a MOS Technology 6502 processor at 1 MHz and memory of 16 up to 32kB. Equipped with a floppy disk of 5.25” it ran with the operating system of the Orao BASIC version.
PEL Varaždin was a Yugoslavian electronics company with operations during the socialist years and state of the Eastern Bloc. During these years, the electronic manufacture was only done locally, with no foreign imports. Products, thus, were of lower quality hardware materials and usually had compatibility problems. They didn’t present strong features for a head on competition with foreign counterparts, such as dominant Commodore, Apple II or ZX-80.
One also very important fact to note is that Eastern Europe-made electronic systems weren’t accessible to masses. Due to the high cost of the few available materials, prices rose and the budget of common users couldn’t afford these home computers. They were, thus, deployed to government institutions, schools and research centers.
That was just a snapshot on the presentation of the techmuseum series. Indulge more into the history. Continue reading more about the present model, the Pel Varazdin Orao here. Alternatively, find more exciting stories like this one here.
Author: PC-GR
The World of Technology
