Editing Motorola 6800 (section)

== Use in personal computers ==
[[File:SWTPC6800 open.jpg|thumb|The [[SWTPC 6800]] computer system, introduced in November 1975, was based on the MEK6800 design evaluation kit chip set.]]
[[File:Altair 680.jpg|thumb|MITS Altair 680]]
The [[Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems|MITS]] Altair 8800, the first successful personal computer, used the Intel 8080 microprocessor and was featured on the January 1975 cover of ''[[Popular Electronics]]''.<ref name = "PE Jan 1975">{{cite magazine | author = H. Edward Roberts |author2=William Yates |date=January 1975 | title = Altair 8800 minicomputer |magazine= Popular Electronics | volume = 7 | issue = 1 | pages =33–38 | publisher = Ziff Davis }}</ref> The first personal computers using the Motorola 6800 were introduced in late 1975. Sphere Corporation of Bountiful, Utah ran a quarter-page advertisement in the July 1975 issue of ''Radio-Electronics'' for a {{nowrap|$650 USD}} computer kit with a 6800 microprocessor, {{nowrap|4 kilobytes}} of RAM, a video board and a keyboard. This would display 16 lines of 32 characters on a TV or monitor.<ref name = "Sphere Ad July 1975">{{Cite magazine | title = Computer System $650 |magazine= Radio-Electronics | volume = 42 | issue = 7 | page =88 | publisher = Gernsback Publications | location = New York | date = July 1975}}</ref> The [[Sphere 1|Sphere computer]] kits began shipping in November 1975.<ref name = "Assembling a Sphere">{{Cite journal | last = Anderson | first = Bruce | title = Assembling a Sphere | journal = Byte | volume = 1 | issue = 11 | pages =18–20 | publisher = Byte Publications | location = Peterborough NH | date = July 1976}}</ref> [[SWTPC|Southwest Technical Products Corporation]] of San Antonio, Texas, officially announced their [[SWTPC 6800]] Computer System in November 1975. [[Wayne Green]] visited SWTPC in August 1975 and described the SWTPC computer kit complete with photos of a working system in the October 1975 issue of [[73 (magazine)|''73'']]. The SWTPC 6800 was based on the Motorola MEK6800 design evaluation kit chip set and used the MIKBUG ROM Software.<ref name = "SWTPC 6800 MIKBUG"/> The MITS Altair 680 was on the cover of the November 1975 issue of ''Popular Electronics''. The Altair 680 used a 6800 microprocessor and, unlike the SWTPC machine, also had a front panel with toggle switches and LEDs. The initial design had to be revised and first deliveries of the Altair 680B were in April 1976.<ref name="CN Apr 1976">{{cite journal | last = Pollini | first = Steve | title = 680-b ready for production | journal = Computer Notes | volume = 1 | issue = 11 | page = 8 | publisher = MITS | date = April 1976 | quote = MITS is now ready to begin full production of the Altair 680b | url = http://startup.nmnaturalhistory.org/gallery/notesViewer.php?ii=76_4&p=8 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120323162008/http://startup.nmnaturalhistory.org/gallery/notesViewer.php?ii=76_4&p=8 | archive-date = 2012-03-23 }}</ref>

Sphere was a small startup company and had difficulties delivering all of the products they announced. They filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 1977.<ref name = "Sphere Bankruptcy">{{Cite journal | last = Norell | first = Melvin | title = Dear Sphere Microcomputer User | journal = Programma News Letter | pages = 1–3 | publisher = Programma Consultants | location = Los Angeles | date = May 31, 1977 | url = http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/sphere/newsletter/Programma_Jun77.pdf | access-date = October 21, 2010 | archive-date = August 10, 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100810101726/http://www.bitsavers.org/pdf/sphere/newsletter/Programma_Jun77.pdf | url-status = live }}</ref> The Altair 680B was popular but MITS focused most of the resources on their Altair 8800 computer system and they exited the hobby market in 1978. The Southwest Technical Products computer was the most successful 6800 based personal computer.<ref name="Creative Computing">{{cite book | last1 = Ahl | first1 = David | last2 = Green | first2 = Burchenal | title = The Best of Creative Computing Volume 3 | publisher = Creative Computing Press | year = 1980 | location = Morristown, NJ | pages = 106–108 | url = http://www.atariarchives.org/bcc3/showpage.php?page=106 | isbn = 0-916688-12-7 | access-date = 2010-10-21 | archive-date = 2011-06-04 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110604041707/http://www.atariarchives.org/bcc3/showpage.php?page=106 | url-status = live }} Interview with Daniel Meyer at the "Personal Computing 77" conference at Atlantic City NJ in August 1977</ref><ref name = "SWTPC 6800 Floppy Drive">{{Cite journal | title = SWTPC announces first dual minifloppy kit under $1,000 | journal = Byte | volume = 2 | issue = 10 | page = Cover 2 | publisher = Green Publishing | location = Peterborough NH | date = October 1977 | url = http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SWTPC_6800_Computer_Oct_1977.jpg | access-date = 2010-10-21 | archive-date = 2012-11-10 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121110011837/http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SWTPC_6800_Computer_Oct_1977.jpg | url-status = live }}</ref><!-- Electronics March 31, 1977, pg 93. SWTPC sales are $4 million --> Other companies, for instance, [[Smoke Signal Broadcasting]] (California), [[Gimix]] (Chicago), [[Midwest Scientific]] (Olathe, Kansas), and Helix Systems (Hazelwood, Missouri), started producing SWTPC 6800 bus compatible boards and complete systems. [[Technical Systems Consultants]] of West Lafayette, Indiana, supplied tape based software for the 6800 (and later 6809) based computers and, after disk systems became available, operating systems and disk software as well. The 8080 systems were far more popular than the 6800 ones.<ref name = "NCCN Dec 1977">{{Cite journal | last = Wallace | first = Bob | author-link = Bob Wallace (computer scientist) | title = Bob's Bits: Personal Computers in 1976 | journal = Northwest Computer Club News | volume = 2 | issue = 12 | page = 9 | location = Renton WA | date = December 1977 | url = http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Northwest_Computer_Club_Dec_1977_pg09.jpg | access-date = 2010-10-21 | archive-date = 2012-11-10 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121110011846/http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Northwest_Computer_Club_Dec_1977_pg09.jpg | url-status = live }}</ref>

[[File:Tektronix 4051 ad April 1976.jpg|thumb|upright |The Tektronix 4051 graphics computing system used a 6800 microprocessor.]]

The [[Tektronix 405x|Tektronix 4051]] Graphics Computing System was introduced in October 1975. This was a professional desktop computer that had a 6800 microprocessor with up to 32&nbsp;KB of user RAM, 300&nbsp;KB magnetic tape storage, BASIC in ROM and a 1024 by 780 graphics display. The Tektronix 4051 sold for {{val|p=$|7000}} ({{Inflation|US|7000|1975|r=-2|fmt=eq}}){{Inflation/fn|US}}, rather higher than the personal computers using the 6800.<ref name = "Electronics Oct 30 1975 Tek 4051">{{Cite journal | title = Terminal Talks Basic | journal = Electronics | volume = 42 | issue = 22 | page =120 | publisher = McGraw-Hill | location = New York | date = October 30, 1975}} [[:File:Tektronix 4051 ad April 1976.jpg|Ad for Tektronix 4051]] in ''Electronics'' April 1976</ref>

The 6800 processor was also used in the [[APF-MP1000|APF MP1000]] game console. The [[Matsushita JR series]] used a Panasonic [[MN1800A]] [[NMOS logic|NMOS]] microprocessor,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Datasheet Archive 27--KUX datasheet download |url=https://www.datasheetarchive.com/pdf/download.php?id=2fae23a9ce160f11ce15274d241e5a77bcb2b1&type=O&term=27--KUX |website=www.datasheetarchive.com}}</ref> compatible with the MC6802.

HP introduced the 9815A desktop calculator based on the 6800 in 1975. All HP's other machines at the time used their own processor designs. It was fitted with 16k of ROM and 2k of RAM with optional IO expansion and RAM expansion to 4k. A later 9815S included both options as standard.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://hpmuseum.net/display_item.php?hw=146 | title=HP Computer Museum }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.hpmuseum.org/hp9815.htm | title=Hp 9815A/S }}</ref>

The architecture and instruction set of the 6800 were easy for beginners to understand and [[Heathkit]] developed a microprocessor course and the ET3400 6800 trainer. The course and trainer proved popular with individuals and schools.<ref name = "PS Nov 1977 Heathkit">{{Cite magazine | title = Heathkit Microprocessor Course | magazine = Popular Science | volume = 211 | issue = 5 | page = 133 | publisher = Times Mirror Magazines | location = New York | date = November 1977 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=bwEAAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA133 | issn = 0161-7370 | access-date = 2016-10-31 | archive-date = 2013-06-13 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130613093857/http://books.google.com/books?id=bwEAAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA133 | url-status = live }}</ref>

Motorola's next generation 8-bit microprocessor architecture, the [[Motorola 6809|MC6809]] (1979), was not binary code compatible with the 6800, but nearly all assembly code would assemble and run on the 6809;  6800 family peripheral chips worked as a matter of course.