Editing Acorn Electron (section)

===Technical specifications===
[[File:Acorn ALF03 Data Recorder (top).jpg|thumb|Acorn ALF03 Data Recorder]]

The hardware specification according to official documentation,<ref name="amp020">{{ cite book | url=https://www.4corn.co.uk/archive/docs/AMPAPP/150/AMP020%20-%20electron-opt.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.4corn.co.uk/archive/docs/AMPAPP/150/AMP020%20-%20electron-opt.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live | title=Electron | publisher=Acorn Computers Limited | pages=5–8 }}</ref> combined with more technical documentation and analysis is as follows:

* [[central processing unit|CPU]]: [[Synertek]] [[6502|SY6502A]]<ref name="pastraiser">{{cite web|url=https://www.pastraiser.com/computers/acornelectron/acornelectron.html|title=Acorn Electron Hardware|publisher=pastraiser.com|access-date=17 September 2015}}</ref>
* Clock rate: variable. CPU runs at 2 [[megahertz|MHz]] when accessing ROM and 1&nbsp;MHz when accessing RAM. The CPU is also periodically halted.<ref name="SM" /><ref group=note>The Electron is widely misquoted as operating at 1.79&nbsp;MHz after measurements derived from speed testing against the 2&nbsp;MHz BBC Micro for various pieces of 'common software'.</ref>
* Glue logic: [[Ferranti|Ferranti Semiconductor]] Custom [[gate array|ULA]]
* [[random-access memory|RAM]]: 32 [[kilobyte|KB]]
* [[read-only memory|ROM]]: 32 [[kilobyte|KB]]
* Graphics modes: 160×256 pixels (20×32 characters) in 4 or 16 colours, 320×256 (40×32 characters) in 2 or 4 colours, 640×256 (80×32 characters) in 2 colours
* Text modes: 40×25 characters in 2 colours, 80×25 characters in 2 colours<ref group=note>Text modes are provided using display modes with the appropriate horizontal resolution (320 or 640 pixels), with each character row being 8 pixels high, and with 2 blank display lines being introduced between character rows.</ref>
* Colours: 8 colours (TTL combinations of RGB primaries) + 8 flashing versions of the same colours
* Sound: 1 channel of sound, 7 octaves; built-in speaker. Software emulation of noise channel supported
* Keyboard: 56 key "full travel QWERTY keyboard"<ref name="amp020" />
* Dimensions: 16×34×6.5&nbsp;cm
* I/O ports: Expansion port, tape recorder connector (1200 [[baud]] CUTS variation on the [[Kansas City standard]] for data encoding, via a 7-pin circular [[DIN connector]]), aerial TV connector ([[RF modulator]]), [[composite video]] and [[RGB]] monitor output
* Power supply: External PSU, 19&nbsp;[[volt|V]] [[alternating current|AC]]

The composite video output provides a greyscale image on the standard machine, but an internal modification allows a colour image to be produced, albeit with a degradation in picture quality. Acorn ostensibly intended the composite output to be a high-quality output for monochrome monitors, with the RGB output being the preferred high-quality output for colour images.<ref name="elbug198403_composite">{{ cite magazine | url=https://archive.org/details/elbug-v-01n-10/Elbug%20v01n04/page/16/mode/1up | title=Colour Video Output | magazine=ELBUG | date=March 1984 | access-date=9 August 2022 | volume=1 | issue=4 | pages=16 }}</ref>