Editing Motorola 6809 (section)

===Major uses===
[[File:TRS-80 Color Computer 1 front right.jpg|thumb|upright|TRS-80 Color Computer]]

Its first major use was in the [[TRS-80 Color Computer]], which happened largely by accident. Motorola had been asked to design a color-capable [[computer terminal]] for an online farm-aid project, a system known as "AgVision". [[Tandy Corporation|Tandy]] ([[Radio Shack]]) was brought in as a retail partner and sold them under the name "VideoTex", but the project was ultimately canceled shortly after its introduction in 1980.<ref name="ElencoAgVision">{{cite news | url=https://vintagecomputer.ca/agvision-videotex-terminal/ | title=AgVision Videotex terminal | work=Vintage Computer | date=2016-12-22 | access-date=16 April 2018 | archive-date=2018-04-17 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417105537/https://vintagecomputer.ca/agvision-videotex-terminal/ | url-status=live }}</ref> Tandy then re-worked the design to produce a [[home computer]], which became one of the 6809's most notable design wins.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=G. Pitre|first1=Boisy|last2=Loguidice|first2=Bill|title=CoCo: The Colorful History of Tandy's Underdog Computer|date=2013|publisher=CR Press|location=Europe|page=19|isbn=9781466592483|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k5bNBQAAQBAJ|access-date=16 February 2018|archive-date=9 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209134110/https://books.google.com/books?id=k5bNBQAAQBAJ|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Commodore SuperPET SP9000 (Thomas Conté).jpg|thumb|upright|SuperPET SP9000]]
Looking for a low-cost programming platform for [[computer science]] students, the [[University of Waterloo]] developed a system that combined a 6809-based computer-on-a-card with an existing [[Commodore PET]], including a number of programming languages and program editors in ROM. The result was later picked up by Commodore, who sold it as the [[Commodore PET#SuperPET 9000 series|SuperPET]], or MicroMainframe in Europe. These were relatively popular in the mid-1980s before the introduction of the [[PC clone]] market took over the programming role for most users.

Other popular home computer uses include the [[FM-7|Fujitsu FM-7]], Canon CX-1, [[Dragon 32/64]], and the [[Thomson TO7]] series. It was also available as an option on the [[Acorn System 2]], 3 and 4 computers. Most [[SS-50 bus]] designs that had been built around the 6800 also had options for the 6809 or switched to it exclusively. Examples include machines from [[SWTPC]], [[Gimix]], [[Smoke Signal Broadcasting]], etc. Motorola also build a series of [[EXORmacs]] and EXORset development systems.

[[Hitachi, Ltd.|Hitachi]] produced its own 6809-based machines, the MB-6890 and later the S1. These were primarily for the Japanese market, but some were exported to and sold in [[Australia]], where the MB-6890 was dubbed the "Peach", probably in reference to the [[Apple II]]. The S1 was notable in that it contained [[paging]] hardware extending the 6809's native 64 [[kilobyte]] addressing range to a full 1 [[megabyte]] in 4 KB pages. It was similar in this to machines produced by SWTPC, Gimix, and several other suppliers. TSC produced a Unix-like operating system [[uniFlex]] which ran only on such machines. [[OS-9]] Level II, also took advantage of such memory management facilities. Most other computers of the time with more than 64 KB of memory addressing were limited to [[bank switching]] where much if not all the 64 KB was simply swapped for another section of memory, although in the case of the 6809, Motorola offered their own MC6829 [[Memory management unit|MMU]] design mapping 2 megabytes in 2 KB pages.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://archive.org/details/bitsavers_motoroladaMicroprocessorsDataManual_80083566 |title=1981 Motorola Microprocessors Data Manual |access-date=2 April 2018 |year= 1981 }}</ref>

[[File:Vectrex-Console-Set.jpg|thumb|upright|Vectrex home video game console]]
The 6809 also saw use in various [[videogame]] systems. Notable among these, in the 68A09 incarnation, was the unique [[vector graphics]]-based [[Vectrex]] home videogame machine. It was also used in the Milton Bradley Expansion (MBX) system (an arcade console for the [[TI-99/4A]] home computer), and a series of [[arcade game]]s released during the early to mid-1980s. [[WMS Industries|Williams Electronics]] was a prolific user of the processor, which was deployed in ''[[Defender (1981 video game)|Defender]]'', ''[[Stargate (1981 video game)|Stargate]]'', ''[[Joust (video game)|Joust]]'', ''[[Robotron: 2084]]'', ''[[Sinistar]]'', and other games. The 6809 CPU forms the core of the successful [[Williams Pinball Controller]]. The KONAMI-1 is a modified 6809 used by [[Konami]] in ''[[Roc'n Rope]]'', ''[[Gyruss]]'', and ''[[The Simpsons (video game)|The Simpsons]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mamedev.org/source/src/emu/cpu/konami/konami.c.html |title=konami: Portable Konami cpu emulator|author=Nicola Salmoria and the MAME Team|access-date=2012-10-21 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004145431/http://mamedev.org/source/src/emu/cpu/konami/konami.c.html |archive-date=2012-10-04 }}</ref>

Series II of the [[Fairlight CMI]] (computer musical instrument) used dual 6809 CPUs running [[OS-9]], and also used one 6809 CPU per voice card. The 6809 was often employed in music synthesizers from other manufacturers such as [[Oberheim Electronics|Oberheim]] ([[Oberheim Xpander|Xpander]], [[Oberheim Matrix synthesizers|Matrix 6/12/1000]]), PPG (Wave 2/2.2/2.3, Waveterm A), and [[Ensoniq]] ([[Ensoniq Mirage|Mirage]] sampler, SDP-1, [[Ensoniq ESQ-1|ESQ-1]], [[Ensoniq SQ-80|SQ-80]]). The latter used the 6809E as their main CPU. The (E) version was used in order to synchronize the microprocessor's clock to the sound chip (Ensoniq 5503 DOC) in those machines; in the ESQ-1 and SQ-80 the 68B09E was used, requiring a dedicated arbiter logic in order to ensure 1&nbsp;MHz bus timing when accessing the DOC chip.

In contrast to earlier Motorola products, the 6809 did not see widespread use in the [[microcontroller]] field. It was used in [[traffic signal]] controllers made in the 1980s by several different manufacturers,<ref>{{cite book|author1=Robert J. Simpson|author2=Raveendran Paramesran|title=Advanced 8-bit Microprocessor, MC6809: Its Software, Hardware, Architecture & Interfacing Techniques|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=orNQAAAAMAAJ|year=1998|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-981-3083-09-7}}</ref> as well as Motorola's SMARTNET and SMARTZONE Trunked Central Controllers (so dubbed the "6809 Controller"). These controllers were used as the central processors in many of Motorola's trunked two-way radio communications systems.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Motorola_Type_II_SmartZone |title=Motorola Type II SmartZone |website=The RadioReference Wiki |access-date=2021-02-02 |archive-date=2021-02-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206212122/https://wiki.radioreference.com/index.php/Motorola_Type_II_SmartZone |url-status=live }}</ref>

The 6809 was used by Mitel as the main processor in its SX20 Office Telephone System.