Texas Instruments TI-99 Personal Computer Line (1979-1984)

TI-99/4 and TI-99/4a 

🥇First Commercially-Released 16-Bit Home Computer (TI-99/4) 

The Texas Instruments TI-99/4, released in 1979, holds the distinction of being the first 16-bit home computer, but it was a spectacular commercial failure that nearly sank TI’s consumer division. It was hobbled by a widely detested "chiclet" keyboard and a massive $1,150 price tag (over $5,100 in 2026 dollars), which included a mandatory 13-inch monitor because TI couldn't get FCC approval for a TV modulator in time. In 1981, the company course-corrected with the TI-99/4A, adding a proper full-travel keyboard and the upgraded TMS9918A video chip, which introduced a bitmap mode that made its library of games—like the iconic Parsec and Munch Man—look remarkably crisp. Despite its 16-bit TMS9900 CPU, the system’s performance was paradoxically sluggish because it was bottlenecked by an 8-bit bus and a strange architecture that only gave the CPU 256 bytes of fast RAM.

By 1983, TI became locked in a brutal "price war to the death" with Commodore's Jack Tramiel; to compete with the VIC-20, TI slashed the 4A's price to under $100, effectively losing money on every unit sold. Although the TI-99/4A briefly held 35% of the home computer market, the financial bleeding was unsustainable, and TI famously pulled the plug in October 1983 after a $330 million third-quarter loss.

Texas Instruments TI-99 Peripheral Expansion Box 

The TI Peripheral Expansion Box (or PEB) was released in January 1982, to replace the only thread of accessories originally released with the TI-99/4a personal computer. When first introduced, the PEB was quite expensive and in short supply. To buy the fully enhanced system, you had to spend a whopping $1500! Two different PEB's were introduced, with subtle changes to the power switch. It is estimated that at one point, a PEB was being sold for every 10 TI-99/4a's sold. The PEB was discontinued with the rest of the TI-99 line in 1984. 

TI-99 Acoustic Phone Modem

The TI Phone Modem was an acoustic coupler modem that ran at 300 baud. 

Donated by: Joseph Rodomista