Replies...

Neil, Jacquie and mostly Grace posted on September 25:

" would like to buy some when you figure out what you don't want. 33? Jeez, dude!"

My reply: "LOL! Think i have gone a little berzerk  for these coleco tabletops. Well i have finished checking what i want to depart with, so here's the list:

Tabletop working (but NO battery cover):
* x1 Zaxxon
* x1 Frogger (ON/OFF plastic stick broken but switch works)
* x2 Galaxian

Tabletop casing/shell ONLY (no battery cover, PCB or joysticks/buttons):
* x3 Donkey Kong
* x1 Frogger
* x1 Galaxian
 P.S. All these casing/shells comes with screws and the piezo plastic cover.

If you (or anyone) is (are) interested in one or more tabletops, please write to this address: "slydc@yahoo.ca"

Thanks! =)

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

"Steve" posted on September 25:

"I think Burger Time could have done well in this series. Pretty sure I recall a credit card sized LCD herein from Mattel"

My reply: " I totally agree with you Steve, Burger Time (the VFD version by Bandai) would have been a marvelous addition to the Coleco tabletop series as well as Tutankham (Bandai), Pengo (Bandai), Space Invaders (Entex) and a lot more.

Bandai also did made an LCD version (about the size of a credit card, good memory Steve!) and was distributed by Mattel, Tandy and Bazin (to my knowledge). Here's some pictures:"

Reply to Matthew Nielsen

Matthew Nielson commented on September 3, 2016:

"Also, you may like to know, I opened mine and found there are some differences on the motherboard to yours. My serial number is 015287. Model number is the same."

My reply: "It is usual to find some differences in electronic components, labels, dates, etc., even more when a company made few or many batches and also when they (the game consoles/systems) were manufactured in two or more companies.

Just by the serial number, we almost have 10,000 serial number apart. Didn't know that Memorex made more than 10,000 of these, quite facinating."

Matthew: "I have a ROM IC (not an EPROM, no window) in socket U36, and there is nothing in socket U35 next to is. There are solder pads, by no IC socket and no IC, just a placeholder. The ROM is labeled:

(C)TANDY CORP 1992
9242 AJ002
8040202
10/92

In socket U1 (just below the large brown slot), I have an IC with a label on it that reads: "SFEB 10/16/92 8810405 2327"

My reply: "As you have a later made system, Memorex made some revision to cut production cost so that explain why you have one IC than two for the embedded Windows. Your Windows IC can be dumped but i am curious if yours and mine are exactly encoded but i also suspect that yours have a revision too. We can only know if we dump it."

Matthew: "If you ever get the the time in the future, it would be super helpful to also document the IR signals sent from the remote control and gamepads. I don't know if they use standard Memorex IR codes but the two-player nature of the pads makes me think that they are something proprietary to this console.

If the codes were know then, hopefully, someone could build a SNES-to-VIS adapter to replace lost gamepads."

 My reply: "I no wizard to decoding IR signals but Tandy supposely made a wired conroller which was available by a special order (model: CMC 16-2014). And if you check the guts of the wireless controller, you can see that there is a "Z86E0812PSC" which is a OTP Microcontroller (OTP for One-Time Programmable), a 14001B (Quad 2-input NOR gate) and a 14069U (Hex Inverter). 

The input in the back called "AUX IN" is where you plug the wire controller and the plug is a PS/2 type jack". Now it only leaves on how to bypass the Z86E0812PSC and to wire it on the PS/2 jack. Now i'm thinking...Whai if we use a USB controller, put a USB-to-PS/2 adapter and plug it in the VIS ??" Anyone wants to try this out ?"

Entex Pong reply / resposta Entex Pong

Ainda não, mas na próxima versão eu vou colocar um código de auto-start. Obrigado pela idéia! =)

A few Coleco Tabletops...

As i am doing an inventory of my collection (video game consoles/systems and electronic games), i think i have have a few too many Coleco Tabletops:

If you want to count, no need as there is x33 tabletops, which are:

* x1 Zaxxon
* x3 Frogger
* x5 Galaxian
* x7 Donkey Kong
* x17 Pac-Man

And no Ms.Pac-Man in this lot but i have one Ms.Pac-Man in the spare box parts as this tabletop is the rarest of the series and Zaxxon following one step behind in rarety.

And these are only extras (no %?&%? joke!) as i have brought these in the last 2-3 years. So some of you are maybe asking "what the $%$?%$ he's going to do with all those tabletops" ? Well these were for some special projects and some Raspberry Pi/M.A..M.E. into a tabletop kind-of project.

These is two projects i would like to do and those are the Coleco tabletop Donkey Kong Junior (the unreleased VFD version) and the Coleco tabletop Berzerk (another unreleased). There is also the Coleco tabletop Omega Race but i don't like this game and i have others i would like to do but that's a secret for now (shh!). ;)

But even if i have some projects for these tabletops, i think that i have brought a few too many. So after i have finished my inventory and what projects i wanna make (in the future of course), i will surely sell a few that are extras but in the meantime, please don't send a message or comment to ask which/when/how much because i'm still not decided.

But i do have a question and i would be delighted to know your answers: Which arcade between 1978 and 1984 would you have love to see released by Coleco back then (not listing those that were released and unreleased of course) ?

As for me, i would have love to see my all-time favorite arcade game converted into a Coleco tabletop which is: Vanguard by SNK (Century in North America).

OK now i'm going back to unpack a &?&-load of boxes and making a new inventory....