VideoSport MK2
| VideoSport MK2 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Manufacturer | Henry's | |||||
| Type | stationary game console | |||||
| publication |
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| Main processor | none | |||||
| Graphics processor | unknown | |||||
| Storage media | none (built-in games) | |||||
| Controller | 2 built-in paddles on the right and left per controller | |||||
| Online service | none | |||||
| Units sold | > 10,000 (as of May 1976) | |||||
| predecessor | none | |||||
| successor | none | |||||
| info | First British game console, could be sent to buyers | |||||
The VideoSport MK2 is a stationary game console that was sold in the UK from late 1974 or early 1975 to 1977 by the British company Henry’s , a television and hi-fi equipment dealer . It was the very first British game console. Interested parties could either purchase the system in stores or have it sent to them by post . The suggested retail price was £ 34.72 in early 1975 and £ 29.50 in May 1976. The design of the device's packaging is similar to that of the Magnavox Odyssey . By May 1976, over 10,000 units of the console had been sold.
hardware
Console and controller
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The console is housed in a housing with just a power switch and a button to select one of the following three games: football , tennis / pong and hole-in-the-wall. The two wired game controllers are firmly connected to the console. They each have two paddles (for vertical and horizontal movements) and a button (for opening and kicking gates). There are two variants of the console, the original VideoSport MK2 with gold script and a later VideoSport MK2 without gold script, which was probably introduced to reduce production costs. The VideoSport MK2 was mostly hand assembled, the color of the push buttons depended on which parts were purchased.
Technical specifications
There are only two integrated TTL circuits in the console, each with four NAND ports. The remaining circuit consists entirely of discrete components. Power is supplied via the power grid.