Entertainment Computer System
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The Entertainment Computer System was an add-on peripheral for the Intellivision. It was created and released to appease the Federal Trade Commission who fined Mattel Electronics for false and misleading advertising for failing to mass-release the originally-planned Intellivision Keyboard Component add-on.
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[edit] History
When Mattel Electronics originally released the Intellivision in 1979, they advertised that the Intellivision could be upgraded to a 64 kibibyte computer with a computer add-on. After three years, Mattel Electronics failed to release the "Keyboard Component" add-on, and dissatisfied consumers filed complaints against them with the FTC. In mid-1982, the FTC declared that Mattel Electronics engaged in deceptive advertising and fined Mattel Electronics $10,000 per month until a computer add-on was widely available. Almost immediately, Mattel Electronics released the Entertainment Computer System nationwide; the ECS had been in development since 1981 as a back-up alternative to the Keyboard Component. Although the ECS was not as powerful as the Keyboard Component, it did, albeit minimally, offer what Mattel Electronics promised: to turn the Intellivision into a computer. This was sufficient to get the FTC off Mattel's back.
Almost immediately, the Keyboard Component was cancelled, which led to the manufacturer of the Keyboard Component (Compro, Inc.) suing Mattel for $10 million on charges of breach of contract, fraud, and nonpayment for the last 1,300 units. This was just one of the lawsuits Mattel settled shortly after Mattel Electronics was closed in early 1984.[1][2]
[edit] Hardware
- ECS EXEC/BASIC ROM (system BIOS and built-in BASIC programming)
- additional 2 kibibytes of system RAM (system could have up to 64 kibibytes RAM with add-on memory modules)
- additional sound chip (same sound chip as in the Intellivision)
- a cassette recorder/printer interface
- two additional input ports for the computer keyboard (used both ports), two Intellivision controllers, or the music synthesizer (used both ports)
[edit] What was included
- ECS add-on module (plugged into the Intellivision)
- Two Intellivision controllers (for four-player games)
- computer keyboard
- music synthesizer
- AC adapter
- Melody Blaster game cartridge
[edit] Games
The following games were either released or unreleased:[3]
- BASIC Programmer (unreleased)
- Doubles Tennis (unreleased)
- Flintstones Keyboard Fun (unreleased)
- Game Factory (unreleased)
- The Jetsons' Ways With Words
- Melody Blaster
- Melody Maker (unreleased)
- Mind Strike
- Mr. BASIC Meets Bits 'N Bytes
- Music Conductor (unreleased)
- Number Jumble (unreleased)
- Scooby Doo's Maze Chase
- Super NFL Football (unreleased)
- Super NASL Soccer (unreleased)
- World Series Major League Baseball
