5 ms·

The Zilog Z80 is discontinued

8 points by wicket 2y ago

h2odragon 2y ago
reddit thread says its just the DIP packages being discontinued, there's other Z80 MCU parts still be made after this
- AnimalMuppet 2y ago
  Yeah, but... how can you have a chip without DIP? More seriously, the DIP package was within the ability of semi-skilled randos to solder or wirewrap. That lead to all kinds of things being developed that would not have been if the barrier to entry had been higher. So I see this as the end of an era. You can get the Z80 in other ways, but the loss is real. (Yeah, I know, if you have an idea that you want to try to implement, you probably don't reach for a Z80 now, and haven't for decades. Still... this is the closing of a frontier, or at least an acknowledgement that the frontier has already closed.)
  - PaulHoule 2y ago
    See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilog_eZ80 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilog_eZ80 for what be my absolute favorite sequel processor which is available in many SBC such as https://www.tindie.com/products/lutherjohnson/makerlisp-ez80-lisp-cpm-computer/ https://www.tindie.com/products/lutherjohnson/makerlisp-ez80...
    - jblang 2y ago
      Or a more affordable option: https://www.olimex.com/Products/Retro-Computers/AgonLight2/open-source-hardware https://www.olimex.com/Products/Retro-Computers/AgonLight2/o.... There is also this version: https://heber.co.uk/agon-console8/ https://heber.co.uk/agon-console8/ This is available on Mouser and Digikey and it has started to develop a good community around it. I've just been porting the plasma demo that I wrote for a Z80+TMS9918 video chip to it (still WIP): https://github.com/jblang/z80demos https://github.com/jblang/z80demos
  - JohnFen 2y ago
    The lack of a DIP package isn't really a big handicap for hobbyist use. Soldering SMT things isn't hard (and often is even easier than through-hole.), it just requires different techniques. Kids are doing this stuff in their bedrooms every day. You can't wire-wrap them, of course, but wire-wrapping hasn't been commonly done by hobbyists for a long, long time now. But if you have your heart set on doing that, you can almost certainly get a Z80 on a breakout board with headers that can be wire-wrapped.
orionblastar 2y ago
The End of an Era. It was a good ride.
anonzzzies 2y ago
It was my first love. Incredible how long it lived.

8 points by wicket 2y ago

h2odragon 2y ago

reddit thread says its just the DIP packages being discontinued, there's other Z80 MCU parts still be made after this

AnimalMuppet 2y ago
Yeah, but... how can you have a chip without DIP? More seriously, the DIP package was within the ability of semi-skilled randos to solder or wirewrap. That lead to all kinds of things being developed that would not have been if the barrier to entry had been higher. So I see this as the end of an era. You can get the Z80 in other ways, but the loss is real. (Yeah, I know, if you have an idea that you want to try to implement, you probably don't reach for a Z80 now, and haven't for decades. Still... this is the closing of a frontier, or at least an acknowledgement that the frontier has already closed.)
- PaulHoule 2y ago
  See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilog_eZ80 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zilog_eZ80 for what be my absolute favorite sequel processor which is available in many SBC such as https://www.tindie.com/products/lutherjohnson/makerlisp-ez80-lisp-cpm-computer/ https://www.tindie.com/products/lutherjohnson/makerlisp-ez80...
  - jblang 2y ago
    Or a more affordable option: https://www.olimex.com/Products/Retro-Computers/AgonLight2/open-source-hardware https://www.olimex.com/Products/Retro-Computers/AgonLight2/o.... There is also this version: https://heber.co.uk/agon-console8/ https://heber.co.uk/agon-console8/ This is available on Mouser and Digikey and it has started to develop a good community around it. I've just been porting the plasma demo that I wrote for a Z80+TMS9918 video chip to it (still WIP): https://github.com/jblang/z80demos https://github.com/jblang/z80demos
- JohnFen 2y ago
  The lack of a DIP package isn't really a big handicap for hobbyist use. Soldering SMT things isn't hard (and often is even easier than through-hole.), it just requires different techniques. Kids are doing this stuff in their bedrooms every day. You can't wire-wrap them, of course, but wire-wrapping hasn't been commonly done by hobbyists for a long, long time now. But if you have your heart set on doing that, you can almost certainly get a Z80 on a breakout board with headers that can be wire-wrapped.

orionblastar 2y ago

The End of an Era. It was a good ride.

anonzzzies 2y ago

It was my first love. Incredible how long it lived.