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Magnavox Drivers

Company: Magnavox

Description: Born from the conception of the first loudspeaker system in 1915, company founders Peter Jensen and Edwin Pridham named their newly formed electronics company Magnavox, a Latin word that literally translates as “loud voice”. The company was formally established in 1917 in Napa, California. This American company, during the early stages of its operation, became a major player in the defense and consumer electronics market. It was responsible for the manufacture of gramophones (record players), television sets, and radios.

In 1972, the company introduced “The Odyssey” which served as the company’s initial offering to the US gaming console market. A few years before Nintendo initiated in Japan the home gaming industry. This is seen as the precursor to the extremely competitive and in demand computer gaming market of the IT industry. The company’s success in the field of computer gaming encouraged the company Philips to acquire the consumer electronics division of Magnavox in 1974. Odyssey2 was released during the late 1970s and was also referred to as the Philips Videopac.

Teaming up with yet another electronics giant, Philips together with Sony utilized the brand name Magnavox to introduce to the computer industry the concept of the Compact Disc. This defined the standard and equipment for audio data that were reproduced on Magnavox players. The Sony CDP-101 model on the other hand catered to high-end audio requirements.

The Odyssey console produced by Magnavox featured an Intel 8048 8-bit microcontroller CPU (1.79MHz), 64 bytes of internal RAM, 128 bytes of Audio and Video RAM, and 1024 bytes for the BIOS ROM. Its video display utilized an Intel 8244 IC with a resolution of 160x200 (NTSC) and 16-color fixed palette. The audio component uses a 24-bit shift register mono sound with two frequency clock able noise generator. The Intel 8244 chip of the system was responsible for the implementation of video functions and audio data reproduction.

Aside from the two digital joysticks, the computer also featured a QWERTY layout keyboard membrane. The unit has RF connector outputs for audio and video including a SCART connector for models sold in France. Typically, 2, 4, or 8 KB were the sized of the ROM cartridges used by the system. It also incorporated an expansion module for enhanced sound effects and speech syntheses. This console has a similar structure to modern mobile computers except that the Odyssey had no built-in monitor.

At present, the Magnavox brand represents lower priced consumer electronics of Philips International. However, in Australia, the rights are retained by the Hong Kong based company Mistral Ltd.

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