type computer
country Hong Kong
year 1983
os ROM-based MS Basic V2.0
cpu Zilog Z80
speed 3,58 MHz
ram 2 KB
rom 16 KB
graphic 128×64, 32×16
colors 8, 4
ports tape, RF, composite, memory, expansion
The VTech Laser 200 — Hong Kong’s Budget Home Computer
The VTech Laser 200 (also sold as the Salora Fellow in Finland and the Texet TX-8000 in the UK, among other names) was a budget home computer produced by VTech of Hong Kong in 1983. Using a Zilog Z80A processor at 3.58 MHz with 2 KB of RAM (expandable to 66 KB) and a membrane keyboard, it was one of the most affordable home computers available — priced to compete at the very bottom of the market against the Sinclair ZX81. Despite its modest specifications, it offered colour graphics through its own video chipset and a BASIC interpreter, providing basic programming capability at an exceptionally low price.
VTech’s Origins
VTech (Video Technology) was founded in Hong Kong in 1976 and initially produced Pong-style video games before moving into educational toys and home computers. The company became one of Hong Kong’s most successful technology exporters, selling products under its own brand and through OEM arrangements with retailers and distributors worldwide. The Laser 200’s sale under multiple brand names — including Salora Fellow in Finland — reflects this OEM distribution strategy that made VTech’s hardware accessible across international markets under locally recognised brands.
The Salora Fellow in Finland
The fact that the VTech Laser 200 was sold in Finland as the Salora Fellow is particularly significant for the Computer Museum Ata collection. Salora was a Finnish consumer electronics company that distributed the Laser 200 hardware under its own brand, making it one of the few internationally manufactured home computers to be marketed under a Finnish brand name. Finnish buyers who purchased a ”Salora Fellow” were unknowingly buying a Hong Kong-manufactured machine — a reminder that even in the early 1980s, the global consumer electronics supply chain was already deeply international.