Contents |
Description
Hardware
The Panasonic FS-PW1 is a MSX2 set consisting of:
- a Japanese Word Processor cartridge with MSX-JE and Kanji-ROM Level 1 (JIS1)
- a monochrome 24-dot matrix thermal transfer printer that directly attaches to the cartridge with a ribbon cable
- the Panasonic FS-AA181 AC adaptor to power the printer
- a floppy disk with MSX-DOS 1, a demo written in BASIC and fonts for the printer
The original replacement ink cartridge is the CF-PR120, but you can also use the CF-PR110.
The advantage of connecting the printer to the cartridge with a 26-pin cable was that the printer did not need its own Kanji-ROM. The disadvantage was that the printer only works with the integrated word processor software.
The cartridge has a built-in firmware (almost the same as in the National FS-4600F but without Kanji 12x12 support) and a 8kB SRAM (NEC D4364C-15L chip) that is backed up by two removable AAA batteries.
There are two switches. The one on the left of the cartridge can be used to disable the integrated Word Processor, while the one on the right can be used to disable the integrated Kanji-ROM.
| Brand | Panasonic |
| Model | FS-PW1 |
| Year | 1987 |
| Region | JP |
| Launch price | ¥49,800 |
| Package content | |
| Emulation | ROMs dumped and emulated. |
Firmware
The firmware menu presents 2 options:
- Japanese Word Processor (15 or 30 characters per line)
- Address Book & Business Card
The Word Processor has a sub-menu with 7 options: 1 - New text - 2 - Edit text - 3 - Print - 4 - Save - 5 - Load 6 - Delete (only on disk) - 7 - Close. In options 1 and 2, you can access settings with F8.
Compared to the FS-4600F firmware, it's a 'simplified' version as two options (English Word Processor and MSX-BASIC) have been removed.
Note: National/Panasonic also released a add-on cartridge, the FS-SR023 which allows the built-in FS-4600F word processor to print a 48 dot "Brush" style typeface. It is unclear if it can be used with the FS-PW1 cartridge inserted in another slot of a MSX2 computer.
Gallery
Hardware
Firmware
Control cable
A special control cable is needed, without it the printer will not work. It connects on the left side of the cartridge to what looks like a 3.5mm headphone connector, and needs to connect on the other side to the MSX printer port. See schema below.
Note: It is also possible to create a cable to attach the printer to the regular MSX printer port, in which case the control cable is also no longer necessary and the printer can be used with other software.
