Zilog Z80
The Z80 is an eight-bit microprocessor designed and manufactured by Zilog in 1976.[1][2] Federico Faggin, who had helped design the intel 4004, the intel 8008 and the intel 8080, left intel and co-founded Zilog, where he lead the small team that designed the Z80.[3]
The Z80 was designed to be pin-compatible with the i8080, while adding additional features.[4] This meant a Z80 could be plugged into a circuit board, replacing the older chip. This meant it could run all the programs that had been compiled for the older chip. The intel 8080 used about 4,800 transistors, while the z80 used about 8,200.
The Z80 had a second set of registers, duplicates of the intel 8080's, and the CPU could switch between them, with a single instruction -- very useful for dealing with hardware interrupts.[1] The intel 8080 required three different input voltage power levels, while the Z80 only required a single voltage.
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1
"The Fascinating Story of Zilog, the Startup That Built the Z80 and Powered Home Computers". Tech District. 2026-08-12. Archived from the original on 2026-08-21. Retrieved 2026-08-30 – via YouTube.
This video explores how Zilog challenged Intel, why the Z80 became a favorite among computer manufacturers, and how the chip found its way into home computers, game systems, arcade machines, calculators, and countless embedded devices. From the rise of the personal computer revolution to the fierce semiconductor battles of the 1970s and 1980s, the Z80 helped shape an entire generation of technology.
- ↑ "Intel 8080A Microprocessor". Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
- ↑
"Intel introduces the 8080 microprocessor - Event - Computing History". Computing History. Archived from the original on 2024-06-26. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
Designed by Federico Faggin and Masatoshi Shima, the Intel 8080 was the successor to the earlier 8008 processor.
- ↑
D. M. G. Preethichandra (November 2021). "Z80—The 1970s Microprocessor Still Alive". IEEE Micro. IEEE Computer Society. 41: 156–157. doi:10.1109/MM.2021.3115609. Archived from the original on 2026-08-23. Retrieved 2026-08-30.
He managed to realize (in hardware) all these with 8,200 transistors in a single chip where the competitor 8080 had only 4,800 transistors.