Display article   Subject:  Introducing "Tandy Factory Direct"
   04/30/97   17:57:38


RADIO SHACK INTRODUCES "TANDY FACTORY DIRECT"

Company Unveils New Computer Distribution Program and Products

FORT WORTH, Texas (October 2, 1992)) -- To strengthen its
position in the PC market, Radio Shack announced today it will
begin delivering custom-manufactured PC-compatible personal
computers this month through its exclusive new Tandy Factory
Direct program.

Factory Direct combines unbeatable low prices and direct delivery
with the retail convenience and local support of nearly 7,000
participating Radio Shack dealers nationwide.  The program
includes a 30-day money-back satisfaction guarantee.

The program capitalizes on the company's sourcing, manufacturing
and distribution efficiencies to keep prices aggressively low,
speed time-to-market with new technology and reduce warehouse
inventory costs.

"Customer convenience and customer satisfaction are the golden
rules.  Compare our Factory Direct prices to AST, Dell or Compaq.
These new OMNI Profile PCs combine performance, unbeatable
quality, pricing, convenience and face-to-face support and
factory direct pricing represent the best of all worlds."

The personal computers available through the Factory Direct
program are Tandy's new OMNI Profile 486 series -- systems based
from the 25 megahertz (MHz) Intel486 DX/2 microprocessors.

Complete systems including 4 megabytes (MB) of memory, 120 MB
hard drive, accelerated Super VGA video, MS-DOS 5.0 and Microsoft
Windows 3.1 software, mouse and a Super VGA color monitor start
at less than $1,700, plus shipping and handling.

All systems include a one-year parts and labor warranty and a
30-day money-back satisfaction guarantee good at any
participating Radio Shack store nationwide.  For only $99, this
warranty can be extended with a special service plan option which
doubles the standard warranty to two years and gives the user
access to 90 days of toll-free telephone support.

TANDY FACTORY DIRECT - HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS

Tandy Factory Direct is simple and convenient.  Customers visit
their local Radio Shack retail outlet and choose from a variety
of hardware-specific options.  Beginning with the microprocessor,
customers select only the options they want or need in their own
systems.

Radio Shack store personnel phone the order directly to Tandy's
U.S.A. factory where a specialist reviews and confirms the system
configuration while the customer is still in the store.

Among the options which can be ordered are system memory from
4 MB to 40 MB, external secondary cache from 64 kilobytes (KB) to
256 KB, industry-standard IDE hard drives from 107 MB to 340 MB,
a choice of floppy disk drives, CD-ROM drives, tape backup
systems, and a choice of peripherals.

Within two days, after the order is accepted, the computer system
is custom-built, tested and shipped directly to the customer by
second-day air.

As an added touch, Radio Shack will provide a custom nameplate
for the computer, reading "Custom Made For {Your Name Here}."

TANDY OMNI PROFILE 486 SERIES - CUSTOM-CONFIGURED SYSTEMS WITH A
NEW DESIGN

The Tandy OMNI Profile 486 series of personal computers,
available through Radio Shack's new Tandy Factory Direct program,
are based on five different versions of Intel's 80486
microprocessor technology and include the following models:

- Tandy 425 SX personal computer - a 25 MHz 80846SX-based system.

- Tandy 433 SX personal computer - a 33 MHz 80486SX-based system.

- Tandy 433 DX personal computer - a 33 MHz 80486DX-based system.

- Tandy 450 DX2 personal computer - a 50 MHz 80486 DX/2-based system.

- Tandy 466 DX2 personal computer - a 66 MHz 80486 DX/2-based system.

Both of the 80486SX-based systems have built-in OverDrive
Processor sockets for upgradeability, and all of the systems can
be upgraded to the top-of-the-line 66 MHz system.

The computers have a new low-profile chassis design with more
expandibility.  One 3.5-inch 1.44 MB floppy disk drive and two
5.25-inch open device bays are accessible from the front of the
computer.  Inside, the design supports one 1.6-inch height
device, three full-length and two half-length 16-bit expansion
slots.

Each computer has 512 KB of video memory, expandable to 1 MB.  A
built-in Windows graphics accelerator on the motherboard improves
the performance of BitBLT (Bit-Block Transfer) and other
graphics-intensive operations.

The Tandy OMNI Profile 486 series features a 145-watt power
supply, two serial ports, one parallel port, one mouse port and a
101-key enhanced keyboard port.  The mouse port and keyboard port
have an "auto-sense" feature which allows the user to plug the
mouse and keyboard in either port.

All of the computers are shipped with the customer's monitor
selection, a mouse and the MS-DOS operating system.  MS-DOS 5.0,
Windows 3.1 and America Online software are pre-loaded at the
factory on all hard drive orders.

Radio Shack, the nation's largest retailer of PC-compatible
personal computers with nearly 7,000 locations nationwide, is a
division of Tandy Corporation.  Tandy Corporation, with annual
revenues of more than $4.6 billion, is the nations's pre-eminent
retailer of the consumer electronics and personal computers.

--###--

Radio Shack is a registered service mark used by Tandy Corporation.

Tandy is a registered trademark of Tandy Corporation.

OMNI Profile is a trademark of Tandy Corporation.

Intel486 and OverDrive are trademarks of Intel Corporation.

MS-DOS and Microsoft are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

Windows is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
