The Compact Computer 40 or CC-40 is a portable computer developed by Texas Instruments. It started development in 1981, and was released in March 1983 for US$249. The CC-40 has a single-line 31 character LCD display, weighs 600 grams (22 ounces), and is powered by an AC adapter or can operate for 200 hours on four AA batteries. Memory is not erased by turning the unit off; it can retain data for several months. The CC-40 lacks a way to store data more permanently. Software was only available on cartridge or by typing programs into its built-in BASIC interpreter. The BASIC interpreter is similar but not identical to that of the TI-99/4A. The CC-40 uses TI's TMS70C20 CPU, an 8-bit microprocessor that runs at 2.5 MHz. The system has 6 kilobytes of Random Access Memory (expandable to 18 KB),and 34 KB of Read Only Memory. Peripherals can be connected via a Hexbus port: an 80 column printer, printer/plotter, RS-232 interface, and modem. A licensed version of the Exatron Stringy Floppy as a digital "wafertape" unit depicted on the computer's box was only released as a prototype, reportedly because it proved too unreliable. Development The Compact Computer 40 was developed under the internal codename "Lonestar". Reception BYTE heavily criticized the CC-40, noting that "there's no clock. No file system. Only one BASIC program at a time can reside in memory, and the user can only work with about 5200 bytes of that. And the keyboard is vile". It also noted the lack of any external storage because the TI wafertape drive was not available, and the complete lack of software. The review suggested that the computer should be considered a "dandy scientific calculator" since good programmable calculators cost about the same as the CC-40's price, but that otherwise "virtually all of its competition vastly outstrips it in power and features", including the TI-99/4A. In a review for Creative Computing, Joe Devlin wrote, "The permanent memory and powerful Basic exceed the capabilities found in most hand-held computers." He recommended it as a convenient tool for learning BASIC or for someone who frequently does calculations with formulas. In 1983, MicroKids magazine included the CC-40 on a list of "Top 10 Great Gift Ideas." Legacy The Hex-Bus interface was also available for the TI-99/4A as an unreleased prototype expansion peripheral. It was built into the prototypes of the cancelled TI-99/2 and TI-99/8 computers. An