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Update []:
It seems there is finally some movement regarding Dempa Shimbun's PasocomMini PC-8801mkⅡSR.
It's been almost a year since we last heard any news about the company's recreation of the NEC PC-8801 mkIISR, and honestly, we were beginning to lose hope that the project would ever see the light of day, following its numerous delays. But recently, the company has taken to social media to try to assure people it is still on the way, apologising to potential Japanese customers and asking them to wait "just a little longer until the announcement.
According to this statement, all of the included software now runs "successfully," with the only thing left being some final adjustments and debugging, as well as the relevant approvals from the rights holders. Once that is all completed, a proper announcement will be made regarding the included software and when people will finally be able to snag a unit.
Obviously, this will be disappointing to those who wanted the company's next statement to be a proper release window, but at the very least, it's an encouraging sign that Dempa Shimbun hasn't entirely given up on the project and is still working hard behind the scenes.
Also, something else fans noticed that is kind of interesting is that the statement was made on August 8th, 2026, at 1:00 JST (in other words, 08/08 0:1, a clever reference to the name of a computer).
We'll try to keep you posted should anything more substantial be announced!
Original Story []: Dempa Shimbun's miniature recreation of the classic Japanese computer, the NEC PC-8801mkⅡSR, has been delayed for a third time, according to the company's Twitter/X account (as spotted by Gosokkyu)
The PasocomMini PC-8801mkⅡSR was originally announced in May 2024 and is designed as a 1/4 recreation of NEC's PC-8801 mkIISR — the classic 80s computer that saw the release of several highly influential Japanese games like Ys, Xanadu, R-Type, and Popful Mail.
The new miniature machine has previously been described as costing ¥33,000 (roughly £163) at launch, and will apparently feature 10 built-in games at launch, two 5-inch floppy disk drives, and a microSD slot, as well as an HDMI port for video output, and support for Yamaha's YM2203 and YM2608 sound, according to a Game Watch article from last August.
Initially scheduled to launch in the Spring of 2025, the launch date was eventually moved back to July 2025 and has since been delayed a further two times in the months that followed. It is now expected to be ready around March 2026, but its creators are hesitant to offer this as a potential launch date, with Dempa Shimbun being reluctant to miss yet another release window.
Per an article in the Japan Audio Society's Autumn journal (as also highlighted by Gosokkyu), the main difficulty the team appears to be facing stems from the challenges of implementing audio, with the original PC-8801 mkIISR having multiple CPU operating modes and interrupt techniques that make implementing an emulator particularly difficult without experiencing sound delays or noise.
The team has apologised to potential customers in the wake of this news and is currently working behind the scenes on synchronising the CPU and FM sound source operations.
It has also been stated that a proper release date will be announced on the company's website when they are finally ready to share more information.