Sharp Twin Famicom (AN-500B) Review

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In July 1986, Sharp released a very unusual version of the Family Computer — the Sharp Twin Famicom.

This device stood out right away compared to the regular Famicom: a different design, a different form factor, and a completely different hardware concept.

This console was released under Nintendo license and basically combined two separate devices in one body: the Family Computer console and the Family Computer Disk System drive.

Sharp generally liked experimenting with this kind of hardware. Over the years, the company took Nintendo devices and released them in some very unexpected combinations: a console built into a TV, a console with a built-in disk drive, or even a system with a graphics tablet.

In this article, let’s take a look at what Sharp ended up making.

Where to Buy?

You can buy a Sharp Twin Famicom on used hardware marketplaces, for example Avito.

On average, this console sells in the 14,000–18,000 ruble range.

When buying one, I would pay attention to three things:

1. Console color and revision.

The Twin Famicom came in two colors — black and red. There were also two revisions of the console itself: the older one (AN-500) and the later one (AN-505).

The color does not affect how the console works at all — it is purely a matter of appearance. But there are a few small differences between the revisions.

The AN-505 has longer controller cables, and the controllers themselves got turbo switches. The difference is not critical, but for some games it can be genuinely useful.

2. Completeness.

When buying, it is worth checking the full set carefully. You can easily live without the manual and the rest of the paperwork, and the AV cable is not a major issue either.

But the power supply is a separate matter. I would recommend looking specifically for a console with the original adapter. At least so far, I have not seen these power supplies for sale on AliExpress.

The adapter itself is not exactly unique, but trying to match a compatible power supply by reading specs online is not a very pleasant job.

3. The drive belt.

All Family Computer Disk System units have one weak point — the drive belt. It is a rubber belt that spins the disk drive mechanism.

After almost 40 years, these belts have usually dried out, stretched, or snapped. So if the seller does not say the console was serviced and the belt was replaced, you can assume there is already a problem with it.

In the best case, the drive will work inconsistently. In the worst case, the disks simply will not read. So when buying a Twin Famicom, it is always worth asking whether the belt was replaced and whether the disk drive was serviced.

Box Contents

The Sharp console was sold in a very nice-looking box.

Inside, everything was fairly simple, with no extra accessories. The package only included what you needed to connect the console and start playing.

Namely: the power supply, an AV cable, and various documents.

The Console

The Sharp Twin Famicom has a very interesting design. It looks completely different from most consoles of that era. That is not surprising, since this system has two media slots built into it.

Because of that, the console is fairly large:

Length: 250 mm

Width: 200 mm

Height: 85 mm

Front panel

On the front panel, there is the disk slot, the drive activity light, and two buttons — Reset and Power.

Under the red light, there is a warning that says: “Do not press the eject button while the operation light is on.”

The eject button is the yellow button under the drive. It is used to remove a disk from the drive, and it is exactly the button you should not press while the activity light is on.

Top panel

On top, there is the cartridge slot. Right under it, there is also a note warning that only Famicom cartridges can be used with this console.

Below the slot, there is a “cartridge / disk drive” switch. It controls where the console reads the game from.

When the switch is in the upper position, the console works with the disk drive and launches games from disk. When it is moved down, the cartridge slot is used instead.

Interestingly, this mechanism also protects the console from being used incorrectly. If the switch is set to “disk,” the cartridge slot is physically blocked. And if a cartridge is already inserted, you simply cannot move the lever to the “disk” position — the mechanism physically prevents it.

To the right of the switch, there is another warning: do not touch it while the red drive activity light is on.

A little lower, there is the cartridge eject button.

Another interesting detail is that the Twin Famicom changed where the controllers are stored compared to the classic Famicom. On the original Famicom, they attached to the sides of the case. Here, they were moved to the back of the console.

Sides

There is nothing on the left side of the console. On the right side, however, there are two expansion ports.

The first one is the standard Famicom expansion port (port A).

The second is a separate expansion port related to the Famicom Disk System (port B). On the regular Famicom + Disk System setup, this connector was located on the RAM Adapter, but on the Twin Famicom it was simply moved into the console body itself.

As far as we know, this port was almost never used in practice. At least, there is no official device that actually requires it to work.

Controllers

The Twin Famicom controllers are basically the same as the ones on the classic Famicom — with all the same strengths and weaknesses. Only the design is different.

The first controller has Start and Select buttons, while the second has an extra microphone but no Start or Select buttons.

Rear panel

On the back of the Twin Famicom, there are connectors for hooking the console up to a TV — RF and AV — as well as the power input.

Bottom panel

On the bottom of the Twin Famicom, there is legal and technical text, plus two expansion ports — C and D — hidden behind a plastic cover.

These ports look fairly unusual. By default, they are basically a data bus between the disk drive and the console itself. So at first, it is not even very clear why they are called expansion ports at all: no official accessories were released for them, and the connectors themselves do not look like normal peripheral ports.

Still, they did eventually get one practical use. On AliExpress, you can buy an FDS Key kit that connects specifically to port C. In practice, it acts as an emulator for the Famicom Disk System drive. Disk images are written to a memory card, and then the console works with them as if a real disk drive were installed in the system.

Pros and Cons

Let’s start with the downsides.

Cons:

1. Controllers.

Just like the classic Famicom, the Sharp Twin Famicom keeps all the usual controller problems. They are hard-wired, the cable is short, and it comes out of the rear of the console. The second controller still does not have Start and Select.

And that is despite the fact that by the time the Twin Famicom was released, the NES already existed, and all of those issues had been fixed there: the controllers were detachable, the cables were longer, and both gamepads had a full set of buttons.

2. The FDS drive belt.

The drive belt is probably the weakest part of the Famicom Disk System drive. After almost 40 years, the original belts have almost always dried out and stretched.

So there is very little doubt: sooner or later, you will have to open the console and replace the belt, otherwise the drive will simply stop reading disks properly.

3. A specific power supply.

The Twin Famicom uses its own power adapter, which is not compatible with other Nintendo consoles.

That is not a critical flaw by itself, but if the console is sold without the power supply, you will later have to find a suitable adapter separately or match a compatible one by specs.

4. Repair complexity.

Because both the console itself and the disk drive are combined in one case, the Twin Famicom is harder to repair. The internal layout is tighter, and some parts are less convenient to reach.

On top of that, spare parts for these systems are noticeably less common than for a regular Famicom.

Pros:

1. Famicom and Disk System in one case.

The biggest advantage of the Twin Famicom is the two-in-one design. One case contains both the Famicom console itself and the Famicom Disk System drive.

With a standard setup, you had to use several separate devices: the Famicom, the RAM Adapter, and a separate disk drive. All of that was connected with wires and took up quite a lot of space near the TV.

The Twin Famicom solves that problem much more neatly. The whole system is built into one case, looks cleaner, and does not require extra cables.

2. One power supply.

Another practical advantage is that the Twin Famicom uses one power supply for the whole system. In the regular Famicom + Disk System setup, both devices had their own power input, which made the whole setup less convenient.

3. AV output.

Unlike the original Famicom, the Twin Famicom has AV output built in. That makes it much easier to connect the console to a TV and removes the need for an RF modulator.

4. Build quality.

Sharp was known for the quality of its electronics, and the Twin Famicom is no exception. The console feels very solid: thick plastic, well-fitted parts, and in general a more technical-looking design than the regular Famicom.

How to Play?

Originally, the Twin Famicom was designed to run Famicom cartridges and Famicom Disk System disks.

However, in terms of games, this is still the same Famicom, just with the Famicom Disk System accessory built in.

To learn all the details of running games on this console, I recommend reading the separate article: “Nintendo Family Computer (Famicom) Review”.

I would recommend using a flash cartridge together with an FDS Key and a special adapter.

Epilogue

The Twin Famicom is a unique console that combines two devices in one and became a clear example of Sharp’s engineering approach in the 1980s. Putting the Famicom and the Famicom Disk System into one case made these devices much easier to use, while the console kept its special appeal thanks to support for both cartridges and disks.

Despite some limitations, such as drive belt issues and the specific power supply, it would be hard to say the Twin Famicom has any truly serious flaws. And the AV output plus the use of just one power supply make the Twin Famicom a good option for getting acquainted with older games.