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Home > Vintage Computers Section > Koala Pad
 Koala Pad (exposed pad area) with plastic stylus I recently picked up a new-old stock Koala Pad (KoalaPad+) on eBay. The Koala Pad was a graphics pad produced by Koala Technologies. It was designed for the Commodore, Apple II, and Atari computers. The literature and software included with the pad were copyrighted in 1984. I was able to get a new pad, still in the original shrink-wrap, off eBay for $20.00. The box had an original price tag of $195 on the front. The Koala Pad uses the joystick port to connect to an Apple II. It basically emulates a joystick. I would consider it a low-end tool. It lacks the accuracy of the more expensive graphics tablets of its day. The movement of the cursor can be somewhat jerky because the pad's plastic cover is cheap. A slight wrinkle in the plastic can cause the cursor to jump across the screen. But for its price, it does an adequate job. It is more of a toy, not really suited for serious graphics works, even by 1983 standards.  I am not really impressed with the Graphics Exhibitor and KoalaPainter software that came with the pad. I prefer to use Broderbund's Dazzle Draw. It is far superior. Dazzle Draw prompts you to select an input device immediately after it boots up in the Apple II. Dazzle Draw is completely compatible with the Koala Pad. The Koala Pad is definitely a step up over the mouse as a graphics tool. It uses a plastic, pencil-shaped stylus. I suppose that any narrow, blunt stylus will work as the sensor mechanism is in the pad itself. Since the Apple II's pixels are quite large by today's standards (double high-resolution 16-color graphics: 560 h x 192 v dots, extended 80-Column Card required), don't expect to turn out really dramatic works of computer-generated art.  Dazzle Draw on my Platinum IIe  Dazzle Draw Picture from an Apple IIe Card screen dump (Note the different colors from the above picture due to color blast, a problem with Apple II's and high resolution monitors) Unfortunately, the Koala Pad uses a cheap plastic grid pattern insert (not pictured above) to cover the sensor pad, which is itself rather cheap and has a spongy feel to it. Even though my pad is brand new-old stock, the pad cover insert has wilted due to age. The plastic is no longer flat. It has drawn up on its sides. Perhaps this pad has at some time during its long shelf life been stored in a hot warehouse. A quick trip to the ironing board corrected the problem, but the insert still doesn't fit right. Without the insert, the flat sensor region is exposed. I am not sure if the exposed pad will damage without the insert cover. It would be just as easy to cut out a paper insert. A word of warning is warranted. If you decide to iron the plastic insert, be sure to sandwich it in two pieces of paper, preferably white typing paper. Do not hold the iron over the insert for more than a second. It will damage quickly under the heat. For more information on the inner working of the Koala Pad, visit Applefritter's KoalaPad+ page at the following link: I would suggest that you do not pay any more than $20 for a new Koala Pad. They can still be found on eBay every now and then. Don't give more than $10 for a used Koala Pad. They are interesting to play around with but are somewhat cheaply made. The Koala Pad is a lot of fun and will definitely give your old Apple II a new and interesting functionality. |
