History- APF Electronics had entered the home video game business during the PONG era with the TV Fun line of consoles. When the second generation of home consoles began, APF became one of the few companies to make the jump from simple PONG clones to more advanced cartridge based machines.

APF released the MP1000 in 1978 into what was once again becoming a crowded marketplace. However, APF did not intend for the MP1000 to go up against Atari, Bally, and Magnavox on it's own. The console was to be only one piece of an advanced computer system called the Imagination Machine. The MP1000 console was designed to dock with a module that contained a keyboard, cassette drive, and its own OS (this design would be revisited by Mattel in their ill-fated Intellivision Keyboard Component).

In 1979, APF did something that no other console manufacturer was able to do or ever would do. They released a promised computer upgrade in a timely manner with all the expected peripherals. The complete Imagination Machine featured not only the video game component, but also its own version of BASIC for writing programs, a double sided cassette drive which could hold programs on one side and audio on the other, a full keyboard and internal speaker. Many upgrades were also available, including modems, memory expansion, floppy disk drives, printers and more.

Despite being a highly advanced system, the Imagination Machine lacked any interesting games or software that would set it apart from it's competition. The little known APF was unable to gain a foothold in either the home video game or microcomputer market. A planned Imagination Machine 2 was eventually scrapped as APF soon found itself battling bankruptcy.

Console Variations-

APF-M1000

The original stand-alone console.

APF-MP1000

The second variation, which connects into the computer module.

APF Imagination Machine

The full Imagination Machine with the MP1000 game console docked in the computer module.

Games- One game was built into the M1000 console and an additional 12 cartridges were later available. These games were the typical arcade clones, space shooters, and simple sports games that were prevalent during late 70's. Using the BASIC feature on the Imagination Machine, amateur programmers could also create their own games and share them.

Peripherals- Because the Imagination Machine was intended to be more of a computer than a video game console, all of its add-ons were designed to expand it's PC capabilities. Various RAM expansions, serial ports and storage drives were released for the system, but not any game controllers or peripherals.

Collector's Guide- The M1000 and the Imagination Machine are among the most little known video game consoles ever released and are incredibly difficult to collect for. Games and consoles for the AFP system are almost impossible to find, and rarely even show up on Ebay.

The best way to find this ultra rare system is at one of the various retro gaming conventions like CGE. Luckily, the system is not very popular so it shouldn't be too expensive.

Gallery-

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