The Hitachi MB-H50 has a distinct look to it. It has a slim appearance and discrete ports. It has LEDs that react to audio levels. It has a detachable keyboard but it is not a desktop-style unit the way most MSX models with detachable keyboards are. In fact, the main unit has a console-style appearance.

The keyboard is compact and lightweight and the height is completely rigid. The legs are fixed as part of the mold, not collapsible. It's more or less complete compared to other MSX1 models, just with very little space between keys. The previous owner had applied the stickers to the top of the keycaps instead of the front of them, so it looks extra busy. It connects by a bundled flat cable.

Still, it seemed like I didn't quite get something. There seem to be extra grooves and holes in the main unit and I couldn't put two and two together, so I guessed it was just an odd aesthetic choice. Shortly after I sold it, I found another site where the keyboard was placed on top of the system and then it clicked. The grooves are to hold the legs of the keyboard so it stays put while gaming or otherwise not in use. That's pretty slick! Unfortunately it was too late to check it out on this one. And actually, looking and the completed auctions and other websites involving this system, it doesn't seem like a well known fact.

In any event, it works! So that part's good. Here is it, playing Gradius, a true gift from Konami to the early MSX gaming community, and King's Knight, a pretty rough port of a great game. King's Knight looks really good for MSX1, it just suffers in animation speed, to the point of becoming a handicap. The final picture is the audio-reactive LEDs. It's not as impressive-looking as it sounds, it's pretty simple, but perhaps a novel idea for a computer at the time. There are also extra LEDs for data loading and saving over the CMT port.