SydLexia.com - The Forums :: View topic - Apparently, the Commodore 64 is back. . .

Posted: Apr 10 2011 07:38 pm

Fox News wrote:

Break out your Cyndi Lauper audio cassettes and that case of New Coke you've had stockpiled: the Commodore 64 is back.

The legendary computer was first unveiled in early 1982, and quickly dominated the nascent computer scene, helping to launch the home computing market thanks to its entertainment focus. The Commodore brand finally staged its comeback Wednesday, unveiling an online store where consumers can pick up a revamped, modernized version of the legendary all-in-one computer.

It comes in the original taupe color and design, of course -- it's just everything else that's changed.

The new iteration of the classic computer won't run Windows (although the company claims you'll be able to install it if you so choose). Instead, the Commodore 64 runs a version of the Linux operating system on an Intel processor, and boasts 2GB of memory and a modern Blu-ray or rewritable DVD optical drive.

The past isn't forgotten, however: The company claims that consumers will be able to play all their favorite 8-bit era games within seconds of turning the Commodore 64 on, by running software that emulates the original operating system.

Commodore celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2007, noted PCMag.com, but the company has languished in obscurity for many of those years, a faint shell of the company that helped launched computing and computer games.

It had unveiled a new line of products at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show -- new products that bear little resemblance to the new Commodore 64.

"I'm sure you'll appreciate the Commodore thing has been in a state of flux over the last 20 years," Peter Bromage, the vice president of sales and marketing for Commodore said in January.

In addition, the company plan a relaunch of the ancient Amiga computer -- an impressively ahead of its time PC from Commodore that never quite broke into the mainstream.

"At Commodore USA, our goal is to restore the AMIGA brand to its former glory," the company's website claims. "Our reboot and re-imagining of the classic AMIGA line-up will showcase the latest and greatest personal computer hardware and operating system technology available today."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/04/07/commodore-64-computer-lives-vintage/#ixzz1JAMtNGrS

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/04/07/commodore-64-computer-lives-vintage/?cmpid=cmty_twitter_Gigya_The_Commodore_64_Lives_Again

As the article claims, you can buy the all-new Commodore 64 on the company's website. I remember playing some C64 games on Wii's Virtual Console, but I never thought the company would actually bring the system back.

Do you guys think the awesome emulation of the original C64 OS would be worth purchasing this thing and playing its classic games? What is your opinion on this?

Posted: Apr 10 2011 07:51 pm

If the price is reasonable, i would buy it. Games are games. If complex or minimalistic they are fun if you take your time to get into them.

Posted: Apr 10 2011 08:30 pm

I'd play VVVVVV on one of those things.

Posted: Apr 10 2011 09:00 pm

I read about this maybe a year or two ago, can't recall where, though. It does look nicer, but I don't think I would buy it.

Posted: Apr 10 2011 09:11 pm

Man, that is some stupid sh-

OOH, AMIGAS

Posted: Apr 10 2011 10:44 pm

Bringing back the Commodore 64 and making it profitable seems like an impossible mission. Still, I hope it stays awhile. It should stay... FOREVER!

Posted: Apr 11 2011 03:59 am

So basically, they're making a Linux PC inside a C64 shell, but it'll have the option of booting into a Commodore 64 emulator.

I hope they aren't going to fuck up their line of Amiga systems by making them incompatible with AmigaOS. That would be really dumb.

Also, Ky-Guy, the C64 didn't have an OS. Well, later on, there were some OSs for the good ole' breadbox, most notably GeOS, but out of the box, you only had a BASIC interpreter.

Posted: Apr 11 2011 12:49 pm

It's not really Commodore either, it's some jackoff trying to turn a buck. Commodore USA is a recently created LLC. (Founded in April 2010) It's owned by some guy who sells furniture named Barry Altman. He bought the rights to the Commodore name. He hopes to make a fortune selling what is basically a plastic mini-ITX case, that look like everyone's favorite 80s computer.

Look at the fucked up pricing:
http://www.commodoreusa.net/CUSA_C64.aspx

$250 for just the empty case with the built in keyboard. (And a $10 USB card reader.)

The 1st working config is $350 more, and you get about $175 worth of parts.

This guy has worse pricing than Apple.

Posted: Apr 11 2011 12:57 pm

The price is way to high. they are out of their mind.

Posted: Apr 11 2011 03:44 pm

So this would be way cheaper to build yourself?

Posted: Apr 11 2011 05:57 pm

Yeah it would. Buy a dead commodore 64 off ebay or craiglist. Gut it, throw an itx in it, and you're done!

People have been doing it for years:
http://www.mini-itx.com/projects/c64/ (This way done back in 2003)

And, after looking at this mod again, it looks exactly like the layout of the new one.... Gee, I wonder where the new company came up with the idea?

Joined: Apr 09 2008 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 3112

People have a much more favorable recollection of Commodore 64s than I do, mostly because I only remember the loading screens.

Posted: Apr 12 2011 03:06 am

Most loading screens had great music.

Posted: Apr 12 2011 10:44 am

Nekkoru wrote:

Also, Ky-Guy, the C64 didn't have an OS. Well, later on, there were some OSs for the good ole' breadbox, most notably GeOS, but out of the box, you only had a BASIC interpreter.

Good to know, Nekkoru. I never had one as a kid, but I would like to have one someday.