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Amiga News and Community Announcements => Amiga News and Community Announcements => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: illy5603 on August 26, 2010, 11:53:26 PM
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Read this here (http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/26/commodore-usa-announces-the-pc64-an-atom-powered-pc-in-a-replic/). I will of course, believe it when I see it...
Press release:
COMMODORE ANNOUNCES EXCLUSIVE WORLDWIDE LICENSING RIGHTS
Companies ink deal to produce new line of All-In-One keyboard computers.
FT. LAUDERDALE, FL and OLDENZAAL, THE NETHERLANDS, August 25, 2010 – Commodore USA, LLC and Commodore Licensing B.V., a wholly owned subsidiary of Asiarim Corp (OTCQB: "ARMC"), today announced their licensing agreement whereby Commodore USA, LLC will produce a full line of new Commodore branded "AIO" (All In One) keyboard computers, under an exclusive worldwide license granted by Commodore Licensing B.V. for this newly revitalized computer category.
Mr. Barry Altman, President and CEO of Commodore USA, LLC states "We are ecstatic to be partnering with Commodore Licensing B.V. in this new, exciting product launch. The legacy of the Commodore C64, which sold over 30 million units, making it the best selling computer of all time, and our reintroduction of this legendary form factor, combined with the world's most recognizable consumer electronics brand, is a once in a lifetime opportunity. We look forward to bringing these new products to market, and welcoming a whole new generation of computer users to the Commodore experience".
In response to an overwhelming demand from former Commodore users worldwide, Commodore USA's CTO Leo Nigro announced today that their new Commodore PC64 will be available for purchase this holiday season. Featuring an exact replica of the original beige chassis Commodore C64, this new addition to our lineup will include an Intel Atom 525 CPU with NVIDIA Ion2 graphics, 4GB DDR3 memory, 1TB Hdd, HDMI, DVD/CD optical drive (Blu-ray optional), dual-link DVI, six USB ports, integrated 802.11n WiFi, bluetooth and a 6-in-1 media card reader.
With the recent introduction of their flagship Phoenix model, Commodore USA has once again catapulted the Commodore namesake to the forefront of consumer electronics brand recognition. Other Commodore keyboard computers include the Amigo, a basic entry level computer featuring a system on chip configuration, and the Invictus, featuring a small portable form factor with an embedded LCD screen display.
About Commodore Licensing B.V.:
Commodore Licensing B.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Asiarim Corporation (OTCQB: "ARMC"), is the licensor of the trademark Commodore, and grants other parties licenses in connection with specific products or services. Asiarim Corporation is also investing in companies engaged in, or related to, the development, sales and distribution of computer, mobile and multi-media products marketed under the brand name Commodore.
About Commodore USA, LLC:
Commodore USA, LLC designs, produces and markets a series of all-in-one Commodore branded keyboard computers, and other unique form factor computers and consumer electronics.
Barry S. Altman is the President and CEO of Commodore USA, LLC, based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Spanning a 25 year career in the bleeding-edge electronics and satellite/space telecommunications industry, Mr. Altman founded and served as CEO & President of Cabletech Satellite Systems, Inc. U.S. Cable Technology, Inc., The Cabletech Satellite Network and United Broadcasting Co. This group of companies built NOC's (Network Operation Centers) for cable television programmers, and cable television head ends for cable companies throughout the United States, They designed and constructed the satellite uplink network operation centers for such companies as Viacom International, Warner Amex, Viacom and MTV Networks. They directed and produced the domestic satellite telemetry downlink for the Live Aid concert for MTV, which was at that time the largest world wide deployment of a live satellite television broadcast. Cabletech has manufactured, designed and installed systems for Grumman Aerospace, The United Nations, government and private industry, and over 45,000 TVRO C& Ku band satellite systems for businesses and consumers nationwide. Cabletech was a developmental partner with General Motors & Hughes Communications in the small aperture DBS system that later became DirecTVv.
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A PC disguised as a C64? Am I the only one that thinks a)that's bizarre and b)really funny!
WTF - I know Commodore marketed PC at one point, but does ANYONE feel nostalgic enough to want one of these?:lol:
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...WTF - I know Commodore marketed PC at one point, but does ANYONE feel nostalgic enough to want one of these?:lol:
if the price is cheap enough ya I believe alot of people will buy it BUT if it's big money or even 'reasonable money' then I doubt it unfortunately
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FWIW, CommodoreUSA was invited to attend the Commodore Vegas Expo (CommVEx) this year. There was no response from them.
Truly,
Robert Bernardo
Fresno Commodore User Group
http://videocam.net.au/fcug
The Other Group of Amigoids
http://www.calweb.com/~rabel1/
Southern California Commodore & Amiga Network
http://www.sccaners.org
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FWIW, CommodoreUSA was invited to attend the Commodore Vegas Expo (CommVEx) this year. There was no response from them.
hummmm :huh: strange...
They have nothing to do with our community: do not mix apples and oranges :)
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How anyone could take this company seriously is beyond me. They're blatantly stealing artworkd and designs from others, and are happy to break copyright law and use trademark without permission if they can get away with it.
Here's a nice render from Marko Hirv (estonian, now 40 year old guy). Spot the signature in the picture designating the creator of the art:
(http://www.aminet.net/pix/trace/AMIGA-fantasy2.jpg)
Here's a picture Commodore USA uses. Modified to match their needs, they also handily removed the signature:
(http://www.commodoreusa.net/i/PC64Pro.jpg)
CTO of the company has confirmed (http://amigaworld.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?mode=viewtopic&topic_id=32205&forum=17&start=120&viewmode=flat&order=0#575251) that they have had no contact with the copyright holder. Any legimate business knows that copyright is something you don't mess with. You just don't use someone elses work without an agreement.
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Screenless laptops haven't exactly been flying off the shelves, sticking a Commodore label on them doesn't make that any more attractive. The only real products they have right now are rebranded flops from other companies.
It's not the 1980s, the big movers this Christmas are tablets, with a slew of android tablets about to hit the market. TVs with the ability to surf the web are hitting the market too. So pretty much they are going to have to rely on a retro market that questions the whole concept. Who is going to buy these things?
if the price is cheap enough ya I believe alot of people will buy it BUT if it's big money or even 'reasonable money' then I doubt it unfortunately
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We look forward to bringing these new products to market...
"We"? There is actually more than one person working at Commodore USA? :)
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They are a furniture company operating under the names Hooker Fine Furniture and Homecraft. They do appear to have a nice collection of "bathroom vanities." Maybe they'll cut you a deal on a rebranded ZPC and a vanity as a package!
Hooker/Homecraft (http://www.homecraft.us/)
(http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4096/4932082220_314c3baf04_m.jpg)
Commode Amiga
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Fort Lauderdale, FL eh?
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A PC disguised as a C64? Am I the only one that thinks a)that's bizarre and b)really funny!
WTF - I know Commodore marketed PC at one point, but does ANYONE feel nostalgic enough to want one of these?:lol:
I had one, a Commodore Colt; it used an Amiga mouse, but the most interesting thing was that it used (or tried to use) Autoconfig(tm)! And even then, it was "a)bizarre and b)really funny!". Things haven't changed much.
Looks like Commodure USA is the new Merlancia. Does Ryan live in Ft. Lauderdale now?
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My OLD windows machine has a 3.10 Ghz Intel CPU with 4Gb RAM AND an Nvidia graphics card with 1Gb of RAM, PLUS four PCI slots (with other ports and such) and cost just about one third of the new "C=" machines. I don't think these things stand a snowball's chance of succeeding.
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A PC disguised as a C64? Am I the only one that thinks a)that's bizarre and b)really funny!
WTF - I know Commodore marketed PC at one point, but does ANYONE feel nostalgic enough to want one of these?:lol:
YES..I will use it at my office instead of the work-pc and that will look so insanely cool :lol: I hope it's not that expensive, though.
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Yeah I totally want this on my desk at work!!!! LOL Rockin the C64. Maybe this would scare them off finally; no one would ask me to fix their email or the printer anymore!
:lol:
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They are a furniture company operating under the names Hooker Fine Furniture and Homecraft. They do appear to have a nice collection of "bathroom vanities." Maybe they'll cut you a deal on a rebranded ZPC and a vanity as a package!
Hooker/Homecraft (http://www.homecraft.us/)
Homecraft is not Hooker Furniture, despite how it may appear on their website.
I'm also pretty sure Homecraft doesn't actually manufacture anything or have warehouse facilities in Los Angeles, Dallas, Nashville and Miami.
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Who's CommodUre?
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I can understand the skepticism, but the outright hate that is being thrown at this is silly. For example, Piru. Yes, they violated copyright. It happens all the time. Big companies do it, small companies do it, and virtually every individual in the developed world does it. You did it when you made the post complaining about it.
Also, VingtTrois. You might not believe that they are on the up and up, but claiming that a company who is advertising a C64 replica case has nothing to do with Commodore is disingenuous.
To everyone complaining that they are a furniture company... That isn't a bad thing. None of the electronics companies are going to touch this kind of a project. The fact that an existing business would pick it up is a positive sign. Yes, it may be a small business, but it indicates that it isn't someone sitting in their basement thinking they can collect a few checks and then disappear. Obviously, this is someone that wants to see Commodore computers back out on the market.
Yes, CommodoreUSA started out in a questionable fashion, but so do a lot of businesses. Sure, from the sounds of it, they were taking stock machines, slapping on a different label and then reselling it. That is the way the x86 industry (as well as many others) has worked since day one. Ok, not day one, but it started before the 286 was even released.
If a CommodoreUSA releases a PC in a replica C64 case, and it is not totally botched, they will have added something very useful to the retro computing industry. I know that I would buy one if the price was even close to reasonable. I bought a MiniMig, I bought a C-One, and I will buy a FPGA Arcade. If a replica case was available for the MiniMig and/or the FPGA, I would buy those as well. If a replica Amiga case was available with an x86 inside, I would seriously consider it.
Emulation on a lot of these systems is good enough at this point that with the right start up setup, many people wouldn't be able to identify that they were not the original machines. I would like that. Just as I like WinUAE and Vice. If the PC64 does make it to market, and it fits the case right, and all the keys work, the last piece that I would really hope they do is include a tiny bootable USB thumbdrive with a stripped down Linux. Just enough to run Vice, and they set it up to to autoload Vice.
It would be a beautiful thing to be able to buy a brand new C64, where it boots up and runs just like the original, but if you pull the tiny thumb drive out of the back and reboot, it is a full x84 computer.
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If a CommodoreUSA releases a PC in a replica C64 case, and it is not totally botched, they will have added something very useful to the retro computing industry.
Yes. A PC with a useless keyboard.
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@Piru
I think he should feel flattered that they've used his work, but you are correct. There should have been an agreement.
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@mongo
What's useless about it? My trusty old C64 keyboard served me well for years. It wasn't useless then and it isn't useless now. This one should be no different and since you can re-map the keys under Windows, you can reconfigure them however you'd like.
And it's perfect for those who want to emulate a C64. If it really bothers you, just plug a regular USB keyboard into one of the USB ports.
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@mongo
What's useless about it? My trusty old C64 keyboard served me well for years. It wasn't useless then and it isn't useless now. This one should be no different and since you can re-map the keys under Windows, you can reconfigure them however you'd like.
And it's perfect for those who want to emulate a C64. If it really bothers you, just plug a regular USB keyboard into one of the USB ports.
Yeah. The keyboard is great if all you want to use it for is to emulate a C64, but if you're going to do that, you might as well just use a C64. It's not like they are in short supply, and I bet they're a hell of a lot cheaper.
If you're going to use it as a PC, it's missing about 35 keys.
Adding a USB keyboard kind of defeats the whole point of a computer in a keyboard, doesn't it?
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@mongo
Nobody missed any keys back in the C64's heydays. I don't think anyone who wants one of these will miss them now. Most of the missing keys are unused by most people anyway.
And no, it doesn't defeat the purpose. People buy net top/set top boxes all the time and they don't have ANY keyboard. This is really no different. Add a USB keyboard or get a touch screen LCD or use a soft keyboard if the missing keys really bother you so much. Or just re-map the C64 keys the way you want them.
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@mongo
Nobody missed any keys back in the C64's heydays. I don't think anyone who wants one of these will miss them now. Most of the missing keys are unused by most people anyway.
And no, it doesn't defeat the purpose. People buy net top/set top boxes all the time and they don't have ANY keyboard. This is really no different. Add a USB keyboard or get a touch screen LCD or use a soft keyboard if the missing keys really bother you so much. Or just re-map the C64 keys the way you want them.
You're kidding, right?
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@mongo
You're trolling, right?
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@mongo
You're trolling, right?
Nope.
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Yes, Mongo is trolling. Either that, or he cannot see past his own nose.
The fact that it wouldn't be for everyone, doesnt mean that it wouldn't be for anyone. The debate on whether emulation is worthwhile or not has been long hashed out and decided. This would be the most realistic emulation anyone could hope for. Using it as a standard PC would be buying as a functional piece of art.
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Yes, Mongo is trolling. Either that, or he cannot see past his own nose.
The fact that it wouldn't be for everyone, doesnt mean that it wouldn't be for anyone. The debate on whether emulation is worthwhile or not has been long hashed out and decided. This would be the most realistic emulation anyone could hope for. Using it as a standard PC would be buying as a functional piece of art.
What sane person buys an expensive custom made PC to emulate a $10 C64?
Is that worthwhile? Who decided that?
Is the PC emulating the $10 C64 more realistic than the $10 C64?
The lack of a proper keyboard makes this anything but functional as a PC.
The reason "Nobody missed any keys back in the C64's heydays" is because they were running software that was designed to run on a computer with the C64's keyboard, and the claim that "Most of the missing keys are unused by most people anyway" is completely absurd.
Tab key? Alt key? Esc key? More than 4 function keys? Separate cursor keys? Don't need those. Who uses those anyway?
Doesn't really matter though, because all Commodore USA has the ability to manufacture is bullshit.
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What sane person buys an expensive custom made PC to emulate a $10 C64?
The kind that wants a new machine that can use USB joysticks, has networking, will use .d64 files, and wants to know that when they are not using the machine to emulate the C64, they could use it for other, more standard things.
Is that worthwhile? Who decided that?
Every single person that uses it. Something being worthwhile does not require EVERYONE to find worth in it, only SOMEONE.[/QUOTE]
Is the PC emulating the $10 C64 more realistic than the $10 C64?
No, but it would be more realistic than any other machine emulating the C64, including a real C64.
The lack of a proper keyboard makes this anything but functional as a PC.
Wrong. It would be totally function for running C64 emulation software, AND it would be fully function for running general PC software with a standard keyboard plugged in. The fact that you don't find value in an attractive case, or don't find this particular case attractive doesn't mean that the computer isn't functional. The thousands of PC cases that are sold based on their aesthetics shows that many people DO consider the look of their PCs to be important.
The reason "Nobody missed any keys back in the C64's heydays" is because they were running software that was designed to run on a computer with the C64's keyboard, and the claim that "Most of the missing keys are unused by most people anyway" is completely absurd.
That is true, but that doesn't mean that there are not uses for this machine that would make the missing keys irrelevant. For example, emulation of a C64, as a Media PC that is controlled by a remote control, or as a small server where no one is going to sit in front of it anyway. My guess is that the majority of people that would buy this either would use it as a C64 emulation platform or would hook a wireless keyboard and mouse up to it, so the functioning keys on the case would be primarily for aesthetics.
Doesn't really matter though, because all Commodore USA has the ability to manufacture is bullshit.
Well, that may be true, so and all of this amount to nothing, but it doesn't change the fact that there are plenty of people who would love to buy something like this if it were to actually make it to market.
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You did it when you made the post complaining about it.
"Fair use is a doctrine in United States copyright law that allows limited use of copyrighted material without requiring permission from the rights holders, such as for commentary, criticism, news reporting, research, teaching or scholarship."
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@Piru
I think he should feel flattered that they've used his work
If it was my work I'd be horrified it was connected to such an operation.
BTW Marko Hirv works as an Art Director in advertising. I doubt he'd be very happy to see his work being used uncredited.
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Yeah I totally want this on my desk at work!!!! LOL Rockin the C64. Maybe this would scare them off finally; no one would ask me to fix their email or the printer anymore!
:lol:
I did that for a while, this http://www.vesalia.de/e_keyrah.htm is all you need.
There just aren't enough keys on a C64 keyboard.
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"Fair use is a doctrine in United States copyright law that allows limited use of copyrighted material without requiring permission from the rights holders, such as for commentary, criticism, news reporting, research, teaching or scholarship."
While it does allow limited use without permission, you posted the entire work without permission.
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While it does allow limited use without permission, you posted the entire work without permission.
Learn what "limited use" means.