Reasons the A600GS is Awesome!

[BozzerBigD]

AGS 2.7 has just been released and there is a THEA500 Mini version. It's a game changer and along with the mature soft mods available and the community around them, the functionality of the Mini will exceed the A600GS for a long time to come IMHO. THE500 Mini is easy to use, Pandory500 is fairly easy to use and very versatile and AMiNIMiga is just like Workbench! AGS 2.7 is soooo easy and everything is preconfigured and just works. Yes, you have to use Amiberry to switch between mouse and player 2 joystick controls (Pandory is better on tht front) but everything just works! I don't see what the point of multiple little cheap ARM boxes on the market is, maybe the A1200NG will prove a nice A1200 improvement but RGL has engaged the community enough and actually motivated them indirectly to put right what they failed to do and the result is actually better! Buy one while the stocks last or buy a Maxi when available! The Amiga went mainstream again, jump on it!

[BozzerBigD]

There is no battle. THEA500 Mini is for ex-Amigans. The mainstream mini consoles get their attention and they buy one a birthday/Christmas gift! The AmigaKit products are for people with ailing A1200s or who can't find a cheap one on eBay or RetroPassion. They are two different markets IMHO. However of you want to add Workbench/AGS/Pandory emulator functionality to THEA500 Mini you can and it's at peak maturity in terms of the soft mods! The beta test A600GS project is ongoing! People call that 'support', I call it a work in progress that will one day be feature complete!

Horses for courses. Buy what you wish but suggest the Mini to your nephews and nieces would be my advice!

[BozzerBigD]

@F0LLETT

So by that logic, windows is the biggest betatest in history.

Yes, except that Windows 11 is feature complete and free so it's more like AGS recently released for the Mini and other Amiga platforms (does the A600GS have a version?). Windows just needs security patches and tweaks to harvest more data from its users from time to time!😉

To be honest with your comment regarding "I DO NOT want to mess around (with an) extra USB stick"; it's very much like changing an Amiga floppy or a console cartridge to put in AGS or an Pandory, an AMiNIMiga distro or simply another collection of games!

What I DO NOT want is a product launching incomplete without its killer feature (the Amistore) and for the users to be leaned on to give suggestions and beta test for free until its a professional polished product like THEA500 Mini already is. I look forward to the day when the 'finished' A600GS demonstrates it's awesomeness with fully functioning Amistore and the ability to buy something like Metro Siege over the Internet and then play remote co-op 2-player using all this trumpeted about plug and play technology marketed as being included as standard! I guess you'll be able to crow about how irrelevant RGL is as that point but you certainly are not there yet! Happy bug hunting! I'll be playing Fire and Forget on AGS for the Mini or animating on DPaint using AMiNIMiga!

[BozzerBigD]

@amigakit

"Awesome" is the word I think that you are looking for from me. 

I'll check in again when the webstore is working and obviously the A1200NG looks interesting. All the best. You're in good shape anyway because it's really hard to buy a sub-£100 THEA500 Mini right now. There must be something else coming on the horizon from RGL?! 

[BozzerBigD]

@F0LLETT

Jeez, a serial port was put on NG, just because of you. Yet your still moaning. Now about Amistore. It will happen, just stop going on about it.

And I'm grateful and interested in the A1200NG. Also looking forward to seeing Amistore in all it's glory. I reserve the right to call it "awesome" then!  😉

In the meantime AGS is pretty awesome.

[BozzerBigD]

@AmigaOldskooler

Interesting points! Well done on taking the plunge on a A1200NG! 

[BozzerBigD]

@F0LLETT

I'll have a go on an A600GS at the next Amiga show. Hopefully I'll see the improvements.