System III question

[Keatah]

Looking at the box it says:

 

More Games

Better Graphics

Improved Reliability

LED On/Off Light

 

I can understand the more games part, the system had time to evolve.

The improved reliability would come from newer tech parts and less parts.

The LED is self-explanatory.

 

But what about the "Better Graphics" part? Did the System III actually have a different circuit or chipset or something that would have improved the graphics? Would it have had a better quality RF modulator? Or different saturation/color calibration? Or would it just be relying on newer games with, naturally, better programming?

 

Because for all intents and purposes "better graphics" sounds like marketing lies and bullshit.

 

[m-crew]

Looking at the box it says:

 

More Games

Better Graphics

Improved Reliability

LED On/Off Light

 

I can understand the more games part, the system had time to evolve.

The improved reliability would come from newer tech parts and less parts.

The LED is self-explanatory.

 

But what about the "Better Graphics" part? Did the System III actually have a different circuit or chipset or something that would have improved the graphics? Would it have had a better quality RF modulator? Or different saturation/color calibration? Or would it just be relying on newer games with, naturally, better programming?

 

Because for all intents and purposes "better graphics" sounds like marketing lies and bullshit.

 

hgfvhygviubv.jpg

 

My Guess is you answered your own question..

 

"Or would it just be relying on newer games with, naturally, better programming"

[mr_me]

Plays the exact same number of cartridges as a 1979 Intellivision. More cartridges than the Intellivision II. Don't know if the rf modulator is any better but the Intellivision picture issues weren't from the rf modulator as far as I know. Hard to say about reliability; parts are more or less the same.

 

Only a 1988 revision had slightly updated capability and they are very rare.

Edited March 31, 2018 by mr_me

[Keatah]

Only a 1988 revision had slightly updated capability and they are very rare.

 

What would that updated capability be?

[mr_me]

Mainly more graphics RAM but no Intellivision cartridges makes use of it. Again the 1988 revision is very rare, most INTV System III are more or less identical to the 1979 Intellivision. Their chip supplier may have been running out of parts and decided to integrate some ICs resulting in the update. There's a detailed analysis here. https://docs.google.com/document/d/13ApQEm1Xw_DcCAaXcQvpFot_BvrzSzeUo95EXCf41uc/mobilebasic

 

I think INTV was being purposely misleading, starting with the name "System III". Intellivision owners were expecting the Intellivision III from Mattel in 1983 and then an Intellivision IV but they never happened. I'm sure some people bought this thing in 1985-1990 expecting an upgraded machine.

Edited March 31, 2018 by mr_me

[+Lathe26]

Separate from the rare systems that mr_me is talking about, there were some Intv System III and Super Pro Systems that had the Intellivision II ROM inside instead of the original 1979 Intellivision ROM.

 

These systems act just like a normal Intellivision II. Basically, this only means that a few games don't work, specifically Mattel's Word Fun and a few of the Coleco games. All other games work.

 

No effect on the graphics.

[Walter Ives]

On 3/30/2018 at 11:42 AM, Keatah said:

But what about the "Better Graphics" part? Did the System III actually have a different circuit or chipset or something that would have improved the graphics?

It was the same hardware—except that a few later INTV88 board versions that used STIC 1a and had larger RAM chips for GRAM, but software had to work on all units so it couldn't use the extra RAM so it wasn't enabled--so the hardware itself wasn't capable of producing better graphics. (It was enabled for Tutrovision.) But the price of ROMs had dropped, so new software could use bigger ROMs. Furthermore, if you weren't under the gun to get product out the door you could take the extra time to make better use of the capabilities the hardware provided. This would let you have graphics that was better in some respects, for example you could have more pictures in an animation sequence, scroll through a larger universe, unroll loops when sequencing background or alternate the color of a character every field.