Jump to content
Have You Played Atari Today?
2600|5200|7800|Lynx|Jaguar|Forums|Store  

R.Cade

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Content Count

    1,578

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by R.Cade

  9. Posted · Edited by R.Cade

    I've collected serial number data for years and years, and based on what has been entered (about 2800 serials) I would estimate based on the lowest and highest numbers from each serial number series, that there could be up to about 13 million C64's out there that were made. The shareholder's report in 1992 supposedly says 17.x million (I need to find a copy).

     

    Now, that is not statistics (I am not a mathematician) and doesn't mean anything. There are many of the series with very little data, and someone could enter a number 1 million higher and then the numbers are all wrong. However, I did not count wildly seemingly wrong serials either that were way above the rest.

     

    I don't have data on C128's, and they include a C64 of course. I've heard there were 5 million of those made. I have no idea if that is true. There is also the SX, but I don't think that puts a huge dent in the numbers either. I would guess maybe another half million.

     

    Still that is WAY more than Apple or Atari ever sold. Apple only sold less than 5 million Apple II's across the entire line from the II to the IIc and Apple was known to exaggerate and just outright lie in their marketing. Serial numbers tell the real story.

     

    I don't know the Atari numbers, but I've heard maybe 2.5 million across all lines there also. However, if you're then going to talk about a "line" of computers, do you include the PET and VIC-20 in the Commodore "line"?

    • Like 1

  10. Posted

    There's got to be a pretty wide technological gap between consoles for one to be powerful enough to emulate the other. Either that or the systems need to have very similar hardware, making hardware emulation possible. One of the more bizarre examples that comes to mind is the 15-in-1 Collection that was released for the TurboGrafx/PC Engine. All of the games in this collection were originally written for the VIC-20! Here, take a look.

     

     

    The TurboGrafx and VIC-20 both use a 6502 processor, which is why a collection like this was possible. (My suspicion is that the Turbo had to use software emulation for the VIC's graphics processor, but it was so old and so primitive that it probably wasn't too much of a strain on the system.) A Sega Genesis has 68000 and Z80 processors, so it wouldn't be possible for the system to do hardware emulation of the Atari 2600... the machines are just too different. However, hardware emulation of the ColecoVision or the ZX Spectrum might be possible. I just don't think anyone has attempted it.

    That is pretty neat. There is also a version that plays NES games (SMB!) and it seems like there was one like this for the SNES that plays some early C64 games and SID music.

  12. Posted · Edited by R.Cade

    The Activision Classics for the PSX is very frame-skippy and bad, and the Playstation is a generation ahead of the Genesis/MD with a 33MHz MIPS R3000 CPU.

     

    Not saying it's impossible, but someone would have to be a very talented 68000 and 6502 assembly programmer and do it bare metal.

  18. Posted · Edited by R.Cade

    Which version of ProDOS and is the IIe enhanced (65c02)?

     

    ProDOS 2.x (well, classic versions, not the new 2.4+) required a IIe enhanced, while 1.x will run on an original IIe, or a II with language card.

  21. Posted

    There's the rub, I don't want to use a fancy new TV / Monitor, I've got two monitors from the day and because they are UK and the input is NTSC composite I believe that is the reason for my issue..

     

    Looks like I may have to send it back which the seller has no issue with, just wanted a machine with at least 128K for demo's etc and then maybe in the future I'd up it to 320 or more, I'm also a little wary of that a lot of the newer stuff is European made and I may have the odd compatibility issue..Shame, I like the idea of the extra speed but it was not what I was expecting...

    There is no answer other than getting a PAL 130xe or converting the NTSC one to it (whatever that takes), or getting an NTSC monitor to use.

  22. Posted

    I think you're right that $300 would have to be the maximum. They might have lost money on each console but they would have made it up in volume. Seriously, at higher volumes and 4kB ram rather than 8kB, no keyboard and other simplifications they could hit that price point; if not 1979 then 1980, or 1981 at the latest.

     

    This is all speculation, but why eat into the 2600 market share with another product losing money? I think the 2600 didn't make money until Space Invaders came out in 80 anyway...

     

    Commodore killed everyone in the price wars of 83. Nobody else could sell a computer for less than $200 and make money except them.

  23. Posted · Edited by R.Cade

    The K-Mart I grew up near had an Atari VCS and a TI99/4a kiosk. The Atari version only let you play the game for a minute or two before resetting to the menu, but the TI allowed you to play as long as you want. I recall TI Invaders and MunchMan. I don't recall how the carts were secured on the TI, if at all.

    • Like 1
AtariAge
Forums
Store
General
Follow AtariAge

Copyright ©1998-2021 AtariAge

×
×
  • Create New...