A new Commodore 64 computer and gaming handheld are coming via Indiegogo

[akator]

I would happily buy this as a finished product, however like others I will not be funding / pre-ordering anything else until I receive at least one of the several things I've funded / pre-ordered over the last few years. I've been suckered enough

[Keatah]

Yeh I don't know about this. It lacks all the doodads and ports that helped make the original 64 so successful. And it doesn't exist in any stores anyways.. so..

[cjameslv]

I'm happy with my breadbin. Works great and i see no point in getting this. My sd2iec has me covered if there is new game or software releases anyway.

[Keatah]

I saw that Vanja Utne (Mermaid) posted a series of technical questions to them, but the only response she got so far was "we will answer you ASAP."

That's rather RetroVGSque..

[+save2600]

These are the times we live in I guess. What an era.

[BassGuitari]

Wake me up when there's a product.

[+GoldLeader]

I saw that Vanja Utne (Mermaid) posted a series of technical questions to them, but the only response she got so far was "we will answer you ASAP".

 

In Swedish we have a proverb that goes "never sell the hide before the bear is shot". Do you have that one or a similar one in English too?

 

(Jean de La Fontaine in the 17th century, translated to Dutch, Norwegian etc as well so it probably exists in most languages)

 

I love that saying! And agree about "Counting chickens before they hatch" etc., ... People also talk about "Putting the cart before the horse" which is kind of similar or "Learning to crawl before learning to walk"...And I think these folks should make sure to "not bite off more than they can chew"...

 

Of course when I think about past failures (Coleco Chameleon, Not necessarily this...) I remember something my granddad used to say, "If we had some ham, we could have ham and eggs!...If we had some eggs."

[Schizophretard]

I'm confused. Didn't this already happen? I thought a few years or so back there were PC's put in Commodore shells with the Commodore branding and I think they ran Linux with Commodore 64 and other emulators. It had the same "Coleco is Back" like the RetroVGS vibe but was Commodore branded like the Commodore cell phone. Didn't something like that happen?

[carlsson]

Their FB page is flooded with legitimate questions, and so far not a single response than "we'll answer later". However they are keen on reposting about all the media coverage so far, so perhaps more marketeers than engineers.

 

@Schizophretard: Yes, the C64x was released a couple of years ago. It was an overpriced PC in a C64-like shell. Once the CEO of that company unfortunately passed away, so did the whole company and product line.

Edited April 15, 2016 by carlsson

[Schizophretard]

@Schizophretard: Yes, the C64x was released a couple of years ago. It was an overpriced PC in a C64-like shell. Once the CEO of that company unfortunately passed away, so did the whole company and product line.

That sucks. Not the company but the death.

[Clint Thompson]

$2000 to have your name on the PCB. I guess that's a new one.

[Newsdee]

Their FB page is flooded with legitimate questions, and so far not a single response than "we'll answer later".

 

I suppose as long as they don't start deleting posts it's "only" an amber flag...

[R.Cade]

Can we please just go back to a day when people who knew how to design and make products just did so and sold them to recoup their development costs? This whole Kickstart and IndieGoGo age is stupid. Most of them have no idea and sometimes no plan to create a product.

 

It no longer takes millions of dollars to do this anyway... Getting boards made, printing plastic cases- this is all cheap now.

 

Get off my lawn!

Edited April 15, 2016 by R.Cade

[Newsdee]

Let the sleuthing begin:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/the-commodore-64-bounces-back-to-life-as-a-direct-to-tv-plug-and-play-joystick

 

This Darren guy was a creative director in an IP licensing company involved with the DTV; so not a hardware guy.

[Newsdee]

According to this German article, Ironstone is the company that brought Jerri Ellsworth in (readable with Google translate):

http://www.gulli.com/news/9121-retrocomputing-trouble-um-den-c-one-und-c64-dtv-2006-08-17

 

Maybe he did have the idea of the C64DTV.

 

I've read about the C-One story before, so that seems consistent with other (web) sources.

[galax]

This Darren guy was a creative director in an IP licensing company involved with the DTV; so not a hardware guy.

 

The hardware guy, of both this and the ZX Vega projects, would have been Chris Smith who as I mentioned yesterday resigned as a director of both companies last week. Maybe his work on this design is done?

[TPA5]

I don't think I've ever "liked" so many posts in one thread before. Much wisdom has already been posted, so I suppose my voice doesn't matter much or add much to the discussion but still...

 

I've gotten weary of the "crowd funded" way of doing business. It promotes the idea that your vision is so great, so amazing, and so special that you somehow deserve a payday long before you've ever actually produced anything of worth. Instead of making people work for investments and sales, they simply put together a few 3D renders, make a slick video and expect, nay demand, that people hand over their hard-earned cash. Unfortunately it seems to be working very well, as these campaigns routinely meet their ridiculous funding goals. However it no longer encourages people to work hard and actually innovate, they're just pretending to do so. I don't think enough of these "entrepreneurs" truly appreciate the gravity of these campaigns. Often times when it all falls apart weeks/months/years after the campaign is finished the most they can muster is an "oh well!"

Of course some of these campaigns mean well, do well, and ultimately succeed. But it's creating this entitled (as if it's even possible to have a more entitled culture) generation of people looking to just cash in on their "brilliant" plan. I think things need to get back to where the creators have to put some of their own damn skin in the game. If you have nothing into the project, you won't give a shit if it makes it or doesn't make it.

 

Maybe I'm just old-fashioned, but I've gotten sick of the ultra-elitist, ultra-entitled ideals of the crowd-funded generation. This might be an awesome project, but I'm personally not flocking to it anytime soon.

Edited April 15, 2016 by TPA5

[leods]

Deceiving crowdfunding campaign.

 

"The core research and development of THE 64 ™ consoles is complete, and we have working prototypes ongoing, concept case models, and software waiting to go into production as soon as practical."

 

This makes it seem they have everything ready and working, just waiting for money to do the manufacturing. If they do have it all working awesome. Show it. If you don't don't phrase it to make people believe you do.

 

I don't care who is doing the project. The project itself on the crowdfunding site has to be well put together, and this isn't.

 

It's better than the chameleon because at least it has a clear objective. The chameleon was a huge mess. Still they really have to state on the project what this is going to be. Is ths software emulation, a system on a chip, something else?

[R.Cade]

The pictures shows 1/8" audio jack and USB ports, so it's likely Pi-like software emulation.

 

"working prototypes ongoing" is awfully weasel-wordy.

Edited April 15, 2016 by R.Cade

[Bill Loguidice]

The pictures shows 1/8" audio jack and USB ports, so it's likely Pi-like software emulation.

 

"working prototypes ongoing" is awfully weasel-wordy.

 

Don't forget the working cartridge port. That element interests me. Everything else is almost certainly stock Pi and the necessary software mapping.

 

It's clearly purposeful weasel wording. That rarely works for more than just the handful of people who don't critically analyze a project (in this case, "cool, a new C-64!"), so they certainly won't be able to reach that type of goal on the type of info they've revealed so far. Of course, as we also know, they get to keep whatever they get regardless, so maybe that's all part of the plan (and they're already over $10,000 richer).

[Keatah]

Commodore wanted to import and market this from:

http://www.cybernetman.com/en/all-in-one-pc/Keyboard-pc/

 

A few years ago it looked like this:

 

Web captures:

 

Manuals:

PHOENIXGUIDE__copy.doc.pdfZPC-GX31_specs.pdf

 

Today it looks like this:

http://www.cybernetman.com/

http://www.cybernetman.com/en/Keyboard-pc/

http://www.cybernetman.com/en/all-in-one-pc/Keyboard-pc/ZPC-D5

 

I suppose you could go buy one of these and print a C64 badge for it. Then stuff it with emulators.. IMHO, the older silver "Phoenix" model looks nicer than the nondescript black one of today.

 

Edited April 15, 2016 by Keatah

[R.Cade]

Really, anything that is pledged, they just get, even if goal is not reached and they never produce anything? How is the whole site not just a scam?

[cimerians]

Really, anything that is pledged, they just get, even if goal is not reached and they never produce anything? How is the whole site not just a scam?

 

Yup that's possible on Indiegogo.....unlike Kickstarter. Although on Kickstarter there have been plenty of times projects got funded and the project starter ran away with peoples cash or ate it up in expenses etc.

[Keatah]

$2000 to have your name on the PCB. I guess that's a new one.

 

I'll just use a Dymo or something. Maybe even sign my own PCB - now it's one of a kind!

[Keatah]

Can we please just go back to a day when people who knew how to design and make products just did so and sold them to recoup their development costs? This whole Kickstart and IndieGoGo age is stupid. Most of them have no idea and sometimes no plan to create a product.

 

It no longer takes millions of dollars to do this anyway... Getting boards made, printing plastic cases- this is all cheap now.

 

Get off my lawn!

 

Yah man.. Just kinda-sorta like make a product that I can buy at the store.