Found a VIC-20 Eurostile

[eightbit]

As everyone who knows me knows, I love the VIC-20! 

 

That said, I purchased another one recently...once again untested. It works of course (I haven't found one yet that didn't...guess I am lucky!) but what really caught my eye was the keyboard. Initially I had no clue what type this was as I have never seen in in all of my years. I have had the models with the early PET style keys and the models with the keyboards that are basically the same font and style as the C64. But, never this. It's like an in-between with the PET style and the C64 style. And the keys are REALLY nice to type on.

 

I paid $70 for it, and ironically the TRU sticker on the box (the SN's match so I know it is the original box) has a price of $69.97

 

Anyone else have one of these?

Edited October 7, 2023 by eightbit

[eightbit]

Here's the usual VIC-20 keyboard style for comparison BTW.

 

 

 

And, the PET style keyboard:

 

Edited October 7, 2023 by eightbit

[carlsson]

I've had/seen a few Eurostiles, complete computer or in parts. IIRC the plunger mechanism on these three variants of keyboard is different for each, so it is more than just the font on the keycaps that differ. I don't know the exact dating, perhaps late '81 or early '82 before the C64 with the Helvetica keyboard arrived in the summer/fall of 1982. I understand the keyboard got changed on the VIC before the CR model, though the Eurostiles I've seen tend to have DIN type power IIRC.

 

Of course to a large degree parts are pix and mix so for those who don't have the original box, it may be a bastard different than how it once was sold.

 

https://cbmvic.net/registry

[eightbit]

I am pretty certain this one was never opened. I did open it and it had literally no dust, damage or signs or use at all. Knowing Commodore they were probably just using whatever they had at the time to make and sell another computer. 

 

[carlsson]

That is absolutely correct, about Commodore using whichever parts respective manufacturing factory had in stock. Same tends to go regarding socketed chips or soldered to the board. Sometimes it may be an age/cost reducing matter, sometimes it seems to depend on where the board was manufactured. Sometimes it might even depend on whom worked on each machine, or each step in assembly.

[Virtualsky]

I noticed that even the badge doesn't seem to fit the other designs.

[eightbit]

Just now, Virtualsky said:

I noticed that even the badge doesn't seem to fit the other designs.

 

 

Digging around I found some other eurostile systems and they had the rainbow badge as well, so that isn't out of the ordinary from what I have seen.

 

But like carlsson has mentioned I also find that all eurostile models I have found have the DIN power connector, not the two prong like this one.

 

Is it possible someone swapped things at some point? Sure. But I really don't think that is the case here. 

[carlsson]

So we know the two-prong VIC-20 came with Microgramma (PET style), Eurostile and Helvetica. The DIN-model VIC-20CR came with Eurostile and Helvetica. I have a very faint memory of seeing an early (silver label?) C64 with Eurostile, but perhaps it was modified. Was it due to licensing reasons they shifted from Microgramma to Eurostile?

 

I never figured out when the VIC-20CR was introduced, if it was late 1982 or early 1983. Did the new 1530/C2N come out with the C64 in July/August 1982 or a bit later? It probably is impossible to get a definite timeline of all Commodore variants and how each factory operated. Even the Commodore alumni would not be able to answer for sure.

 

Perhaps Helvetica was introduced on two-prong before the C64 was released, but due to greater demand of the C64 than anticipated, some factories had to "settle" with Eurostile for longer than intended, thus installing it both on two-prong and DIN-model computers. I seem to recall that the diminished effort on the Max Machine partly was due to the C64 selling better than expected.