Commodore C-64

The Commodore 64 was an amazing machine when it was introduced in January of 1982. It had a whopping 64 kilobytes of user RAM, 16 colors at a resolution of 320 x 200 pixels, 8 color sprites, and sound that could rival a dedicated sound synthesizer of its day. The most amazing thing of all was that you could get all this for under $600. The cheapest 64k computers of the day were selling at around $1000 and they couldn't match the graphics and sound capabilities of the C-64.

I bought my first Commodore 64 on August 14,1983 for $199.95. This was after another of a bunch of price drops that year. 1983 was a turbulent year for the computer industry. It was the year of the great shakeout. A number of computer manufacturers bowed out of the home computer market while others saw their market share shrink considerably. Commodore who at this time was the largest selling computer manufacturer to the home market was not immune to the crunch. It was forced to cut prices to keep its market share, but this was eating away at profits.

Their flagship computer was selling well but the market was shrinking due to a greater number of different computer brands on the market and the market becoming saturated. So the price cuts continued and Commodore showed its first quarterly loss by the end of 1983. After the turbulent '83 year Commodore rebounded and with fewer competitors and its new lower price the C-64 really took off. Millions of them were sold, one estimate puts it at 17 to 21 million units worldwide, WOW! No other single model of computer can claim that kind of success.

The C-64 line ran for a total of 12+ years, and probably would have run longer if Commodore didn't fold in 1994 due to poor management. The C-64 is still a popular computer to this day; you can find users groups and web sites dedicated to it on the Internet. I still have my original C-64 (pictured above) and it still works, although I boxed it up when I switched to the more modern looking C-64C.

System Architecture		Memory
Microprocessor	6510	Standard on system board	64k
Clock speed	1 MHz	Maximum on system board	64k
Bus type	CBM proprietary	Maximum total memory	512k cartridge
Data bus width	8-bit	Memory type and speed	200ns dynamic RAM
Address bus width	16-bit	System board memory socket type	16 pin DIP
Interrupt levels	N/A	Number of memory module sockets	8 soldered
DMA channels	N/A	Memory used on system board	4164-2/MK4564N-20
Standard Features		Disk Storage
ROM size	20k	Internal disk and tape drive bays	none
Optional math coprocessor	none	Standard floppy drives	optional
Parallel port type	serial	Optional floppy drives:	up to 8
RS232C serial ports	yes	* 5 1/4 inch 160k	optional
Mouse ports	yes - joystick	* 5 1/4 inch 1.2MB	No
UART chip used	N/A	* 3 1/2 inch 720k	No
Maximum speed	N/A	* 3 1/2 inch 1.44MB	No
CMOS real time clock	no	* 3 1/2 inch 2.88MB	No
CMOS RAM	none	Hard disk controller included	No
Video & Graphics		Sound
Graphics Processor	VIC II 6567 / 40 pin DIP	Sound Interface device	SID 6581 / 28 pin DIP
Screen size - Col x Rows	40 x 25	Sound generation	3 voices
Resolution - Colors/High	16 - 320 x 200 pixels	ADSR capable	yes
Resolution - Colors/Low	16 - 40 x 25	Programming language
Max colors	16	Built in language	PET BASIC ver 2.0
Sprites or Missiles	8 - 21 x 24 pixels	Built in M L monitor	no
Expansion Slots		Keyboard Specs.
Total adapter slots	1-8 bit	Number of keys	66
Number of 8/16/32 bit slots	1/0/0	Upper/lower case	yes/yes
		Keyboard cable length	N/A
Physical Specs.		Environmental Specs
* Height	3 inches	Operating voltage @ 60 Hz	117 VAC
* Width	16 inches	Maximum power supplied	40 watts
* Depth	8 inches	Power supply output - volts	9 vdc / 5 vdc
* Weight	4 1/2 pounds	Power supply output - amps

Introduced	January 1982
Discontinued	March 1994
Release Price	$595.95