40 years ago today: the Commodore 64 debut at CES #VintageComputing #RetroComputing #Commodore

 

40 years ago today, in 1982, the Commodore 64 was first revealed at the Consumer Electronics Show, in Las Vegas. The “breadbin” has always been a beloved computer – then and now among enthusiasts.

The C64 has been listed in the Guinness World Records as the highest-selling single computer model of all time, with independent estimates placing the number sold between 10 and 17 million units. Volume production started in early 1982, marketing in August for US$595 (equivalent to $1,545 in 2018). Preceded by the Commodore VIC-20 and Commodore PET, the C64 took its name from its 64 kilobytes (65,536 bytes) of RAM. With support for multicolor sprites and a custom chip for waveform generation, the C64 could create superior visuals and audio compared to systems without such custom hardware.

The C64 dominated the low-end computer market for most of the 1980s.

The C64 lives on with a huge enthusiast following. People are still writing new software, building new add-ons, and even building modern versions of the 64 with HDMI and Ethernet.

Check out the guide in the Adafruit Learning System: Commodore 64 – The Most Popular Retro Computer of All Time

 


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