Return of the Commodore C64 - Seriously........

Back when the world of personal computing was young, Commodore computers pretty much were the ones to beat. The company offered a pretty compelling argument, if you're going to spend money on a gaming platform, why not spend it on an actual computer that played awesome (for the time) video games instead.

With the success of the company's entry level personal computer, the VIC 20, Commodore released their next generation platform the C64 in 1982. This 8-bit wonder machine offered an unheard of 64K standard memory, standard audio and video that was better than IBM and Apple's offerings, all for a mere $595 which was far less expensive than anything comparable. It game with a built in RF modulator which allowed you to connect it to a TV and came built in with the Basic programming language on startup. Nothing could come close to that at the time.

Commodore Data Cassette

The machine's success came in part from Commodore's decision to offer it through regular retail outlets, department stores and toy retailers as well as regular electronic stores. This coupled with the availability of over 10,000 titles helped push the total number of units sold to almost 17 million worldwide making it the best selling personal computer model of all time according to the Guiness Book of World Records.

Despite its success and the release of newer and more powerful models, Commodore struggled and went bankrupt in 1994. As with most things these days, old is new again.

Commodore USA has bought the rights and will be releasing a modernized version of the C64 featuring modern guts including a dual core 1.8Ghz Atom processor, Nvidia video chipset, up to 4GB of ram, memory readers, USB ports, HDMI outputs and built in WiFi. The price ? Just like 1982 starting at just $595. I'm not sure what that really says about technology when you think about it. I have more computing power in my toaster than the original C64 and it only cost me $20. Having said that, I can't play any games with it.

Pre-orders have been strong and or many nostalgic users it will surely be a hit. The company plans to revive the VIC and Amiga lines as well which could take this whole retro thing to a whole new level. Rather than having gadgets that look modern and high tech, it will be far hipper to have a clunky looking thing that kicks technical butt. I'm sure Motorola is watching this with eager anticipation.

BONUS !!! Vic-20 Commercial featuring The Shat !!

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R.I.P Corey Haim (1971 - 2010)

Canadian born actor Corey Haim was found dead today in his mother's apartment in Oakwood, California of an apparent prescription drug overdose. Wow this blog is really turning into a retro obituary column but it really sucks when you're writing about someone who didn't need to die. Corey Haim was one of the two Corey's, who along with fellow child star Corey Feldman, starred in many films in the 80s and early 90s like The Lost Boys, License To Drive, Murphy's Romance, Dream a Little Dream and Lucas. He later became a reality TV star on A&E with Corey Feldman in "The Two Corey's" as the show chronicled the comeback attempt of both Coreys. Tragically it only showcased the spiraling descent that eventually claimed Corey Haim's life. Corey's Full Page Ad in Variety Magazine Feb 2008 Although he was working, none of the films or appearances were able to recapture the fame that his early career brought at a young age. This is what kept him turni...

Furniture Inspired by Vintage Video Games

If you grew up in the 60s and 70s, and you wanted to build furniture inspired by you're favorite games, chances are you'd have to settle for a Scrabble couch with a matching love seat. If you grew up in the 80s and 90s, you'd have a whole new set of games to get inspiration from because chances are, you were a gamer. So when you finally had enough to build your dream house, you considered your options and looked at different plans and eventually settled on a design you could really relate to - a house shaped like an NES gaming console. So now you move in and arrange all your nic-naks neatly on your Tetris shelves but still it's not enough. Sure, you have Atari coat hangers but honesty, you'll never be comfortable without more furniture. Lucky for you, there are many more pieces of furniture that will fit well in your decor and match the shelves and hangers. Click the hanger below to see more video game inspired furniture. You know you want them.

Video games during simpler times.....

It's amazing how far we've come with video games and home video game platforms. When you consider that the average home gmaing console has more computing power than NASA had during the Apollo missions, it really puts things in perspective on how far we've come from the early days of Pong. I know I've spent countless hours in arcades back in the day spending a small fortune on quarters to try and just get to the next level of the latest and greatest game. Even though you knew they were making it more difficult to suck more quarters out of you - you still fed those babies like your life depended on it. When home computers and gaming systems came along, it allowed you to play in the comfort of your own home without having to constantly feed more quarters. Having said that, you had to spend a small fortune to keep up with the technology to be able to play the latest and greatest games. Game consoles came along and we were hooked on crappy graphics for the longest time until...

So it begins........

If you're reading this then I assume you got here by mistake. This is my first attempt at a blog and trying to figure out how this whole blogging / RSS / Twittering stuff works. Yeah - I'm a newbie so be gentle. I don't know anything about blogging effectively but - I do know great retro music. So without any further delay, let's take it back to the old school!

Steven Tyler Hopes To Walk This Way Soon

Steve Tyler, the lead singer of Aerosmith was showing his age the other night when he fell off the stage while doing his little dance during a performance at the"Buffalo Chip Campground and Trailer Park" - What the hell did I just type? A campground? My how things change. How do you go from playing the Superbowl to a campground? The 61 year old front man was air lifted to hospital after suffering minor head, neck and shoulder injuries after falling off a catwalk of the stage onto some fans. Back in the day that was called crowd surfing but at 61, that's just falling into a crowd. The clapper can't be too far behind at this point.

Retroguy's Wonderland

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