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Latest Commodore 64 incarnation hopes what's old is new again

My first computer being an Atari 800, I don't have the first-hand experience of having owned a Commodore 64, but it's remembered a lot more ardently than those early Atari computers. In fact, the Commodore name is so beloved that it's continually being resurrected, including an attempt to make it the moniker for a line of gaming desktops.
Written by Sean Portnoy, Contributor

My first computer being an Atari 800, I don't have the first-hand experience of having owned a Commodore 64, but it's remembered a lot more ardently than those early Atari computers. In fact, the Commodore name is so beloved that it's continually being resurrected, including an attempt to make it the moniker for a line of gaming desktops.

The latest licensing of the Commodore name is for an updated version of its legendary 64 computer, which takes the form of an all-in-one system packed into a keyboard form factor. It uses Intel Core 2 Duo or Core 2 Quad processors and can handle up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM and 2TB of storage. Needless to say, there's no room for a discrete graphics card, but the PC does at least come with a built-in DVD burner. Despite the last-generation components, the Commodore offers an interesting twist: It comes with the latest version of Ubuntu Linux, and you can also get it configured with your choice of Windows 7. The new company, Commodore USA, also says you can load Apple OS X on the machine; theoretically lots of PCs can handle OS X, but you don't see Dell mentioning it on its configuration page.

No prices are currently available on its Web site, which will have the Commodore on sale starting June 1. Unfortunately, there doesn't appear to be any real connection between the new PC and its vintage namesake—Commodore Gaming, which sold the gaming computers before changing course and offering classic Commodore games for the iPhone and Wii, at least offered stick-on graphics for their desktops that included Commodore-related themes and also installed a C64 emulator on them. But beyond the semi-resemblance between the keyboard PCs, there's doesn't seem to be any information available that should inspire retro-lust in those of you who spent your formative years under the Commodore's spell.

[Via PC World]

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