Commodore USA to launch new Atom powered version of C64

Ahh, the Commodore 64 home computer. We had one, we tried (and failed) to program on it, and we marvelled at the quality of the games its massive 64K of system memory could support. Paradroid, we shall never forget you.

Anyway, if you’re rather nostalgic for the C64 then you’ll be interested to learn that an American firm, Commodore USA, is to release an updated version of the classic chunky beige computer. Albeit with a slightly faster processor than the original’s 1MHz hamster wheel.

The Commodore PC64 will be powered by an Intel Atom 525 CPU running at 1.8GHz, paired up with Nvidia Ion 2 graphics, 4GB of memory, a 1TB hard disk, an optional Blu-ray drive, plus wi-fi, bluetooth, six USB ports and an HDMI port.

But while the innards are obviously very different, the appearance of the all-in-one unit will remain an “exact replica” of the original beige chassis of the C64, the company says. Although quite whether they’ll keep the chunky keyboard, with its near-inch-tall keys, as a faithful replica, we doubt it.

The President of Commodore USA, Barry Altman, commented: “We are ecstatic to be partnering with Commodore Licensing B.V. in this new, exciting product launch. The legacy of the Commodore C64, which sold over 30 million units, making it the best selling computer of all time, and our reintroduction of this legendary form factor, combined with the world’s most recognizable consumer electronics brand, is a once in a lifetime opportunity.”

Pricing and release date details aren’t yet confirmed, but we’ll let you know as soon as we hear. In the meantime, while you wait you can always fire up that old C64 emulator, and have a crack at taking over the ’999′ bot again in Andrew Braybrook’s classic robot domination game.