Commodore PC compatible systems
Encyclopedia
The Commodore PC compatible systems were a range of IBM PC compatible
personal computer
s introduced in 1984 by home computer
manufacturer Commodore Business Machines. Incompatible with Commodore's prior PET
and Commodore 64
series, they were generally regarded as good, serviceable workhorse PCs with nothing spectacular about them. In 1987 the PC-10, which was the first model released, sold for $559 without monitor ($1058 in 2010 dollars). They were sold alongside Commodore's Amiga
line of home
and graphics
computers and the Commodore 128
. The line included the following models:
IBM PC compatible
IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Such computers used to be referred to as PC clones, or IBM clones since they almost exactly duplicated all the significant features of the PC architecture, facilitated by various manufacturers' ability to...
personal computer
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
s introduced in 1984 by home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
manufacturer Commodore Business Machines. Incompatible with Commodore's prior PET
Commodore PET
The Commodore PET was a home/personal computer produced from 1977 by Commodore International...
and Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
series, they were generally regarded as good, serviceable workhorse PCs with nothing spectacular about them. In 1987 the PC-10, which was the first model released, sold for $559 without monitor ($1058 in 2010 dollars). They were sold alongside Commodore's Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
line of home
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
and graphics
Graphics
Graphics are visual presentations on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, computer screen, paper, or stone to brand, inform, illustrate, or entertain. Examples are photographs, drawings, Line Art, graphs, diagrams, typography, numbers, symbols, geometric designs, maps, engineering drawings,or...
computers and the Commodore 128
Commodore 128
The Commodore 128 home/personal computer was the last 8-bit machine commercially released by Commodore Business Machines...
. The line included the following models:
- PC-I (a.k.a. PC1): A small form factor low-end non-expandable system. Had a 4.77 MHz 8088Intel 8088The Intel 8088 microprocessor was a variant of the Intel 8086 and was introduced on July 1, 1979. It had an 8-bit external data bus instead of the 16-bit bus of the 8086. The 16-bit registers and the one megabyte address range were unchanged, however...
processor, combined MDA/CGAColor Graphics AdapterThe Color Graphics Adapter , originally also called the Color/Graphics Adapter or IBM Color/Graphics Monitor Adapter, introduced in 1981, was IBM's first color graphics card, and the first color computer display standard for the IBM PC....
graphics, 1 5.25" floppy disk drive. It came standard with 512kB RAM. - PC-5: A full-size PC/XT-clone, expandable with up to five 8-bit ISA cards. It sold only in AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. - PC-10: A full ATIBM Personal Computer/ATThe IBM Personal Computer AT, more commonly known as the IBM AT and also sometimes called the PC AT or PC/AT, was IBM's second-generation PC, designed around the 6 MHz Intel 80286 microprocessor and released in 1984 as machine type 5170...
-sized model with 8088, combined HerculesHercules Graphics CardThe Hercules Graphics Card was a computer graphics controller made by Hercules Computer Technology, Inc. which, through its popularity, became a widely supported display standard. It was common on IBM PC compatibles connected to a monochrome monitor . It supported one high resolution text mode and...
/CGAColor Graphics AdapterThe Color Graphics Adapter , originally also called the Color/Graphics Adapter or IBM Color/Graphics Monitor Adapter, introduced in 1981, was IBM's first color graphics card, and the first color computer display standard for the IBM PC....
graphics and 1 or 2 floppy drives. - PC-20: A PC-10 with 20MB hard disk
- Colt: A rebranded PC10-III
- PC-30: A PC-AT compatible with 12 MHz 80286Intel 80286The Intel 80286 , introduced on 1 February 1982, was a 16-bit x86 microprocessor with 134,000 transistors. Like its contemporary simpler cousin, the 80186, it could correctly execute most software written for the earlier Intel 8086 and 8088...
and a 20MB hard disk. - PC-40: 10 MHz PC-AT system. Had 1 MB RAM, Hercules/CGA video card, and hard disk options from 20-80 MB.
- PC-50 Based on the 386SXIntel 80386The Intel 80386, also known as the i386, or just 386, was a 32-bit microprocessor introduced by Intel in 1985. The first versions had 275,000 transistors and were used as the central processing unit of many workstations and high-end personal computers of the time...
running at 16 MHz. 40MB to 100MB hard disk. - PC-60 25 MHz 386Intel 80386The Intel 80386, also known as the i386, or just 386, was a 32-bit microprocessor introduced by Intel in 1985. The first versions had 275,000 transistors and were used as the central processing unit of many workstations and high-end personal computers of the time...
system with FPU. Came in a tower case with 60MB to 200MB hard disk.