PEOPLES ★ AMSTRAD PLANS 16-BIT PORTABLE (POPULAR COMPUTING WEEKLY) ★

Amstrad plans 16-bit portable (Popular Computing Weekly)
★ Ce texte vous est présenté dans sa version originale ★ 
 ★ This text is presented to you in its original version ★ 
 ★ Este texto se presenta en su versión original ★ 
 ★ Dieser Text wird in seiner Originalfassung präsentiert ★ 

AMSTRAD has begun preliminary work on a new 16-bit portable computer, likely to be launched in the first months of next year.

The machine is a 256K Ram model based around the fast 16-bit version of the Z80 procesor, the Z800, and could offer a degree of IBM PC software compatibility.

As well as the Z800 the machine apparently is to feature a built-in five-inch green-screen monitor, 3 inch Hitachi-format disc drive, modem and communications software.

An Amstrad spokeswoman, however, denied that the  company has any plans to develop a portable.

The Z800 is a new chip from Zilog makers of the Z80 used in all previous Amstrad micros which is likely to be available in the first quarter of 1986. The first Z800 chips produced will be low-power consumption CMOS devices, ideal for use in a portable.

The Z800 is software compatible with the Z80 so existing software on disc for the CPC664 and 6128 could be made to run on the machine.

Amstrad has settled on pricing for its CPC 6128 disc-based micros, to be launched in the UK later this year.
The 6128 with monochrome monitor will be priced at £299.99 while the colour display version will cost £399.99.
The prices of the equivalent 664 models will be reduced accordingly in September to £199 and £299.

It is also likely that the new portable will be IBM PC compatible. Amstrad is thought to have licensed DOS-Plus, a new software product from Digital Research, from whom Amstrad has already licensed the CP/M disc operating system used by the CPC models.

Digital Research has announced that it has signed a deal to supply the DOS-Plus operatmq system to one unnamed UK manufacturer.
DOS-Plus effectively emmulates with software the 8088 processor used by the IBM PC enabling PC-DOS 2.1 programs to be run.

Using such an arrangement the Amstrad portable would be able to run - albeit possibly a little slower than the IBM PC - any of the huge catalogue of business packages so far developed for the IBM

Another advantage of DOS-Plus for Amstrad is it is compact - only 64K and therefore can be implemented on a built-in Rom for the portable.

Chris Hall of Locomotive, the systems house which wrote the Basic and operating systems for the Z80-based Amstrad micros denied knowledge of any Z800-based micro: ‘I don't know everything they do. 1 have never seen a real Z800 chip but it would certainly be of interest to anyone with a lot of Z80 code.”

An Amstrad spokeswoman said, ‘‘We have no plans to launch a portable micro and there is no portable in development.”

Popular Computing Weekly

★ AMSTRAD CPC ★ A voir aussi sur CPCrulez , les sujets suivants pourront vous intéresser...

Lien(s):
» Peoples » Amstrad Plans Cheap Console (New Computer Express)
» Peoples » Amstrad Apoiou : 03 Raid a Portugal
» Peoples » Amstrad vies with Atari at Chicago (Popular Computing Weekly)
» Peoples » Amstrad se méfie du Familial
» Peoples » Amstard PC2000 : Here and Now (New Computer Express)
» Peoples » Alan Sugar Monsieur Amstrad
Je participe au site:

» Vous avez remarqué une erreur dans ce texte ?
» Aidez-nous à améliorer cette page : en nous contactant via le forum ou par email.

CPCrulez[Content Management System] v8.7-desktop
Page créée en 131 millisecondes et consultée 733 fois

L'Amstrad CPC est une machine 8 bits à base d'un Z80 à 4MHz. Le premier de la gamme fut le CPC 464 en 1984, équipé d'un lecteur de cassettes intégré il se plaçait en concurrent  du Commodore C64 beaucoup plus compliqué à utiliser et plus cher. Ce fut un réel succès et sorti cette même années le CPC 664 équipé d'un lecteur de disquettes trois pouces intégré. Sa vie fut de courte durée puisqu'en 1985 il fut remplacé par le CPC 6128 qui était plus compact, plus soigné et surtout qui avait 128Ko de RAM au lieu de 64Ko.