Best looking 8bit computer?

[rhurst]

The Apple Lisa was 16-bit.

My bad, I should have remembered that. It was such an early 68K machine.

Dont forget this beauty.

In my book, already forgotten! It looks like the ordinary piece of shit that it is, and this all about looks. At least the Kenbak has charm, not chiclet keys.

*ahem* Commodore Vic20 ??

I think we should all just agree that 'love is blind', and VIC 20 already won. This about a trophy wife.

Hey, I'm just lobbying for a poll from one of the moderators out there. I'm not qualified for making lists, just noise.

[akator]

The Apple Lisa was 16-bit.

My bad, I should have remembered that. It was such an early 68K machine.

I'm sure that you have more important things to think about than the bitness of archaic computers

There are so many interesting computer designs from the 80s. I wouldn't want to go back in time, trading what we have now to relive in that period, but it would be nice if today's electronics were a less generic and commoditized.

Of course, that's part of the trade-off. A $400 laptop today has capabilities that blow away a $2000 laptop from 10 years ago, let alone any computers we had in the 80s. A $20K family sedan has performance similar to an 80s sports car but with comfort and safety. It leaves me divided, both appreciating what we have today but feeling as though something is missing. Besides household robots, that it. I want my damn household robot already

[malcontent]

It's sort of inelegant, but the TRS-80 model 100 is a nice machine. Beauty in simplicity I guess. I've also never used a better keyboard on a laptop.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRS-80_Model_100

[Jeff-20]

*ahem* Commodore Vic20 ??

Personal bias aside, I think the first generation of VICs have a lovely, "square" keyboard.

I'm just lobbying for a poll from one of the moderators out there.

Done diddly done.

[Vic20-Ian]

Well I had to vote Vic-20 as this was not on the list



I have never owned one of these but always enjoyed the look:

To quote Zaphod (Douglas Adams):

"'It's the wild colour scheme that freaks me out,' said Zaphod, whose love affair with the ship had lasted almost three minutes into the flight. 'Every time you try and operate these weird black controls that are labeled in black on a black background, a little black light lights up in black to let you know you've done it.'"


Zaphod Beeblebrox, The Restaurant At The End Of The Universe

[muyuubyou]

Back in the day I thought the Commodore 128 was a thing of beauty, and sooo futuristic.



But to be honest I like the looks of many, including the Spectrum 16K/48K, the Spectrum+. I have to say I liked the small rubbery one more but obviously the Plus was better.

I liked the Amstrad CPC464 more than the 128K bigger brother with its floppy. It was all about the funky colours. For similar reasons, I thought the Oric Atmos was beautiful, but I have never tried it to this day.

I also thought the BBC Electron looked better than the BBC Micro Model B but now I tend to think the opposite.


Always thought the C16 looked better than the Vic-20 and C64, because of the colour, but now I think the opposite.

I didn't give the Plus/4 a second thought, and now I think it's a beautiful and intriguing machine. Something of a lost chance.

If I have to pick just one, the Commodore 128 followed by the Vic 20/C64 traditional shape.

[Kweepa]

The C= B128 is a sweet looking machine.
http://oldcomputers.net/b128.html
Like the 8032 but +nicer keyboard -monitor.

[Vic 2000]

Today i think that both Vic-20 and the first model of C64 are quite well designed, but back in the 80's i always thought that both of them looked a bit like toy computers with their round odd friendly shape. Kind of Sesame Street computers for kids. I always thought of this car as synonym to Vic-20 and C64.



C128 was oversized

C64 C was much better designed.



Amiga 500+ looked clumsy, oversized and old.



Most computers from Atari was much better and slick designed, as the XE and ST series. The best looking of them all was the orginal 520 ST using extern diskdrive.



And now for one of the best looking 8bit Computers, up in the top with Atari 800 XL and ZX Spectrum series.

Schneider 664

[sjgray]

The C= B128 is a sweet looking machine.
http://oldcomputers.net/b128.html
Like the 8032 but +nicer keyboard -monitor.

Then you should love the CBM-II high-profile machines CBM128-80 and 700 series with integrated monitor, separate keyboard with function keys, and internal drive option.

http://www.6502.org/users/sjgray/comput ... index.html

In fact, the 8032-SK case was actually originally designed for the CBM-II machines, and only later when they failed did Commodore adapt them to the PET/CBM machines (8032-SK, 8096-SK, 8296, 8296D). In fact, the "D" model has internal drives that were planned for the CBM-II line but never actually released although prototype 720D machines have been found.

I'd say the Commodore 720D gets my vote.

Steve

[orion70]

Nice machine! Thanks for the infos, Sjgray!

[Mike]

The Apple Lisa was 16-bit. [...]

Just to clear up that common misconception: the 68000 is a 32 bit CPU.

If you take a look at the instruction set and register bank, you see 32 bit written all over the place. The actual hardware implementation of the 68000 features just a 16 bit data bus and 24 bit address bus, but that doesn't hinder the programmer to handle 32 bit numbers as unit.

Sadly, many programmers (mostly on Apple, less so on Atari and Amiga) used the top 8 bit of the address registers to store flags. With a 24 bit address bus, this didn't matter, those flags were simply ignored for memory accesses - however addresses with bits set in the top 8 bits bombed when the address bus was expanded to 32 bits with later incarnations of the 68K series. That was the actual issue related to "32 bit cleanliness", and not that the 'old' programs were not able to handle 32 bit data at all.

BTT: I'm wondering the Matra Alice 32 didn't get any mention thus far.

[joshuadenmark]

Like the James Bond like case for the Matra Alice 32 cool design

[rhurst]

Was that a home computer, or a luggable?

[Kweepa]

Then you should love the CBM-II high-profile machines CBM128-80 and 700 series with integrated monitor, separate keyboard with function keys, and internal drive option.

You're right, I do! <3

[ral-clan]

I got my VIC 20 in February 1982, and would demo it to the class just before our summer break. I also demoed my Dark Tower BASIC game, in color with sound. My teacher was so impressed by how much "power" was packed into a $300 computer, that the next year, he would get his class re-outfitted with 30 Commodore PET 4032: one for each desk.

Wow, your school had a lot of money. My school only had one or two PET computers for the entire student body in 1982.

PS: I voted PET2001 but I probably should have voted PET 8032SK. The secretary at my school had one of those (so add that to the school's lineup) - that's where I first saw it.

As for 8-bit computers with great looks - the MSX family of computers coming out of Japan always had striking appearances, and were little known in the west:







...and...

http://tinyurl.com/oza3yqa

But I think some of the ones depicted above might have been 16-bit ---- not sure if MSX survived into the 16-bit time period....