[Coco] [Color Computer] Complete Commodore 64 homecomputer on a single chip

Dave Gacke dgacke at ektarion.com
Wed Dec 22 15:24:20 EST 2004


>From a new article I read, I don't think she got the money. She was paid as
a contractor to build it for another company.

She probably got a good contractor rate, but it didn't say whether or not
she got any of the profits. But again, since she was a contractor, I doubt
it.


Dave

-----Original Message-----
From: coco-bounces at maltedmedia.com [mailto:coco-bounces at maltedmedia.com] On
Behalf Of Jim Cox
Sent: Wednesday, December 22, 2004 2:15 PM
To: CoCoList for Color Computer Enthusiasts
Subject: Re: [Coco] [Color Computer] Complete Commodore 64 homecomputer on a
single chip

Well, now that she has the money from all the sales of the 
C64, maybe someone should write her and see if she's 
interested in the CC-3?

Jim
(Yes I am being whimsical)

On Wed, 22 Dec 2004 15:09:02 -0500
  jdaggett at gate.net wrote:
> Mark
> 
> Yepper your math is correct. The problem is a small time 
>individual 
> needs capital to get started. If you are going to do a 
>brand new IC 
> from scrath and develop a product around that, you are 
> going to 
> need between a half a million to one million dollars to 
>just be able to 
> manufacture and sell those first 70,000 units.
> 
> james
> 
> 
> On 22 Dec 2004 at 13:42, mark at cloud9tech.com wrote:
> 
>From:           	mark at cloud9tech.com
> To:             	coco at maltedmedia.com
> Date sent:      	Wed, 22 Dec 2004 13:42:29 -0600
> Subject:        	Re: [Coco] [Color Computer] Complete 
> Commodore 64 home computer on a
> 	single chip
> Send reply to:  	mark at cloud9tech.com,
> 	CoCoList for Color Computer Enthusiasts 
> <coco at maltedmedia.com>
> 	<mailto:coco-
> request at maltedmedia.com?subject=unsubscribe>
> 	<mailto:coco-
> request at maltedmedia.com?subject=subscribe>
> 
>> James,
>> 
>> As all of these numbers are impressive, it is really 
>>small potatoes.
>> Take the numbers from the article. $30 a unit times 
>>70,000 units sold
>> on the first day, $2.1 million, first day!. Depending 
>>upon what type
>> of contract she entered.. This could of course greatly 
>>alter her net
>> pay. No if, ands, or butts about this though. She had at 
>>least one of
>> these that she demoed to the investors and sold them on 
>>it. Did she
>> have that much invested? I bet not. 
>> 
>> Aaaaaahhhhhh this what makes America great!
>> 
>> Regards,
>> 
>> Mark
>> 
>> >Boisy
>> >
>> >With say about $250,000, one can put a complete Coco 3 
>>hardware in
>> >one
>> ASIC. 
>> >That wil get the design done and the first 40 ICs at a 
>>cost of about
>> >$5000
>> per chip. 
>> >
>> >That will get you 40 parts in 0.18 micron mixed mode 
>>1.8V to 3.3V
>> >CMOS. Production runs are far cheaper and could bring 
>>the die cost
>> >down into the
>> $10 to 
>> >$15 range. Packaging adds about $0.05 per pin. 
>> >
>> >A cheaper initial cost and low volume way is to do the 
>>ASIC in FPGA
>> >and
>> then you 
>> >are looking at about $600 to $1000 per chip. The only 
>>thing that
>> >would not
>> go into 
>> >the FPGA would be the 2 MB of RAM.  
>> >
>> >
>> >Actual  production runs would yield die costs more in 
>>the $10 to $25
>> range. The you 
>> >can bond the die directly to a PCB  and have a Coco 3 
>>on a PCB about
>> >1.5
>> inch 
>> >square board. 
>> >
>> >james
>> >
>> >On 22 Dec 2004 at 9:48, Boisy G. Pitre wrote:
>> >
>> >From:           	"Boisy G. Pitre" 
>><boisy at boisypitre.com>
>> >Subject:        	Re: [Coco] [Color Computer] Complete 
>>Commodore 64
>> >home computer on a 	single chip Date sent:      	Wed, 
>>22 Dec 2004
>> >09:48:48 -0600 To: 
>>            	ColorComputer at yahoogroups.com,
>> >	CoCoList for Color Computer Enthusiasts 
>><coco at maltedmedia.com>
>> >Copies to:      	Send reply to:  	CoCoList for Color 
>>Computer
>> >Enthusiasts <coco at maltedmedia.com> 	<mailto:coco-
>> >request at maltedmedia.com?subject=unsubscribe> 
>>	<mailto:coco-
>> >request at maltedmedia.com?subject=subscribe>
>> >
>> >> 
>> >> On Dec 22, 2004, at 1:23 AM, Neil Morrison wrote:
>> >> 
>> >> >
>> >> >
>> >> > FYI
>> >> >
>> >> > "Jeri Ellsworth has squeezed the entire circuitry 
>>of a
>> >> > two-decade-old Commodore 64 home computer onto a 
>>single chip,
>> >> > which she has tucked neatly into a joystick that 
>>connects by a
>> >> > cable to a TV set. Called the Commodore 64--the 
>>same as the
>> >> > computer system--her device can run 30 video games, 
>>mostly
>> >> > sports, racing and puzzles games from the early 
>>1980s, all
>> >> > without the hassle of changing game cartridges.
>> >> 
>> >> This is certainly becoming a trend, isn't it.  I've 
>>noticed lately
>> >> that there is a groundswell of interest in 
>>retro-computing and the
>> >> mainstream press is starting to pick up on this 
>>phenomenon.  It's
>> >> no surprise that the Commodore 64 is the main 
>>beneficiary of this
>> >> attention, since it has the most name recognition and 
>>appears to be
>> >> the main computer that everyone thinks of when 
>>focusing on the 80s
>> >> home computer age.  I suspect that in the not too 
>>distant future,
>> >> other classic home computers like ours will be 
>>garnering some
>> >> national media attention as well.
>> >> 
>> >> Actually, her idea of putting a Commodore 64 inside 
>>of a joystick
>> >> isn't too far-fetched for a CoCo.  Though I wonder 
>>what sales would
>> >> be like of such a device, and if Radio Shack would 
>>consider doing
>> >> something like that.
>> >> 
>> >> Boisy
>> >> 
>> >> 
>> >> -- 
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>> >> Coco at maltedmedia.com
>> >> http://five.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/coco
>> >
>> >
>> >
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