Manufacturer: Commodore, USA, 1982.
RAM 64 Kilobytes (of which 38 Kilobytes are freely available for BASIC software) ROM 20 Kilobytes. Control unit: MOS / Commodore 6510 (clock signal 1 MHz). Graphics resolution up to 320 x 200 pixels, alphanumeric resolution: 40 x 25 characters. 3-channel tone generator, controlled by an SID chip.
The computer’s power supply is provided from an external power supply unit.
The VIC-20 home computer was developed based of the Commodore PET computer for learning and playing purposes.
It had an extra strong push-button keypad integrated to the CPU to which the Datasette, Commodore’s dedicated computer tape drive could be connected as storage medium. The machine’s display was a video monitor or a television.
The Commodore 64 included the programming language Basic burnt in the ROM.
Floppy driver, modem, printer, plotter, joystick and other peripherals could be connected to the computer.
There were plenty of software available for Commodore-64, released primarily on cassette tapes but a number of programs, especially games, appeared also in ROM cartridges. The advantage of the ROM cartridge is that the loading happens immediately.
Being great for learning and playing, the reliable Commodore 64 was a determining model on the home computer market for decades, all over the world.
Its so called bread box design, nearly identical to the VIC-20, was changed several times, there was a grey, flat version in the mid 80s (C64II), then again it looked like a bread box, but in different colour (C64G).
The Educator 64 is a school computer based on the C64 in a PET/CBM case with monochromatic green monitor; a portable computer with colour display and a built-in floppy unit (SX-64), delivered without keyboard, a console version (C-64GS) primarily to be connected to ROM cartridges.
The C-128 and its desktop version the C-128/D was compatible with the C64 but it had a CP/M operating system.
The C64 was produced for over ten years in 20 million copies. Due to its good graphic and excellent music features, it became the fundamental platform of the so-called Demoscene culture, the artists making demos are still using it.
In the mid 2000s its miniature version was remanufactured under the name C64DTV, built in a joystick, operated by AA batteries and it could run pre-burnt games selected from a menu.
Sources: http://http://www.homecomputer.de/pages/f_commodore.html
http://http://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=98
http://http://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodore_64
http://http://www.hwsw.hu/hirek/48877/jack-tramiel-commodore-64-128-szamitogep-tortenelem-amiga-atari.html