Computers

ASUS Eee Keyboard now has Commodore rival

ASUS Eee Keyboard now has Commodore rival
Commodure USA has revealed some specification details for its new Invictus keyboard computer with 5 inch touchscreen display
Commodure USA has revealed some specification details for its new Invictus keyboard computer with 5 inch touchscreen display
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One of the USB ports, audio jacks and card reader
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One of the USB ports, audio jacks and card reader
The Invictus bundle
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The Invictus bundle
Up close and personal with the Invictus keyboard
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Up close and personal with the Invictus keyboard
Powered by Intel's 64-bit Atom 330 dual core processor running at 1.6GHz on NVIDIA's MCP79 ION platform, with storage on a 250GB HDD and up to 4GB of memory
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Powered by Intel's 64-bit Atom 330 dual core processor running at 1.6GHz on NVIDIA's MCP79 ION platform, with storage on a 250GB HDD and up to 4GB of memory
Commodure USA has revealed some specification details for its new Invictus keyboard computer with 5 inch touchscreen display
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Commodure USA has revealed some specification details for its new Invictus keyboard computer with 5 inch touchscreen display
The 5 inch resistive touchscreen can run a pre-installed operating system or will be available as a barebones configuration
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The 5 inch resistive touchscreen can run a pre-installed operating system or will be available as a barebones configuration
To the rear, more USB ports, HDMI and VGA and Ethernet
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To the rear, more USB ports, HDMI and VGA and Ethernet
The ASUS Eee Keyboard PC at Computex this week.
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The ASUS Eee Keyboard PC at Computex this week.
The ASUS Eee Keyboard PC at Computex this week.
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The ASUS Eee Keyboard PC at Computex this week.
View gallery - 9 images

What goes around, comes around - so goes the saying. Many moons ago a certain computer-in-a-keyboard affectionately coined the C64 took over the world and gave a whole generation a taste of things to come. Now Commodore USA has given the keyboard computer a modern facelift, resulting in an all-in-one solution powered by an Intel Atom processor and sporting a 5 inch touchscreen display.

At the risk of giving my age away, I remember my first introduction to the wonderful Commodore 64 back in... well, let's just say the mists of time, shall we? As the name suggests, the computer-in-a-keyboard featured a whopping 64 kilobytes of memory and outperformed just about everything else at the time. It became a world dominator in the days when chunky and clunky IBM machines graced far too many a desk. Fond memories indeed.

In the years since the demise of Commodore International, desktop computing has grown up and taken over just about every aspect of our modern existence. Paint me intrigued to learn that the brand name which helped start a revolution resurfaced in March, albeit as Commodore USA and in the hands of CEO Barry S Altman. Its first all-in-one computer solution, appropriately named the Phoenix, included Intel Core 2 Duo or Quad Core processors, storage space of up to 2TB and an optical drive.

When ASUS officially announced its Eee Keyboard recently, it looked like the age of the keyboard-based computer was set to return. Now the Commodore USA Invictus is getting ready for launch.

The 5 inch resistive touchscreen can run a pre-installed operating system or will be available as a barebones configuration
The 5 inch resistive touchscreen can run a pre-installed operating system or will be available as a barebones configuration

The product page has lots of intriguing snaps of the new all-in-one, but is dramatically lacking in technical detail. Gizmag contacted Commodore USA's CEO to find out more. Altman told us that the Invictus will be powered by Intel's 64-bit Atom 330 dual core processor running at 1.6GHz on NVIDIA's MCP79 ION platform, with storage on a 250GB HDD and up to 4GB of memory. There will be a card reader, a USB threesome and 802.11b/g/n wireless networking as well as HDMI and VGA display connectivity.

Altman told Gizmag that the Invictus is "perfect for home theater... sit on the couch, keyboard entry with no need for an additional mouse, also great for just checking Instant Messaging, email etc.... I would not want to write a novel using a 5 inch screen though."

To the right of the keyboard sits the aforementioned 5 inch color TFT resistive touchscreen, which will work with either a preconfigured operating system or as the user dictates in a barebones configuration. The device will be open to various OS varieties such as Windows 7 and Ubuntu, and will contain a Li-ion battery which should give around five hours of full-on use between charges.

No word on when the Invictus will be available as yet but Altman told Gizmag, "Once we get our landed cost and currency exchange set, we will release prices for the first 5,000 units."

The Invictus bundle
The Invictus bundle

View gallery - 9 images
9 comments
9 comments
Bill Bennett
Good Gawd Man! you must be old, by the by I have a Commodore 64 AND the 128 upstairs, loved them, and a keyboard with a 5 inch display? I would be all over that, sounds bitchin\" bestus regards, Bill, PS Yeah I am 56, and you are in your fifties and like me feel alot younger and want to date women in their 20\'s and do not understand why they seem so stoopid, yeah I am dating a 23 year old, gawd, don\'t open it that way dear, you will get soap in your eye, gawd, stoopid, better than wife #2 who was foocking CRAZY serial monogamy, she is on husband # 12 in umm yeah ten years
Kroony
These would sell like hotcakes if there was a wireless AV transmitter integrated, and receiver included. Imagine being able to turn on your TV, grab the keyboard and start working away from your couch. Or start a movie and have full control, etc.
It just seems so obvious!
Facebook User
Does it have the Commodore logo on it somewhere?
Adze
Commodore\'s still going??
LifeExpectancyIsExactlyThat
Gees yeah.. I thought the same ... Commodore\'s still going ?? I was an early adopter back in the early 80\'s with my 1st Commodore being a C16, yes that\'s right, a whole 16k of built-in memory and a Data-cassette unit. Then I ungraded to the C64, then later to the Amiga A1200 (shit, this 1 even had a Hard-Drive built-in - & it was huge @ 120meg). But seriously, all jokes and tongue-in-check remarks aside, these units truly were the cream-of-the-crop when it came to high-tech home computing and literally ran rings around Apple Macs and PC\'s in their day. I remember full colour graphics @ 256,000 Colors and simultaneous Hi-Fi Stereo sound... and Multiple Windows (and pull down Multiple Screens) with Multitasking and incredible OS stability, all back when PC\'s had green or orange screens and went beep. It was a crying shame to see such an advanced computer (head and shoulders above all the competition at the time) ultimately die a slow and painful death all thanks to the Company\'s mismanagement !
Ed
Meh...I got you all beat...The first Commodore I used was a Commodore Pet. This all-in-one device even came with a matching monitor.
jocco
I would like to this with a split keyboard with the touchscreen in the middle.
Facebook User
will there be a left hand version...?
Larry Owens
OMG! I, too, bought the 4k PET when it 1st came out in the late 70\'s. CBM upgraded it to a whoppng 8k by the time it actually shipped. Ran an Amiga only shop for 10 years and still run into former customers all the time.
I totally agree with the comment about wireless being integrated as a \'near\' killer \"app.\" An easy to use, yet powerful Commodore would be great. \"ONLY AMIGA, Makes it Happen\"