From: bull@vaxc.cc.monash.edu.au
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc
Subject: Re: Betting on an A1800
Date: 20 Nov 92 13:07:57 +1100
Organization: Computer Centre, Monash University, Australia

barham@qut.edu.au writes:
> No flames this, just my opinion...
>
> unregistered@newcastle.ac.uk (I.A. Inman) writes:
>> Just guesswork this, but Commodore seem to have left room for a
>> machine between the A1200, and the forthcoming A1500/2000
>> replacement.
>
> I think it is probably unlikely.  The A4000 will be coming out with
> an '030 version.  What's the point of anything between the A1200's
> '020 and that?
>
>> My guess is that at some point, probably next year, a new low cost
>> machine (probably called the A1800) will appear at around the 500 -
>> 700 pound price mark.
>
> Why "probably called the A1800"?  Do you have inside information?

        Numeric progression. A600, A1200, A1800. I agree with Tim
though, it doesn't make sense. There are now 2 low cost console
machines in the Amiga range and 2 upper end machines with slots.

>> It will probably have a 68030 processor, as opposed to the 68020
>> processor in the A1200.   To justify the price, a hard drive will
>> probably be included, along with an HD drive.
>
> As I said, there will be an '030 version of the A4000.  I kinda look
> at it as - A4000/040 replaces A3000, A4000/030 replaces A2000, A1200
> replaces A500 and A600 sits down the bottom all alone.  I know the
> A4000 is a little beyond the A3000/A2000, but we are a fair ways down
> the track from then, hey...

        Well...., your assessment of which new machine replaces which
old machine is up for debate. CBM-USA has apparently said that they
will continue to sell the A2000, so the US has a range of 5 machines.

>> It makes sense, as this ground (in Britain anyway) is covered by
>> the Atari Falcon, and the A1200 is not up to competing with this
>> machine.   A low cost 68030 Amiga would.

        The only way an 030 Amiga could compete with a Falcon on
price is to design it as a console like the A600 and A1200. I see no
sense in this idea.

> In what ways doesn't a 1200 compete with a Falcon? Sound - true.  An
> A1800 will be no different here to the A1200.  DSP - true.  Again no
> difference between A1800 and A1200.  Speed - A1200 architecture
> compared to Falcon architecture means that, with some fast mem, the
> A1200 should "blow away" the Falcon.  Graphics - heh, not a lot needs
> to be said about comparing AGA graphics to Falcon graphics.  What I
> am saying is, the A1200 competes very favourably with the Falcon - a
> "low cost" '030 wouldn't compete in a better way as it is likely to be
> more expensive (even if it is "low cost").

        Complete agreement on this point. I have reservations about an
A1200 being able to "blow away" a Falcon though. Provided the A1200 has
32 bit FAST ram, the area where an A1200 will be faster is when performing
high bandwidth graphics (high-res, high-speed animation). When running
low bandwidth graphics, the Falcon should have the edge.

        As I understand it, the 030 and the blitter in the Falcon are
running off the same memory bus 100% of the time. On an A1200, the 020
and the custom chips only share the same bus when the 020 wants to use
CHIP ram. When the 020 uses FAST ram, it uses a bus that the custom chips
don't have access to. In a high bandwidth video situation, the Falcon
blitter will be constantly hitting the common bus it shares with the 030.
In the same situation on an A1200, the custom chips and the 020 stay on
their seperate busses. Even when the 020 needs to use CHIP ram, the bus
arbitration guarrantees the 020 regular access to the CHIP ram bus without
significantly degrading the performance of the custom chips.

        The reason why I think the Falcon will be faster in a low
bandwidth video mode is because the blitter will not be doing much,
providing pleanty of idle time on the bus for the 030 (which runs at a
higher clock speed to the A1200's 020 and has better caching facilities).

>> And such a machine would help against the increasing PC competition
>> (over here at least).
>
> The A1200 stacks up pretty good against your 386sx SVGA home machine.
> The A4000/040 and /030 machines stack up pretty good against higher
> level machine. What else do we need?

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Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.misc