Amstrad CPC

CPC 464

CPC 427

CPC 472

CPC 664

CPC 664

CPC 6128

CPC1628

Amstrad launched the CPC 6128 shortly after the CPC 664 for the American market . The new machine had 128k of memory and a sleeker appearance, but was otherwise identical to the 664.

The machine was launched in Europe shortly afterwards, replacing the 664 for the same price.

The Plus Series

The last models in the Amstrad CPC range were the Amstrad 464 Plus and Amstrad 6128 Plus, launched together in 1990. The CPC name is said to have been dropped because of a legal dispute with a French firm, though it is also likely that "CPC 6128 Plus" was considered too unwieldy a name and one redolent of the machine's mid-80s heritage.

Described as a solution of 'too little, too late', this was Amstrad's second effort to prolong the life of its 8-bit computer series in the face of fierce competition from new 16-bit machines (notably, the

Atari ST and the Commodore Amiga). The Plus series were mostly (but not quite 100%) compatible with the original CPC computers, and incorporated a list of new features, like a cartridge port for instant program loading, DMA for the AY soundchip, hardware scrolling, programmable interrupts, 16 hardware zoomable sprites (not vectorized) with an independent palette of 15 colours, and a choice of 4096 colours all in a new, sleek case which mimicked the keyboard-computer design that was en vogue in the 16-bit market (ST, Amiga etc). While the Amstrad Plus computers were arguably one of the best 8-bit computers ever built for the mass market, they died an early death as the 16-bit era had well and truly begun.