City of Armadale - History House > Records

MUSIC MACHINE CARTRIDGE FOR COMMODORE 64 COMPUTER

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c. 1985

Overview

Rectangular black plastic cartridge. On the front is a grey label with blue text [MUSIC / MACHINE] and the Commodore 64 logo.
On the bottom is an indentation with a white plastic and metal rectangle pin that fits into cartridge slot on computer. Moulded text [commodore / MADE IN HONG KONG] on the back.

Historical information

The Commodore 64, also known as C64, was a home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International. The C64 name came from its 64 kilobytes of RAM. Retailing at US$595 (equivalent to $1545 USD in 2018) and selling 17 million units worldwide during its lifetime, it was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as being the highest-selling single computer model of all time. Between 1983 and 1986, the C64 outsold its competitors' products, IBM PC Compatibles, Apple Computers, and Atari 8-bit. This was achieved through selling at regular retail stores, rather than at electronics and computer specialist stores. Aproximately 10,000 software titles were made for the C64, including office productivity applications, development tools and video games. It was discontinued in April 1994, although it remains popular in society today with collectors and computer enthusiasts. In 2018, the C64 mini 'retro' console was announced, introducing a new generation to the wonders of the C64.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-33-COA2010.74A

Themes

People
Social History

Material

Non Ferrous Metal

Plastic

Width

79 mm

Height or length

88 mm

Depth

20 mm

Inscriptions and markings

Commodore International

Keywords

HONG KONG

Commodore Business Machines Pty Ltd

Year

Statement of significance

This object is part of a collection that represents the types of technology that were used on a daily basis by people who lived in worked in the City of Armadale. The collection represents how technology has influenced how people lived, worked and played within the City of Armadale. The collection also is representative of how technology evolves and can become obsolete which in turn can make pastimes, jobs and skills evolve or become obsolete.

Comparative significance criteria

Interpretive capacity

Object’s condition or completeness

Rare or representative

Well provenanced

City of Armadale - History House

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