@BigD

I know you follow this, so...

how many mods and hacks are there now?

#6

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@number6

Yep covered in post #307 A clever hack!

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@BigD

hacks moving from forums to websites

Amigang will have a lot of links to add this week.

#6

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@number6

Yes I dont know if I will add much more to my site, I think I covered most of the big things now.

I will have to add this site though, most detail guides and faq I seen on a500 mini
https://www.retro32.com/a500-mini/190420224064-the-ultimate-a500-mini-faq-usb-whdload-workbench-adf-guide?fbclid=IwAR1GI4jWYoEc0GINlcp55Iz2jlAtJX6ugSS-_i-9fcz2yTDRSqrwlq1UmB0

Also teardown videos, but they are in German

A500 mini
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mhwTGed1rbM&ab_channel=TentelianRetro

Gamepad / mouse
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=t3c8Ujykf34&t=632s&ab_channel=TentelianRetro

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AmigaNG, YouTube, LeaveReality Studio

amigang Quote:

Price cuts already?? ... That pretty dam fast if you ask me. I think it very likely this will be under a hundred for Christmas, if not less at this rate!

Agami discussed pricing in one of these threads. Starting with a high price maximizes profit and reduces production costs for the batch thereby reducing risk. It is easier to reduce the price if there is a lack of demand than increase the price if there is too much demand. Start with too high of price and potential customers may get turned off by the greed but start too low and there could be shortages. It is difficult to estimate initial demand especially across different regions. At a time when many stores can't keep the Sony PS5 in stock, it is understandable that THEA500 would start at a little higher price to make sure they don't run out. Sony is known for maximizing unit sales and pushing the price down while Microsoft has taken advantage of the high demand and distribution problems to raise the price of the Xbox.

Microsoft Blew It on the Price of Xbox One
https://hbr.org/2013/06/microsoft-blew-it-on-the-price

It looks like THEA500 is selling briskly in the UK as expected but that may not be true in other regions. It should be a nice toy once the price drops into impulse buying range, likely for Christmas.

BigD Quote:

I've just watched my first negative review and it basically boils down to Amiga 500 purists wanting THE A500 Mini to be locked down to a simple A500 recreation! That is fine but most people (especially Americans) missed out on the AGA era so it is a perfect product for people to see what they missed in addition to the nostalgia factor! Plus an CD32 Mini will never make it to market despite being ideal for this mini console market as it simply didn't sell enough and not enough people remember it.

They just need better options for side loading like a switch between 68000+ECS and 68020+AGA or just make all UAE options available. Better would be a store with already tested games ready to download and with proper compatibility settings. This leads to another critical review.

A500 Mini: Nice toy, not a tool!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecKYgXi0-kY

The great thing about the Amiga is that it was a tool and a toy.

#6 Quote:

how many mods and hacks are there now?

An Amiga, not a toy, wouldn't need "mods and hacks". As I've said before, if this hardware is all we get for THEA500 Maxi then an Amiga comeback will be that much harder as customers will expect Amiga toys only. One of the comments from the negative THEA500 Mini review on youtube sums it up pretty well.

ncf1 Quote:

I admit I bought it for that 'nostalgia' feeling, to try and replicate that feeling of the Amiga one more time. And although the mini is simply adorable, I just didnt get the experience I wanted. Just as you say, its a flawed experience, and the joypad is simply a torture instrument - if it had an analog stick it would just about suffice, but why should I have to go buy something else? And about 50% - or even less - of downloaded lha games work right off the bat. Oh well. Perhaps a Maxi might fix things up a bit, but am i willing to shell out again? I dont think so..

THEA500 Mini is a double edged sword. It renews interest in the Amiga and shows there is a market for retro Amigas but it is only a gaming toy that does little to revitalize the Amiga user base and community.

Last edited by matthey on 23-Apr-2022 at 01:02 AM.
Last edited by matthey on 23-Apr-2022 at 01:00 AM.

@matthey

Quote:

THEA500 Mini is a double edged sword. It renews interest in the Amiga and shows there is a market for retro Amigas but it is only a gaming toy that does little to revitalize the Amiga user base and community.

That's where a VideoToaster Mini comes in! All tool, no toys! I can see the Kiki poster already!

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@amigang

Workbench Distribution for the A500 mini

#6

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@thread

RGL company news:

Quote:

new permanent RGL staff joining the team very soon

and

Quote:

we have THREE new products in parallel development right now

#6

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@number6

Funny note about copyrights, as if they only apply to kickstarts, and not to the rest.

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@kolla
Yes i find that a little odd, that they worry about the copyrights of kickstart rom but not of all the software.

True in all likelihood the companies for 90% of amiga software dont exist anymore or dont care.

It why i like Amikit at least he got permission and rights to all the stuff in its his collection.

I remember bring this up with pimiga guy and he said because its provided as non working it shouldn't be a issues. But i doubt that would really hold up in court of law and i doubt software / devs would be too happy.

I mean i kinda wish the copyright / ownership laws where a bit better on stuff like this. I know there is the term abandonware but i dont think there any legal stuff behind it and i kinda feel that should change. If the product no longer for sale, had no updates provided in 10 years, then to me there a good case fir it to be abandonware

Last edited by amigang on 24-Apr-2022 at 05:20 PM.
Last edited by amigang on 24-Apr-2022 at 05:18 PM.

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@amigang

Quote:

amigang wrote: I know there is the term abandonware but i dont think there any legal stuff behind it and i kinda feel that should change.

There is no such concept as abandonware in the legal sense. But maybe there should be, or maybe copyright durations should be tiered depending on the medium.

Books are still valid, useable, publishable, consumable, enjoyable even after a very long time since initial publication. People still read and enjoy WarAndPeace or TheThirdPoliceman eventhough they are old.

Software is a different medium and do not age as gracefully. While people will still pay for and read a 100 year old book, very few people would be willing to use (obsolete) 10 year old software.

The rate at which software ages into obsolecense is wastly different than for older media and that I think could be phrased into why it should have a different copyright horizon than other consumable media.
It would help and remove the grey-zone that preservation sites operate under today.

@number6

SDCARD READER THAT TAKES SDCARDS THAT RESEMBLE A FLOPPY!!!!!
All my dreams are coming true. I am going straight into town tomorrow to pick a couple of THEA500 boxens up.

@V8

Apparently that news is -so- yesterday.

They've moved on to attempting to change the carousel now:

PROJECT CAROUSEL USB: Amiga Anniversary Edition v1.0.0beta1

#6

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@thread

And for those who don't want to wait for a maxi, there's this from yesterday:

Building THE A1200 MAXI powered by THEA500 Mini (real keyboard & WB3.1!)

It's curious why RGL would talk about new "hires" when in 2 weeks time they've already in a sense accumulated a free work force numbering in the hundreds. heh.

#6

Last edited by number6 on 24-Apr-2022 at 01:35 PM.

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@thread

Another review worth mentioning as they have over a million subscribers:

Digital Foundry

#6

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@number6

Ah, so I was correct about the location of the uart and its function as the system’s console. Wonder if I am also right about the apparently unpopulated internal USB port as well.

Matthey take notes - this is Linux software hacking going on…

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#6 Quote:

And for those who don't want to wait for a maxi, there's this from yesterday: Building THE A1200 MAXI powered by THEA500 Mini (real keyboard & WB3.1!)

Why use a more limited and expensive THEA500 Mini instead of a Raspberry Pi? Doesn't everyone understand why the Raspberry Pi is embedded in other products? Isn't it clear why noncompetitive Amiga hardware is not embedded in other products?

#6 Quote:

It's curious why RGL would talk about new "hires" when in 2 weeks time they've already in a sense accumulated a free work force numbering in the hundreds. heh.

Maybe the new "hires" are working on something besides marketing and advertisement. We will have to see what their background is but for now they are not listed on their about page.

https://retrogames.biz/about/

kolla Quote:

Ah, so I was correct about the location of the uart and its function as the system’s console. Wonder if I am also right about the apparently unpopulated internal USB port as well. Matthey take notes - this is Linux software hacking going on…

Good 68k Amiga hardware shouldn't need Linux, ARM or hacking. Who wants to toy with a cheap toy?

Last edited by matthey on 24-Apr-2022 at 04:23 PM.

@matthey

Questioning what a hobbyist does is somewhat akin to asking "why climb that mountain"

..."because it's there". heh.

#6

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@number6

Quote:

number6 wrote: @amigang Workbench Distribution for the A500 mini #6

This is a great distribution and I can now run some WHDLoad games that I otherwise couldn't. However, I'm struggling to get the second joypad to work! I use Joymouse in WBStartup so I don't need the mouse to navigate Workbench when I'm wanting to play 2-player games!

I've amended the config file to enable the Joy0 port for the CD32 pad rather than the mouse but it doesn't work in-game! Is there a way of enabling this in the Workbench distro?

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@BigD

I suggest asking the OP on EAB, where this notice first appeared.

#6

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