Sean Charles: Currently our systems come with either Vista Ultimate or Vista Home Premium in 32-bit. Due to the relative newness of Vista, there are certain bumps that need to be ironed out. Our systems are running stable and smoothly and we intend to keep them that way. And of course 64-bit is something we will embrace with open arms when the time is right.
SPOnG: Jumping into the 64-bit computing arena is an interesting choice. What convinced Commodore this was the way to go? Particularly considering Vista 64-bit has some known hardware and software compatibility issues. Some geek commentators are in fact still suggesting people stick with the 32-bit version of Vista until Microsoft manages to sufficiently fumigate. Is this a concern for Commodore? Have there been any compatibility issues in testing so far?
Sean Charles: We will offer 64-bit computing when the time is right, at the moment there is still not enough support for 64-bit so we continue to ship Vista Home Premium and Ultimate 32-bit to customers. Naturally a new OS brings bugs with it. It took XP several years to be fault proof [smiles]. At the moment we are also allowing gamers to step back to XP if that is their choice.
SPOnG: Microsoft's much heralded DirectX10 is the Vista selling point for many gamers, what is Commodore's view on DirectX10? Will it one day be seen as another big turning point for PC gaming?
Sean Charles: Games that are fully utilizing Direct X 10? Are you kidding me? I can’t wait!
SPOnG: Speaking of games, we can of course get all teary and nostalgic with the included emulator and library of old Commodore games, but since the hardware business has been resurrected are there any plans to bring the software into the new millennium?
Sean Charles: While kick starting the VIC 20, Commodore did in fact develop a small handful of game titles in-house, traditionally though it hasn’t been a software company. But at Commodore Gaming we never have been quoted as saying ‘Never’.
SPOnG: The hard disk can often be the weakest link in a system these days, But with 7200 RPM SATA drives, RAID and between 250GB and 1TB capacity, Commodore's systems seem to certainly be up there for storage. Are there any plans to introduce even swifter models such as 10,000 RPM SATA drives, Western Digital's Raptor series or even the Holy Grail of performance, solid state drives, as primary storage in the future?
Sean Charles: The aforementioned hardware solutions are both options we have under consideration, but price to actual improved performance is a key factor.
SPOnG: Speaking of the future, can we expect any more surprises from Commodore for the rest of the year?
Sean Charles: Let’s just say there is some interesting stuff coming up in the next 12 months!
SPOnG: There are a few other PC vendors operating in the top-end gaming space at the moment, what does Commodore have over the competition?
Sean Charles: The other players in the high-end PC Gaming category are brands we know well and respect. We are proud to be mentioned in the same breath and feel our exclusive painting process, the library of street art, gaming concept art and that we are offering our range at retail and online is something unique in itself.
SPOnG: That should slake SPOnG's current thirst for information. Would you like to add anything?
Sean Charles: It’s good to be back!
SPOnG: Thanks for your time, Sean.