'' :; l' V:rst news, first reviews - every Has this man paid S6m to IBM? $eoret the hest ualue colnputer in Eritain Konlx &mEgm ,&t*rE ffiffiffi *&@ Gffi# ffisK F# E*€ffiF €+ =:= EXC^LUS IV E First ieview of the remarkable TOTAL ECI,PSE - page i2 a;k ; ::i New rnachine will have 3.inch drive Acorn last wecl lited a warhing shoi across soltware puhlisheru' bows - any caugtt showing ofi Archimedes pro- grams deyeloFed for the new RISC upgrade will risk excommunicatioD* This was partieutarly applied to the BBC Show held at the weekend. Acortr were keeping an eye out for exhibitors The secret new sub f150 console observers previewing new products. In all g0pub- Ho-,';e;'er iI could encour- from ioystick king Konix has been age wider s:::-...-are support by lishers have seel a[d been fiained on worked on by the ex-Sinclair team avoidrng the =r::= 3cs:s of duplicat- the uew upgrade but have been warned who are currently developing the rng onto cal,t::]3a not revolutinary -r';i:- to show ofl any work thus lar Flare micro. New Konix boss --,:_:-,'.-ai s clearly undertaken. Computer Express can also reveal irrltated bv :r::=.::: :a-k oI his the console That will apply until the Eew BISC will include a 3 inch new console a:-l :'.- :::-,=jr1:e press disk drive when it is launched next bectmes avdlable in the spring. Then, coverage lria:-= ,;s:::<s ald summer. weve sold o'. e: -:_::: -___:-- tuchimedes ueers will be aDIe to buy :: ia:e Officially, Konixs machine does not I[ we were goj:: the chips for f?9. :- -= -::: = ]t:so-e I[ew batches of tlre exist Thts is despite a prototype we'd keep as {*:: ::.: _: -: 1r -ayss:- machi*e will be fitted with the being shown to a handful of leading ble unlil the .;-_:: ::_:.,.,-,- ::-: upgrade. Bntish softwale houses at the pC Express 'They have been able to see how to Show on a strictly confidential basts His arm has cE::. :- i::-- i:..-i::; The breaches urite applications for il but they have of this confidence deLails away :::: :_, --, _ii:= .::: which have resulted in a string of all signed ron-disclosrue ageements. Nintendo On ::-i :::._.: :.:: __= published stories about the console '-r We didn't torce them to sign," consoles desrg: __.:,=- sairl an now iook lrke resulting ln Konix -: - . price have e,.::i: _-. _:::::al Acorn spokesman. "Those wlto choose turning Lo American and Japanese Holloway: lrritated by leaks and reports not to Iollow the rules may fihd thai firms for software support Flare director John Matheson claimed to have :=::. -:-:: : they tro lo[ger have acc€ss to software Industry sources have disclosed point .: -:=l refused blank to comment on o[ Iaunch, makir-g .: - :. :- :j j :.. ::: suppqt.u that the Konix console wili utilise "our agreements", a phrase which on the path to suc.-s: technology developed by ex-Sinclair may or may not refer to Konix - Wales-based Kc:-_.. :-_. :--_ ::.- :-_ team Flare Technology for its own Arnstrad and Atari have both been the Iastest gro\v_:E :t:: .--_: machine -. Konix is known to be reported as showing interest in computer wotid t.:: ::= -:::.:-. :_:== impressed with Flare's work but has FIare's work years. Lhanks la:c=.: : . -_' -:l:: j. ruled out taking its machine in its Whatever, Konlx is keen for the able worldwide s-:.-:i: :- :, ::=:: entirety on grounds of cost console design to be seen as its own king joysticks "The Elare has been designed as And further, it strongly lhe ultimate games machrne, so much so that it couldnt be sold for :"'8"::;:"1n";::1"":1 Konix: the leaked spec less than f,200,' placed one well "We want to prove that PRICE: Just below fl50 industry figure said the Europeans can do it LAUNCH: Due to be announced in Febul r Erci ft . Konix though had realised Archime&sr RISC upgrade under wraps that and do it better than should be on sale in the summer Flare was working on broadly similar Japanese than the PITCH: lt's been touted as laster than both !.E Inig: and technical lines There were discus- Thats one of the reasons ST with better graphics and sound than eit]s fr *il M sions between the firms and two we made our joysticks,' at about l5 Mips (million instrucdons per smd some additional design work has Coin-op Freescape explained a company DRIVE: A three inch double-sided disk driye tn;:rdeC h been done by Flare for Kon.ix on a insider the price. lt will also support cartridges 'six of one and Freescape, the innovative progr am- half a dozen of the The news that the con- DESIGN: "Can you imagine a console inside r other" basis _q*ck?- ming technique developed by lncen- sole will include a dou- offered one obseruer Well, no not really Bd i"E (mq tive, could turn up in the arcades. No official contracts have been ble-sided 3-inch drive, console has a strong innovative design clos = made lncentive is currently talking to signed and at this stage it is not similar to those used on machines than other consoles clear whether produc- hardware manufacturers about the Flare will be Amstrad's PCW comput- NAME: lnternally it is known as Slipsfeam U.E!€i tsE b possibilrty of building a coin-op ing its own separate machine ers, will surprise some not likely to be its commercial name, machine dedicated to running I Freescape's solid 3D toutines. How- ) ever a finished machine would be at least two years crcdit it? away. th+y wero caugiht because.tbe ln an interyiew iailed Ior a tolal oi eigh! yea$ meciine$ retaimd many eards. A with Express, Iastweekafterusingasouped MidlanrtBatrkmnputeroperator lncentive boss lan IpPGtoebnethousandsslcash rotied tie pattera of cards Andrew suggested poinicards, being eaten arrd iaformd the that Freescape in Theswhdie$hidusedthe poucts. the arcades could PG equiment run 700 ilmes flus der t4 coIy Judge Ttm Lawieilae do$$ibs alata ftom the ,gunEiflg plog taster than in its nagtretic sftips of it as a itrvolsitrg geildne current 8-bit cads otrto 6,@0 blar* "buyirg Wipment wittr whieh it -. incarnadons and cards they had stolen, is pmsible to clolre or copy thesg - wouldbe"an fhe two men &nd thet wives carda., inuedible experi- thetr eutrarked of a caslriloint Wltnthewooenweremugbt ence". spree n€tiiEg t25,{fr0 in Londoq they had atound fZ,@ lsft - . Driller: Freescape on 8-bit. Full nterview p 33 Sirn ngham a$ Wal6a*. thefu pafrners hadqone- . E NEW coMpuTER EXIRESS 1e NovEt\,4BER 1e88 -l S pricet lall as chh pruspects btighten Another hardware manufacturer has cut being cut by up to f200, the prices of its PCs due to the healthier Apart fiom the increasing availability supply of D-Ram memory chips, of chips Epson is putting its price cuts Epson has lopped [50 otf its entry down to increased demand among Ievel PCe FD which now co.sts f749. All home and small business users as other PCs in its range have enjoyed sim- opposed to corporate customels. ilar price cuts with high end machines The ffum hopes to pitch home users I'm Big, Matey with more vigour following the fl50 It must be nice to be lBM. Talking Japanese price cut. 0n chips, PC business manag- For years you happily ignore the D-Ram micro-computer revolution that's 0n tle sublect ofIpson, llle Japanese [rfi ]s er Ian Phipps commented: "The happening all around you. expe.ted ta unveil the first full c0l0i.jr llquri dls' shortage hit hardest at the supply of our When the phenomenon becomes play pafiable PC fi Tokya nert year. Ii leatuies entry level PCe... Those problems now big enough to be interesting you t.ire new Aleurral.ised Twisred Nemaiic screen . Epson PCs: All down seem to be improving." come out with your own machine wlxch is claimed ,0,havetwtce Lhe cortfist al This follows Opus' anouncement last memory chips. For months now the (not worrying too much whether it's standald screens week of price cuts across its Iange of PC hardware manufacturers have been state of the art or merely compe- Hawever. it wan't be n the UK I a lory, clones. And Atari has brought forwatd sweating out a dtought of D-Rams, Most tent.) And because you're lBM, all long tine and pefiaps nevil accrdng to a models after firms are now managing to seflre more chicken-hearted corporate buyers none taa aptimistic Epson spolesflrn Bili a the launch of its new decide they might as well play safe mono NTN version sioild be here rcst yeu. obtaining substantial batches of the reasonable supplies. and opt for your PC. Then, because there are an arrvful lot of chicken-hearted corporate buyers, most software and add-on developers decide they too had bet- ter iump on the IBM bandwagon. The resulting explosion in IBM Atari show organiser Database has argued is unfair, since lt has pald quarters where the compan! jat:tec support forces other manufacturers found itself embroiled in a strange good money to exhibit ever having received -he ::::-::a. to produce machines which can run dispute with software houses Boss John Symes told Database rnvrlalion A spokesmar. ::-; the same programs and peripher- According to Database US Gold, "You have introduced unfair competi- Express the whole storv w.i: -j-' als, causing a snowball effect which along with Ocean, had been nvited tive practice by giving free space lute fiction' and that Gold r.a= :-:: establishes IBM machines as the to sit on a panel at the show next and promotion to our larger competi- planning to attend anyway industry standard.