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Plus

1,308 bytes added, 14:09, 16 October 2006
Intro added
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== Introduction ==
 
In 1990 Amstrad introduced the "Plus" series which tweaked the hardware in many ways and added a cartridge slot to all models. Most improvements were to the video display which saw an increase in palette to 4096 colours and gained a capacity for hardware sprites. Splitting the display into two separate windows and pixel scrolling both became full supported hardware features although both were possible on the non-"Plus" hardware using clever programming of the existing Motorola 6845.
 
An automatic DMA transfer system for feeding the sound chip was also added but the sound chip itself remained unchanged. Additionally, the BASIC command set for disc access was improved.
 
A cut down CPC+ without the keyboard nor support for non-cartridge media was released simultaneously as the GX4000 video game console.
 
These models did not do very well in the marketplace, failing to attract any substantial third party support. The 8-bit technology behind the CPC was starting to look a little out of date by 1990 and users resented the substantial price hike for cartridge games compared to their tape and disc counterparts. It's often forgotten that Europe had a large CPC following well supplied by Amstrad it's said the plus machines sold best in France.
 
''(Taken from Wikipedia.org)''
== The CPC Plus ==
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