SAM-64, a Commodore 64 inspired Demo running on a Sam Coupé Computer (MiSTer FPGA)

#misterfpga #demoscene #samcoupé

The SAM Coupé is a British home computer that was introduced in late 1989 by a company called Miles Gordon Technology (MGT). It was designed to be an upgrade from the popular ZX Spectrum, offering improved graphics, sound, and memory capabilities.

The SAM Coupé comes with a Z80 CPU clocked at 6 MHz, which was quite fast for an 8-bit machine at the time. It also has 256 KB of RAM, which can be expanded to 512 KB. One of the standout features of the SAM Coupé is its advanced video modes, with the highest mode capable of displaying 16 colors out of a 128-color palette.

Despite its advanced features, the SAM Coupé struggled to gain popularity in the market due to the rise of more powerful 16-bit computers like the Atari ST and Commodore Amiga. The lack of commercial software titles and some initial bugs in the ROM also contributed to its limited success. Unfortunately, MGT went bankrupt in 1990, but the SAM Coupé continued to be produced by other companies until around 1992.

The SAM Coupé was kept alive by retro computing enthusiasts who continued to write software for it. It is appreciated for its innovative design and capabilities, and there is still a dedicated community of users who develop new software and hardware for the machine.

The SpectrumNext today is a mode modern approach to expand upon the original Spectrum design.

Thanks for watching, Mark