The Commodore 64C Ultimate has shipped

The mould dates from 1986. Commodore International has put the slim 64C-cased version of its FPGA-based C64 on sale. An FPGA is a programmable chip on which old hardware is rebuilt one to one. According to the company's press release dated 27 October, preorder machines have started going out ahead of Christmas. Mind you, the official store page still says "Preorder now" for BASIC Beige and Starlight, and gives no shipping date.

The case is pressed from the original injection mould, which Commodore got back and repaired. Inside, the hardware is the same as in the breadbin Commodore 64 Ultimate released in 2025. New compared with the 2025 model: USB mouse support, a full GEOS package and a USB "cassette" carrying more than 100 games and demos. Commodore claims up to 99 per cent compatibility with old software and peripherals.

Prices before tax are as follows: BASIC Beige $299.99, Starlight (with a light-up transparent case) $349.99, Founder's (with gold-plated keys) $499.99. Tax, VAT or customs duties are added at checkout. The machines ship from warehouses in the US, the UK and the EU.

No reports have come in from 64C owners yet. The 2025 model, with the same insides, was well received, and most of the criticism went after the price. If you already have the 2025 model, don't rush. As Generation Amiga wrote in April, the 64C is first and foremost a new case.