Here’s an Amstrad PPC640D I picked up a little while ago. It is the 640 KB, dual-floppy member of Amstrad’s PPC portable family and a close relative of the PPC512.

This was actually an accidental purchase. I was explaining to SuperNick (Nick) how eBay bidding worked. And I won it. Excellent demonstration.

The PPC hardware is built around an 8 MHz 8086-2. Amstrad gave the CPU a 16-bit path to system memory while peripheral and expansion hardware sits on an 8-bit bus. There is also provision for an 8087-2 math coprocessor. This PPC640D has the full 640 KB RAM configuration and two 720 KB 3.5-inch floppy drives.

I will probably pass this one along eventually because 8086 machines are a little before my usual nostalgia window. An 8086 just doesn’t seem as whiz-bang after seeing a 1983 Apple Lisa up and running.

The screen reminds me of a giant Game Boy when it is switched off. Once powered up, the viewing angles are truly spectacular. Spectacularly bad. I’m sure it was quite a machine in its day though.

Anyway, enjoy the video. Not much of an overview, admittedly. It was late after a fairly busy week and I had put off recording something for long enough. :)

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