Author Topic: A new z80 calc... in color?  (Read 68072 times)

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Offline DrDnar

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #135 on: November 10, 2012, 09:14:43 pm »
All electronic devices draw power when turned off, unless the on/off switch is a physical flip switch wired in series with the batteries. For example, the TI-84+ draws 100 microamps when turned off. Even if you remove the four AAAs, the RAM still continues to be powered from the button cell. The only way to truly turn off a device is to remove all batteries (which may be impossible; for example, some RTC ICs have a battery built into the chip package) and discharge all capacitors.
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Offline DJ Omnimaga

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #136 on: November 10, 2012, 09:17:48 pm »
One thing I wonder (although offtopic) is how NES cartridges that use backup batteries to keep saved files intact still manage to retain the data/have working batteries even after 25 years, despite most batteries having an expiration date?
« Last Edit: November 10, 2012, 09:17:56 pm by DJ_O »

Offline chickendude

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #137 on: November 11, 2012, 02:23:10 am »
I had to replace the battery to my old Pokémon silver cartridge when i pulled the game out to play some time last year because saved games weren't working anymore.

Offline willrandship

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #138 on: November 11, 2012, 03:00:10 am »
DJ, the batteries do wear out, but it's helped by the system being able to charge them. This helps extend the life as long as the battery can hold out until the next play session, which may well be 10x to 20x its labeled "life-span"

Offline DrDnar

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #139 on: November 11, 2012, 03:30:11 am »
Also, SRAM uses very little power when it's not actively being read/written.

On the other hand, the Sonic 3 cart doesn't have a battery. Instead, it uses an alternative to flash/EEPROM called FRAM, so your Sonic 3 saves can last indefinitely.
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Offline DJ Omnimaga

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #140 on: November 11, 2012, 05:13:25 am »
I see, thanks for the explanation. Back in the days I was sure that cartridges used some sort of ROM or chip to keep data saved until a friend lent me a copy of Super Metroid where saved data kept vanishing every few day. I was told that it was a dying battery or something, but that was only 3 years after the game came out. My Ys III: Wanderers from Ys cartridge had the same problem, but back then I thought that the fact it had 15 save slots (which was very uncommon for a SNES game) was just too much for the battery lol. The Illusion of Gaia copy I tried had similar issues, but far less worse. Years later I was shocked to see many of my NES/SNES games with their save data intact (the last time I checked, only Secret of the Stars kept losing its data). I wonder what could cause batteries to die faster or something...

At least I'm glad my calcs kept my data protected more reliably :P
« Last Edit: November 11, 2012, 05:15:38 am by DJ_O »

Offline aeTIos

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #141 on: November 11, 2012, 08:39:29 am »
PRIZM batteries last 1-2 months with ~2-4hr. of usage... for me at least. Do TI calc use more battery?
The nspire does, not in the least because it has almost3 times the processing power of the prizm. (When not overclocked at least)
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Offline Yeong

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #142 on: November 11, 2012, 08:48:06 am »
from my experience, I think CX lasted a month or so with me keep on playing FF6 Advance quite a lot with overclocking.
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Offline Keoni29

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #143 on: November 11, 2012, 08:52:13 am »
I see, thanks for the explanation. Back in the days I was sure that cartridges used some sort of ROM or chip to keep data saved until a friend lent me a copy of Super Metroid where saved data kept vanishing every few day. I was told that it was a dying battery or something, but that was only 3 years after the game came out. My Ys III: Wanderers from Ys cartridge had the same problem, but back then I thought that the fact it had 15 save slots (which was very uncommon for a SNES game) was just too much for the battery lol. The Illusion of Gaia copy I tried had similar issues, but far less worse. Years later I was shocked to see many of my NES/SNES games with their save data intact (the last time I checked, only Secret of the Stars kept losing its data). I wonder what could cause batteries to die faster or something...

At least I'm glad my calcs kept my data protected more reliably :P
I had this problem too with my copy of super metroid. I wound up replacing the battery.
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Offline DJ Omnimaga

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #144 on: November 11, 2012, 03:39:45 pm »
from my experience, I think CX lasted a month or so with me keep on playing FF6 Advance quite a lot with overclocking.
I wonder if some older programs might just use instructions taking more battery power, because when I play some games my battery got depleted faster.

Also the Cemetech topic got slashdotted :D. They had about 2500 guests online at once at one point! O.O

I hope Ticalc.org picks up the news soon (although based on the first comments on this page, I bet it will probably take until TI announces it themselves http://www.ticalc.org/archives/news/articles/14/147/147217.html )
« Last Edit: November 11, 2012, 04:05:05 pm by DJ_O »

Offline critor

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #145 on: November 11, 2012, 03:56:01 pm »
More informations on the TI-84 Plus C:


Source:
http://tiplanet.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=10736

Offline DJ Omnimaga

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #146 on: November 11, 2012, 04:05:30 pm »
Wow nice. I think this should also be in omni news :D. However, is it really confirmed that the calc has a z80 processor and that it's fully compatible? It says that it has all functionalities of the 84+, but it doesn't state that the calc has the exact same processor and that it runs ASM programs from the 84+. Couldn't it be an emulated Z80? On top of that, I read that the Z80 can't be overclocked at more than 25 MHz, so I wonder how slow things will be to display on the screen...




Also I wonder how much space that would take on a TI-84+ C SE? O.O



(That's from Zelda DLQ btw)

EDIT: What DCS in color could look like (although pixelated)



Picture taken from http://www.cemetech.net/news.php?year=2004&month=4&id=38

And ROL3, remade with sprites from the ROL0 remake and a rushed Lekens sprite:

« Last Edit: November 11, 2012, 04:09:44 pm by DJ_O »

Offline willrandship

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #147 on: November 11, 2012, 05:07:50 pm »
Are they basing the fact that it's a z80 processor off of this?
Quote
TI has begun previewing the soon to be released TI-84 Plus C Silver Edition graphing calculator. This product will be available in the Spring of 2013. The TI-84 Plus C Silver Edition has all the functionality of the best-selling TI-84 Plus family of graphing calculators - now with color and TI Rechargeable Battery.

If so, I'm still skeptical, (after all, the nspire had "all the capabilities of a TI-84+" but it was not z80.) but if they got confirmation from TI elsewhere...

Functionality does not imply compatibility. Keep in mind this is the marketing department.
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Offline Adriweb

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #148 on: November 11, 2012, 05:17:33 pm »
Yes, I got confirmed it's a z80.

More details/answers are coming "soon" and HD photos in early January.


edit : lolz dilbert.
« Last Edit: November 11, 2012, 05:19:03 pm by adriweb »
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Offline squidgetx

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Re: A new z80 calc... in color?
« Reply #149 on: November 11, 2012, 05:24:42 pm »
Is a z80 processor going to be enough for driving a color screen? Or will we see some not-shitty screen drivers (at last :O)? I wonder how fast the processor is going to be...