ColorIn is a hardware specification and development originally created by Habi to break the native monochrome limitation of the Amstrad PCW. It works by intercepting the video bus signals and the machine's timing logic in real time, injecting color palettes without altering the main CPU of the computer.
This standard provides the PCW with a total of 4 advanced graphics modes featuring dynamic color selection. It allows the execution of adapted games and software with a color fidelity that brings the PCW's visual performance closer to systems like the Amstrad CPC or the ZX Spectrum in their enhanced modes.
The PCW# mini project was born as the logical evolutionary step to unify the Amstrad PCW hardware scene. Instead of forcing users to connect multiple peripherals in a daisy chain on the limited rear expansion bus, HabiSoft designed an integrated and compact architecture on a single PCB.
This direct evolution integrated the following features into a single board/silicon:
- The complete graphics logic of the ColorIn standard.
- An integrated modern digitalized video / HDMI output for current displays.
- Two enhanced Dk'tronics Sound interfaces (TurboSound with dual AY-3-8910 chips and a DAC).
- Dual physical Joystick ports with standard mapping.
In this way, the v1.0 version by HabiSoft successfully standardized the definitive multimedia hardware for the preservation and enjoyment of the system.
Interconnection signal diagram and expansion port I/O addressing logic:
