An Amiga screen is a software-defined display area, not the physical monitor. Its mode determines pixel dimensions, color options, interlace and signal timing; the Amiga’s chipset and monitor driver, along with the connected display, determine which modes you can actually use.
What is an Amiga screen?
The Workbench Fundamentals manual describes a screen as a display area with properties such as resolution, size and number of colors. Workbench is the first screen shown after startup, but applications can open their own screens. Multiple screens can be open at once and may overlap. A screen can also be larger than the monitor’s visible area, so moving around it may reveal content beyond the current view.
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Mini External OLED AMIGA Floppy Drive Emulator Like Gotek For Amiga 500/500+/600/1200 | $37.50 | Buy on Amazon |
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Amiga E - Programming Base | $9.99 | Buy on Amazon |
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AmigaOS 3.1 - user's manual - Volume One | $29.99 | Buy on Amazon |
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Classic AmigaOS Programming: An introduction (Amiga Programming) | $24.50 | Buy on Amazon |
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The monitor is the physical device receiving the video signal. A screen mode describes how the Amiga generates that signal and arranges the picture. Its pixel dimensions alone do not establish that a particular monitor can display it.
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Which Amiga screen mode should I use?
Choose a mode by balancing its resolution, color capacity, flicker behavior and compatibility with both the Amiga and monitor. These are representative classic modes, not guarantees of the exact visible area on every system; chipset, monitor drivers and overscan settings matter.
#1 Best Overall
- Full size replica of the Amiga 1200
- Full size working keyboard.
- High Definition multi region output at 50 or 60Hz.
- 25 fantastic built in games presented on an easy-to-use carousel, including: Settlers II, Defender of the Crown I & II, the Turrican trilogy, Beneath a Steel Sky, Lure of the Temptress, and Ruff ‘n’ Tumble.
- Four USB ports to support gamepads, mouse, joysticks, and USB sticks.
| Mode example | Nominal pixels | Representative color capability | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| NTSC lores | 320×200 | Up to 32 colors in the representative classic mode | Standard NTSC example; availability depends on system configuration. |
| PAL lores | 320×256 | Up to 32 colors in the representative classic mode | Standard PAL example; availability depends on system configuration. |
| NTSC hires | 640×200 | Up to 16 colors in the representative classic mode | More horizontal pixels than lores, with a lower representative color limit. |
| PAL hires | 640×256 | Up to 16 colors in the representative classic mode | More horizontal pixels than lores, with a lower representative color limit. |
| ECS SuperHires | 1,280 pixels wide | 4 colors in the representative mode table | Requires ECS support and a suitable active monitor driver. |
These values are documented in the AmigaOS manuals and the Classic Graphics Primitives reference. Overscan can extend the visible area beyond nominal dimensions, and interlaced modes use doubled vertical pixel counts; neither changes the need to check the actual display timing.
Color modes: lores, hires, HAM and EHB
In representative classic modes, increasing horizontal resolution commonly reduces the number of simultaneously available colors: lores offers up to 32, hires up to 16, and ECS SuperHires four. These are mode-specific figures, not universal limits for every Amiga configuration.
Rank #2
- Features: - Very compact size - the width only 53 mm (will not interfere with other ports) - Weight - only 57g - Already flashed to Flashfloppy 3.41 firmware. - Connected directly to Disk Drive port (no additional cable required) - Powered directly from Disk Drive port (no additional power supply required) - comes with 3D printed case - OLED screen
- All you need to do is connect your Mini External Gotek into your Amiga Disk Drive port, connect USB Pendrive (not included) with games and copy 2 necessary files (USB pendrive not included). You need to download this software: github.com/keirf/FlashFloppy/wiki/Downloads and copy 2 files from archive into the root of your USB pendrive: - HxC_Compat_Mode/Amiga/AUTOBOOT.HFE - HxC_Compat_Mode/HXCSDFE.CFG Then copy your *.adf games and programs anywhere in your USB Pen Drive.
- You can boot from your Gotek external connected to Disk Drive connector from your Amiga 500+, 600, 1200. Simply please click right and left button mouse same time and in boot menu choose DF1. You can also use this external Gotek on Amiga 500 but you will need a boot selector.
- Most Important: 1.The USB Pen Drive is NOT included. 2.The DF0/DF1 boot selector is necessary for Amiga 500. Some games or programs require to run on DF0. Amiga 500 can use the boot selector to solve this problem. We also provide Internal Gotek Floppy Drive Emulator as DF0.
EHB (Extra-Half-Brite) provides 32 base colors and 32 half-intensity versions, for 64 displayed colors. HAM (Hold-And-Modify) uses encoding restrictions to produce many more colors than a conventional palette mode. The documented original-chipset HAM mode has a 4,096-color palette, but that does not mean every pixel can freely select every palette entry.
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AGA expands color capability. Its documentation says standard color modes can show up to 256 colors selected from a 16.8-million-color palette, while HAM-8 can display over 256,000 colors simultaneously. These figures describe documented AGA modes, not all Amiga models.
Rank #3
Interlace and flicker
Interlace doubles the vertical pixel count, but alternating fields can make a screen visibly flicker on some monitors. Whether that is acceptable depends on the display and the user; a larger nominal vertical resolution does not automatically make a better everyday Workbench mode. AGA mode promotion can reduce flicker on standard 15 kHz screens. Older machines may need additional hardware for flicker reduction.
Will my monitor work with an Amiga?
Match the selected mode’s scan rate to the monitor’s supported horizontal and vertical scan ranges, then verify that the input connector and the Amiga’s output path are compatible. The AmigaOS Workbench Monitors manual distinguishes standard 15 kHz video monitors, 31 kHz VGA-only monitors and multiscan displays that accept a range. It names the Commodore 1084 series as an example of a 15 kHz video monitor; that historical example is not a claim about the availability or condition of any individual unit.
- 15 kHz video monitor: Suitable for standard PAL/NTSC video modes when the specific monitor and connection support them.
- 31 kHz VGA-only monitor: Accepts 31 kHz modes, not standard 15 kHz output. Do not assume that a mode with suitable-looking pixel dimensions will work.
- Multiscan monitor: Supports a range of scan rates, but you still need to confirm the chosen mode falls within its specifications.
AGA’s DBLNTSC and DBLPAL modes are chipset-specific; the manual notes that some VGA-only monitors do not support them. For video work, it recommends disabling AGA Mode Promotion or choosing a standard NTSC/PAL mode if the application permits, because video devices require 15 kHz output. A mode that works for Workbench may therefore be unsuitable for a video device or an application with its own display requirements.
How to try a screen mode safely
Workbench’s ScreenMode preferences show the modes made available by active monitor drivers. A mode absent from that list is not selectable there under the current configuration. Applications may offer or require their own modes, so changing the Workbench default does not control every program.
- Open Workbench ScreenMode preferences. The preference editor is identified in the documentation as Workbench/Prefs/ScreenMode.
- Choose a listed mode only after checking the Amiga model and chipset, active monitor driver, mode timing, and monitor scan-rate and input specifications.
- Select Use to test the mode for the current session. This is safer than immediately making an unverified mode the default.
- If the picture is stable and usable, select Save to make the choice the Workbench default. If the display is incompatible, avoid saving that mode and return to a supported choice.
The Workbench Preferences manual explains the preference workflow, while the Workbench Monitors manual covers mode and monitor compatibility. Consult those references for the relevant configuration: Workbench Preferences, Workbench Monitors, Workbench Fundamentals and Classic Graphics Primitives.
Why does my Amiga screen flicker?
Interlace is a common mode-related cause: it increases vertical pixel count but can flicker on some monitors. If the mode is interlaced, try a suitable non-interlaced mode that the Amiga and monitor both support. On AGA systems, mode promotion may reduce flicker for standard 15 kHz displays; for older machines, flicker reduction may require extra hardware. Do not trade a stable picture for a nominal resolution increase without checking the display and the needs of your application.
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