NAME  

800

MANUFACTURER  

Atari

TYPE  

Home Computer

ORIGIN  

U.S.A.

YEAR  

1979

END OF PRODUCTION 

1982

KEYBOARD  

QWERTY full Stroke keyboard, 62 keys
4 function keys (Reset, Option, Select, Start)

CPU  

6502

SPEED  

1.79 MHz

COPROCESSOR  

ANTIC (Scrolling, Sprites, Video), CTIA / GTIA (Color, Sprites, Collisions), POKEY (timers, sound, keyboard, serial I/O), PIA 6810 (I/O, including the 4 joystick ports)

RAM  

8 to 48 kb (expandable with memory boards)

ROM  

10 kb

TEXT MODES 

40 x 25

GRAPHIC MODES 

Several graphic modes, maximum: 320 x 192

COLORS  

16 (each color can have 8 luminances) = 128 colors maximum in the lowest graphic mode (requiring display list interruption to have them simultaneously)
and up to 256 colors in some specific modes for machines having the GTIA chip instead of the CTIA

SOUND  

4 voices, 3.5 octaves

SIZE / WEIGHT 

40.5 (W) x 33 (D) x 11 (H) cm / 4200 g

I/O PORTS 

RGB and Composite video output
2 cartridge slots
Expansion bus
Atari Serial I/O (SIO)
4 joystick sockets
Tape recorder
4 internal slots

OS  

400/800 OS in ROM

PRICE  

ё300 (UK 1983)

 

Atari 800

Atari 800


 The Atari 400 and 800 were the first home computers to use custom coprocessors and the first to use "sprites" and special video interruptions like display lists; features that would be implemented later on the Commodore 64, then on the Commodore Amiga (Atari 400/800 and Amiga were both designed by Jay Miner).

It offered high graphic resolution,


lots of colors and great sound capabilities, more than other computers could do then! The two models had same characteristics, but the 800 had 48 KB of RAM (instead of 16 kb), two cartridge ports (only one for the 400) and a proper mechanical keyboard (a membrane keyboard for the 400).

In fact the very first Atari 800 Computers were shipped with 8 or 16 KB memory, expandable to 48 KB. After initial release, the 800 came standard with 48 KB memory.

Prior to production, the 800 was known inside Atari as code name "Colleen". It is rumored that Colleen and Candy (the 400 code name) were actually secretaries at Atari.


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