 |
 |
|
|
|
| Magnificent
seven lead out by Atari |
|
| When
the wreckage was cleared
away and the bodies removed,
the score at last week's
Consumer Electronics Show
in Las Vegas was Atari 5,
Commodore 2. |
|
| 'Business
is War,' says Atari boss
Jack Tramiel, and his new-look
corporation went for every
jugular in sight, as its
multiple product launch
stopped the show. Commodore
hit back, but was beaten
for panache, scope, and
sheer nerve. The rest were
nowhere. |
|
| The
Atari slogan at Las Vegas
was 'Power without the Price'.
When the dust settles and
the machines get the chance
to prove themselves, we'll
know about the power; but
the prices are amazing.
On paper Atari has killed
off the Macintosh, the QL
and any number of mid-range
micros in one fell swoop. |
|
| That's
on paper. Coleco made a
splash along the same lines
at the same show two years
ago, and in the end it couldn't
deliver. Atari's machines
look far more ambitious,
but with Tramiel involved
anything could happen. |
|
| As
he'd promised before Christmas,
Atari had complete families
on show at Las Vegas. The
XE line of 8-bit systems
are direct descendants of
the 800XL; the ST twins
break new ground for Atari
with Motorola 68000 processors.
For good measure there were
also new peripherals and
some startling software.
Members of the Tramiel family
were also in evidence. |
|
|
| From
the bottom: the 65XE is
an 800XL with a face-lift,
but the differences aren't
all superficial. The XE
range has re-jigged circuitry,
with the result that they
are visibly faster than
the 800XL and reputedly
more reliable. The 65XE
will cost about $120. |
|
| The
65XEM adds a music synthesiser
to the basic design - its
price will be under $160.
The 65XEP is a luggable
version of the 65XE, with
a built-in 3.5in floppy
drive and a 5in monochrome
monitor, for about $400. |
|
| At
the top of the XE range
is the 130XE, with 128K
to the 64K of the others.
This machine will reach
US shops later this year
with a price tag of about
$200. Like the others, it's
driven by a 6502 with a
new version of Atari DOS.
Owners of the 800XL are
promised an upgrade from
their DOS 3.0 to the new
version, and Atari is claiming
compatibility with all 800XL
software for the new systems. |
|
| The
XE range looked good in
its own right, but it turned
out to be just an appetiser
before the main course -
the 130ST and the 520ST.
Both machines run a 68000
processor with a proprietary
operating system that is
still called TOS (Tramiel
Operating System). Anybody
who thought that this might
be a temporary name while
something more suitable
was devised looks like being
disappointed. Tramiel seems
to be making a bid for immortality
in more ways than one. |
|
|
|
|
| Issue
95 - January 19th 1985 |
|
|
|
|
