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The Atari PC -- "More than just another pretty clone."

Las Vegas, NV Jan. 8 -- The audience at this morning's CES press 
conference was stunned to learn that Atari Corporation, long a 
manufacturer of proprietary, high-performance home and personal 
computers, is planning to market an IBM PC-compatible machine. 
Industry insiders, however, were quick to note that Atari has 
always been known for bringing state-of-the-art products to market 
at low prices and for driving the industry by finding and staking 
out new turf. In this context, it is less surprising that Atari 
has chosen to bring their special brand of competition where, for 
the moment, the competition is hottest. "We saw no reason to 
ignore the fact that there are profits to be made in the IBM PC-
compatible marketplace at this time." Says Neil Harris, Atari's 
Director of Marketing Communications, "especially since it is a 
different market than the one we are addressing with our high-end, 
flagship ST systems."
     Presently, the PC-compatible industry is moving in two 
directions. At the low end, a group of more-or-less anonymous 
clone makers are packaging "bare bones" systems for the mail-order 
market. Buyers of such machines often find that they must add 
several hundred dollars worth of extra hardware before their 
"bargain systems" can accomplish useful work. At the high end, 
clone makers such as Leading Edge and Compaq are providing more 
complete systems than IBM itself. At prices starting at around 
$1200 and up, however, these machines can only be considered 
bargains in comparison with the even higher cost of going with Big 
Blue.
     In designing their PC, Atari management decided to run 
counter to both dominant trends. Instead, they reasoned that by 
applying new technology and old-fashioned manufacturing leverage, 
they could bring to market a fully-loaded, state-of-the-art system 
-- a "here's everything you'll ever need" PC -- at a price-point 
low enough to undercut even the "el cheapo" clone makers.
     They appear to have succeeded. The Atari PC, which will 
retail for "around $500," is a compact and elegant system loaded 
with features not found on systems costing literally thousands of 
dollars more. Measuring about 22" square by only 2" high, the 
Atari PC system unit includes a built-in, half-height 5-1/4" 
diskette drive and integral power supply. An XT-style keyboard 
attaches to the unit via a coiled cable. A second 5-1/4" drive or 
ST-style 3-1/2" drive, capable of reading disks in either ST or 
IBM format, can be attached externally. But that's just the 
beginning.
     The Atari PC comes with 512K of RAM, expandable to 640K via 
sockets on the motherboard. Standard serial, parallel, and 
combination video ports, and an ST-style disk port, are all 
included. A mouse port, based on the Microsoft INPORT chip, is 
built in, and an ST-type mouse is included with the system. Thus, 
unlike competing PC-compatible systems, the Atari PC will be able 
to run PC GEM, Microsoft Windows, and mouse-based programs like 
Microsoft Word, right out of the box.
     The Atari PC employs an Intel 8086 microprocessor which can 
run at 4.77 Mhz and in an enhanced, 8 Mhz, "turbo mode." An 
8087 math coprocessor, running at either speed, can be added via a 
socket on the motherboard.
     As one would expect, Atari has paid special attention the 
Atari PC's graphics capabilities. Most low-cost PC compatibles 
support only the IBM Monochrome mode, and are thus text-only 
systems. A few of the more expensive clones include IBM Color 
Graphics Adapter (CGA) and/or Hercules monochrome graphics 
capabilities. IBM Enhanced Graphics Adapter (EGA) 640 x 350 x 16-
color graphics capabilities have, in the past, only been 
accessible via expensive upgrades to a system's dislay circuitry 
and the purchase of costly high-resolution monitors. Moreover, 
purchasers of the supposedly downward-compatible EGA enhancements 
have often been disappointed to discover that IBM-style EGA isn't 
as downward compatible as they hoped -- some CGA software won't 
run.
     Yet, Atari has managed to shoehorn IBM Monochrome, CGA, EGA, 
and Hercules graphics capabilities into the Atari PC. Besides the 
fact that the Atari PC is the only PC-compatible to include EGA 
graphics as a standard feature, Atari's Shiraz Shivji notes: "our 
EGA is completely downward-compatible with CGA. As a result, users 
will experience no compatibility problems when using the lower 
graphics modes." What's more, Atari has announced a $200 
monochrome greenscreen monitor for use with the Atari PC that can 
display all its graphics modes; including the high resolution EGA 
color mode, using intensity gradients (gray scales) to represent 
colors. This is the first monitor that incorporates these 
capabilities. "The monitor is intelligent," says Shivji, "and 
recognizes the frequency of signals coming from the combination 
video port, adjusting itself appropriately to display whatever 
kind of text or graphics the machine produces."
     The Atari PC is virtually 100% compatible with software 
available for the IBM PC and XT. While its slimline housing 
provides no room for mounting internal circuit cards, it is 
doubtful that more than a handful of users will require more 
capabilities than the machine provides in its off-the-shelf 
configuration. For those who do, Atari intends to provide an 
external expansion box in the near future.
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