Atari 7800
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| Manufacturer | Atari, Inc., Atari Corporation |
|---|---|
| Type | Home video game console |
| Generation | Third generation |
| Release date | US: May 1986 PAL: 1987 |
| Introductory price | US$140 (equivalent to $305.88 in 2016) |
| Discontinued | January 1, 1992 |
| Media | ROM cartridge |
| CPU | Atari SALLY 6502 ("6502C") clocked at 1.19-1.79MHz, |
| Memory | 4KB RAM, 4KB BIOS ROM, 48KB Cartridge ROM Space |
| Display | 160×240, 320×240 (160×288/320×288 if PAL), 25 on-screen colours out of possible 256 |
| Graphics | MARIA custom graphics chip clocked at 7.16MHz |
| Backward compatibility |
Atari 2600 |
| Predecessor | Atari 5200 |
| Successor | Atari Panther (cancelled) |
The Atari 7800 ProSystem, or simply the Atari 7800, is a home video game console officially released by Atari Corporation in 1986. It is almost fully backward-compatible with the Atari 2600, the first console to have backward compatibility without the use of additional modules. It was considered affordable at a price of US$140.
The 7800 has significantly improved graphics hardware over the 2600, but uses the same audio chip. It also shipped with a different model of joystick than the 2600-standard CX40.
The 1986 launch is sometimes referred to as a "re-release" or "relaunch" because the Atari 7800 had originally been announced on May 21, 1984, to replace Atari Inc.'s Atari 5200, but a general release was shelved due to the sale of the company. A few units were released to test markets in June 1984 though.
The Atari 7800 ProSystem was the first game system from Atari Inc. designed by an outside company, General Computer Corporation (GCC). The system was designed in 1983-84 with an intended mass market rollout in June 1984, but was canceled shortly thereafter due to the sale of the company to Tramel Technology Ltd on July 2, 1984. The project was originally called the Atari 3600, though was later renamed the Atari 7800.
Atari had been facing mounting pressure in the form of competition from the ColecoVision, which boasted graphics that more closely mirrored arcade games of the time than Atari’s 2600 system. At the same time, the Atari 5200 (the original intended successor to the Atari 2600) had been widely criticized for not being able to play Atari 2600 games without an adapter.
GCC, which had a background in creating arcade games, designed their new system with a graphical architecture similar to arcade machines of the time. The 7800 allows a large number of moving objects (75 to 100) that far exceeds previous consoles. Powering the system is a slightly customized 6502 processor, the Atari SALLY (sometimes described as a "6502C"), running at 1.79 MHz.
In contrast to the Atari 5200, the Atari 7800 can play almost all Atari 2600 games out of the box, without the need for an adapter. In addition, it features a return to a digital controller. Then as an added bonus, GCC's programmers would also do almost all of the Atari 2600, 5200 games in 1983-1984 for Atari.To make sure the system had every bell and whistle possible, the system was slated to be released with not only a computer keyboard, but also a High Score cartridge (Designed by GCC), and a new add-on module for the Atari 5200 which would have given the Atari 5200 system full Atari 7800/2600 compatibility to ensure its existing base of 5200 owners could immediately take advantage of all the hot new games that the 7800 was capable of producing <http://www.atarimuseum.com/videogames/consoles/7800/7800menu/>
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