Atari PC1

Atari PC1
	Atari PC1
Specifications
Manufacturer	Atari Corporation
Type	IBM PC Compatible
Released	January 1987
Discontinued	1990
Intro price	US$699
CPU	Intel 8088-2 @ 8 MHz (switchable to 4.77 MHz)
Memory	512 KB RAM (expandable to 640 KB)
Storage	1× Chinon FZ-502 5.25" 360 KB floppy drive
Display	Onboard EGA graphics (NSI Logic EVC315-S), supporting EGA (640×350, 16 colours), CGA (640×200), and Hercules (720×348) modes
Sound	PC Speaker
OS / Firmware	MS-DOS 3.21, GW-BASIC 3.2
Successor	Atari PC2

The Atari PC1 was Atari Corporation's first IBM PC compatible computer. First unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 1987 as simply the "Atari PC", it was later retroactively designated the PC1 following the release of subsequent models. Priced at US$699, it was positioned as an affordable entry-level IBM-compatible system.

Overview

The Atari PC1 was part of Atari's strategy under Jack Tramiel to enter the lucrative IBM PC-compatible market alongside its established Atari ST line. Atari aimed to leverage its existing manufacturing to undercut competitors on price while maintaining compatibility with the growing MS-DOS software ecosystem.

The PC1 uniquely reused the chassis of the Atari Megafile 44, giving it a compact form factor distinct from most XT-class machines of the era. While this design kept costs down, it came at the expense of expandability — the system had no internal ISA expansion slots, a significant limitation compared to competing IBM-compatible systems.

Specifications

Component	Details
Processor	Intel 8088-2, switchable between 8 MHz and 4.77 MHz
Co-processor socket	Intel 8087
RAM	512 KB (expandable to 640 KB)
Graphics	Onboard NSI Logic EVC315-S EGA controller, supporting EGA (640×350, 16 colours from 64-colour palette), CGA (640×200, 4 colours), and Hercules (720×348, monochrome) modes
Storage	1× Chinon FZ-502 5.25" 360 KB floppy drive
Expansion	None (no internal ISA slots)
Ports	Mouse port (Atari ST compatible), external floppy drive port (Atari ST compatible), monitor port, RS-232 serial port, Centronics parallel port
Keyboard	Atari 83-key XT keyboard
Mouse	Atari PCM1 (relabelled Atari STM1)
Sound	PC Speaker

Bundled Software

The PC1 shipped with:

Microsoft MS-DOS 3.21
GW-BASIC 3.2
Digital Research GEM Desktop EGA v2.1
GEM Write v1.0
GEM Paint v2.0

The inclusion of GEM provided a graphical user interface similar to that found on the Atari ST, offering a familiar environment for existing Atari users transitioning to MS-DOS.

Compatible Peripherals

Atari PCM-124 — 12" EGA monochrome monitor
Atari PCH204 — 20 MB external hard drive
External floppy disk drive (Atari ST compatible)

Upgrades

Due to the compact Megafile 44 chassis, upgrade options were limited:

RAM upgrade from 512 KB to 640 KB
Intel 8087 co-processor (socket provided)
NEC V20 CPU upgrade (requires desoldering the original 8088 processor)
Atari PCH204 20 MB external hard drive
External floppy disk drive via the Atari ST-compatible port

Reception and Legacy

While the PC1's US$699 price point was competitive for 1987, the system faced criticism for its lack of expansion slots and single floppy drive configuration. In an era where most PC software required two floppy drives, buyers needed to purchase an external drive, negating much of the cost advantage. The absence of expansion slots also meant the system could not be upgraded with newer VGA graphics cards or, later, sound cards.

The PC1's limitations quickly earned it a reputation for being non-expandable, which unfortunately carried over to subsequent, more capable models in the Atari PC line. Despite its shortcomings, the PC1 represents an interesting footnote in both Atari's history and the broader IBM PC clone market of the late 1980s.

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