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 The Atom was Acorn's first computer to be aimed squarely at the home market. | |
| Manufacturer | Acorn Computers |
|---|---|
| Type | Personal Computer |
| Release date | March 1980 |
| Introductory price | £120 (in kit form), £170 (assembled) |
| Discontinued | 1982 |
| Media | 100KB 5¼-inch floppy disks, Cassette tapes |
| CPU | 1 MHz MOS Technology 6502 |
| Memory | 2 KB RAM (expandable to 12 KB), 8 KB ROM (expandable to 12 KB) |
| Display | 64×64 (4 colours), 64×96 (4 colours), 128×96 (monochrome), 64×192 (4 colours), 128×192 (2 colours), 256×192 (monochrome) |
| Sound | 1 channel, internal loudspeaker |
| Input | Keyboard |
| Power | 8V, 1.5A unregulated DC, 5V regulated inside. |
| Dimensions | 381×241×64 mm |
| Predecessor | Acorn System 3 |
| Successor | BBC Micro |
The Acorn Atom is a home computer made by Acorn Computers Ltd from 1980 to 1982,[1] when it was replaced by the BBC Micro. The BBC Micro began life as an upgrade to the Atom, originally known as the Proton.
The Atom was a progression of the MOS Technology 6502-based machines that the company had been making from 1979. The Atom was a cut-down Acorn System 3 without a disk drive but with an integral keyboard and cassette tape interface, sold in either kit or complete form. In 1980 it was priced between £120 in kit form, £170 (equivalent to £921 in 2023) ready assembled, to over £200 for the fully expanded version with 12 KB of RAM and the floating-point extension ROM.[2]
- ^ Acorn Atom computer, Science Museum Group. Object collection number Y2002.13
- ^ Whytehead, Chris. "Acorn Atom Computers". Chris's Acorns. The Centre for Computing History. Archived from the original on 19 November 2022. Retrieved 28 January 2024.