| Speed | 1.79 MHz |
| Memory | 128 KB |
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| Release Date: |
1/5/1985 |
| Manufacturer: |
Atari
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Original Retail Price:
Adjusted Inflation Price:
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$299.95
$607.86*
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A direct replacement for the Atari 800 XL, the 130 XE contained
128 KB of RAM (of which the 64 KB could be used as a RAM
disk). The Atari ST line (a full 16-bit computer) was launched around
the same time, dooming the 130 XE to failure. The XE line did
however end up producing a number of offshoots including the 65
XE (64 KB version) and the XE Game System which had a
detachable keyboard and included a light gun. The 6502C MOS
processor ran a 1.79 MHz and was still based mostly on Jay Miner’s
original designs made over 5 years earlier. Although it had more
voices on its sound chip than the Commodore
64, the range was more limited.
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Atari XEP80 80 Column Interface
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| Release Date: |
1/1/1984 |
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| The Atari XEP80 Interface Module is Atari's entry to the 80 column field. It
lets a XL, XE, 400 or 800 computer system display a full 80 columns across
your monitor screen. The XEP80 provides a 256-character wide by 25-line
display window. Up to 80 characters are displayed horizontally at once, and
you can scroll horizontally all the way to the 256th character, depending on
the application you're running. The XEP80 is connected to your system via a
joystick port.
The XEP80 Module interprets commands from the computer for screen display or
output to a printer. The module is supplied with an industry-standard 8-bit
parallel port so you can connect a parallel printer to your Atari 8-bit.
All programs that use the standard screen call (E:) should be compatible with
the XEP80 Module. The software provided by Atari supports a 320x200 graphics
mode - this mode only support direct bit images. Note that you can't use all
of the standard graphic capabilities of the Atari anymore.
Although Atari recommends a monochrome monitor for usage with the XEP80, it
runs fine with any type of composite monitor. The output looks great on a
Commodore 1084 monitor for example. |
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User Comments |
Dane S on Tuesday, June 12, 2012
I bought my 130XE in 1985 and as of today, it's still running. I use it mainly for my checkbook progam and some printing. Atari had an uphill battle with the Commodore 64. It was a battle that they wouldn't win. The 130XE was a classy computer for it's time. The grey keyboard was different for it's time too.
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Anonymous on Friday, November 11, 2011
I don't think the release of the ST directly led to the failure of the XE line as the two products were quite far apart in price. By the time the XE was released the low end 8-bit market was so dominated by the C-64 that there was little room for any others in that same niche
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