Question for people who remember the 5200 as a new console

[David Alexander]

I just want to say that the 5200 was meant to replace the VCS as early as 1979 but computer sales made more profits so they turned the 5200 technology into the Atari 400/800 computer line.

 

You must remember that had they not done that the 5200 would have came out around 1979 and blown everybody out of the water.

 

But by the time they decided to release the 5200 as a console the technology was already getting old and that's why an upstart like Coleco could compete.

 

If the 5200 had come out in 1979 and the 7800 come out in 1982 who would care about Coleco?

 

Atari in the beginning was highly innovative company and ahead of its competition. Coleco simply took the Japanese MSX standard and brought it to the USA. Many homebrews for the Coleco are simply Sega 1000 and MSX conversions.

 

Like we mentioned in the last podcast episode the Atari 5200 was sacrificed so that the Atari 400/800 line could be realized.

 

Obviously I had this system since new back in 1983 and still think its superior to its competition and if it had come out when it was supposed to there would have been no competition

[Lynxpro]

I just want to say that the 5200 was meant to replace the VCS as early as 1979 but computer sales made more profits so they turned the 5200 technology into the Atari 400/800 computer line.

 

You must remember that had they not done that the 5200 would have came out around 1979 and blown everybody out of the water.

 

But by the time they decided to release the 5200 as a console the technology was already getting old and that's why an upstart like Coleco could compete.

 

If the 5200 had come out in 1979 and the 7800 come out in 1982 who would care about Coleco?

 

Atari in the beginning was highly innovative company and ahead of its competition. Coleco simply took the Japanese MSX standard and brought it to the USA. Many homebrews for the Coleco are simply Sega 1000 and MSX conversions.

 

Like we mentioned in the last podcast episode the Atari 5200 was sacrificed so that the Atari 400/800 line could be realized.

 

Obviously I had this system since new back in 1983 and still think its superior to its competition and if it had come out when it was supposed to there would have been no competition

 

 

The ColecoVision came out before MSX. It's just they both used the same popular chips. The Z80 was certainly popular amongst Japanese arcade companies; same with the General Instruments sound chip [which the compatible Yamaha YM2149 is the bane of most Atari ST enthusiasts]. Add to it the TI graphics chip that the ANTIC/GTIA influenced but had its own strengths being developed after Atari's wares...

[Big_Mo]

My brother got a 5200 at launch. The controllers were a pain for a lot of games, even when you got used to them. People would try the system and get frustrated.

 

It was also expensive, and since Atari keep piling on titles for the 2600, often the same ones as the 5200, a lot of people saw no reason to upgrade. All that, plus the lack of a cool pack-in title, surely did the console no favors.