Atari 2600
Unreleased Prototypes and Vaporware

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You know, I have never figured out why Atari had so many unreleased products.  It boggles the mind to think about all of the great ideas that never made it out the door.  Some say that Atari was ahead of it's time with some of these devices.  Many people feel that management was incompetent.   Whatever the reason, many products never made it off the drawing board.  Here are a few.......

Atari CX-2000 "VAL" System - The photo on the right shows a brown prototype for the Atari CX-2000 "VAL" System.   (A blue prototype also exists.)

This device was designed as a cheaper alternative to the existing 2600 console.  It combined a base 2600 unit and the joysticks into a single small unit that could be held on a tabletop, or in your lap. Cartridges were inserted into the back of the system.  There were also two joystick ports so you could use standard 2600 joysticks instead of the built-in ones.

I am told that the motherboard for this system is extremely small, and that most of the room inside the case was used for the built-in joysticks.  I saw one of the blue prototypes last summer, and the system had a very "cheap" feel to it.  I find it a bit hard to believe that consumers would buy this system, which is probably why it was never released.

It is believed that this system was designed in late 1981 or early 1982.

Atari Graduate - Atari attempted to add some true computing power to the 2600 console, and started work on a keyboard.  The result was the "Graduate" computer module.   This device was intended to give computer type functionality to the 2600 system.  Although it was actively marketed, this item was never released.

This system isn't just a keyboard though.   It featured its own processor, memory, and graphics capabilities.   Essentially, the 2600 operating system would be disabled when the keyboard was installed, and the computer OS would take over.

Since the computer had enhanced graphics capabilities, it has been rumored that several games from the Atari 400/800 computer, that were too advanced for the 2600, would be ported to the "Graduate" Operating System.  One title that I remember hearing that would be available was Caverns of Mars.

Atari had big plans for this system.  Many periphereals were in development, such as a cassette recorder, disk drive, printer, and modem. 

Does the keyboard look familiar?   Yup, it is almost identical to the one used in the Atari 400 Computer.

Thanks to the World of Atari '98 web site for the use of the photo.

White 2600jr - This is a stock 2600jr system in a white case.  I had a chance to view this system recently, and there don't appear to be any internal differences between this model, and a stock 2600jr unit.

Also note the placement of the Atari logo and the rainbow stripe.  Again, it is cosmetically different from a stock 2600.

Atari had been known to experiment with colors before releasing a product.  (Anyone ever see the brown 600XL prototype?)  I can only assume that this unit was made up to show a possible color scheme for the 2600jr.

Thanks to the Atari Historical Society for the use of their photos.

Atari 2700 - This system was simply amazing, and it never saw the light of day.  It was meant to breath some new light into the aging 2600 VCS.

The 2700 featured a few things that were later made popular by the 5200:   the main system unit had a "wedge" shape, and a compartment in the back for storing the joysticks.

Speaking of the joysticks, they were a big improvement.  First, and most importantly, they were wireless.  No more stretching cables across the room.  They also combined a joystick and paddle into one unit!  RESET and SELECT buttons were included on the joysticks as well.  The joysticks were small, and sleek.

The truly amazing thing about this system was that it was all ready to go.  Boxes were made, and advertising was ready.  WHAT HAPPENED?

After Atari canned the project, they went ahead with plans to design wireless joysticks for the 2600.  Those joysticks were based on the original joystick design for the 2600.  The end result was a joystick that had a base that was over twice the thickness of a stock 2600 joystick.  Those sticks seemed to work fine, but they were too big to hold in your hands.

Atari 2800 - The Atari 2800 was released in Japan under the Atari name, but was sold in the US under the Sears brand.

It featured a case design almost identical to the Atari 7800.  It featured 4 joystick ports, instead of the standard 2 ports on the 2600 .  New controllers featured an 8-way joystick and a paddle in the same unit.

Thanks to the Atari Historical Society for the use of their photos.