800XE

The Atari 800XE, released in 1987, was part of Atari’s strategy to rebrand and repackage its 8-bit line for the European market. Despite its name, it had more in common with the 65XE than the original Atari 800. Featuring 64KB of RAM, the ANTIC/GTIA/POKEY chipset, and a sleek ST-style case, the 800XE was fully compatible with Atari’s extensive 8-bit software library. It was mainly sold in Eastern Europe (particularly Poland, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia), where it played a major role in the computing boom of the late 1980s. In many households, it was the first affordable home computer.

Notable Features

• Internally nearly identical to the 65XE, just with regional branding
• Typically lacked Enhanced Cartridge Interface (ECI) or full Parallel Bus Interface (PBI)
• Full compatibility with earlier Atari 8-bit software and most peripherals
• Widely used for gaming, BASIC programming, and educational software in schools
• Durable and affordable — popular in Eastern Bloc countries even after the fall of the Iron Curtain

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Historical Significance

• Marketed exclusively in Europe — never officially sold in North America
• Helped Atari maintain dominance in Eastern Europe’s 8-bit market well into the 1990s
• Supported by vibrant local scenes in Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the GDR
• Often bundled with pirated disks and cassette libraries due to scarcity of software imports
• Collectors often confuse it with the 800 due to its name, but it's a completely different system

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Collector's Notes

• Rarity: Moderate – common in Eastern Europe, less so in North America
• Desirability: High for collectors of international Atari variants
• Common Issues:
  • Yellowing plastic, especially on spacebar and top keys
  • Non-functional keyboard matrix due to worn traces
  • Missing or incomplete ECI port in later production runs
• Display Tips: Best presented with Eastern European software cassettes, an XF551 drive, and classic Atari joystick like the CX40

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	800XE
Manufacturer	Atari
Launched	Sunday, February 1, 1987
Discontinued	Early 1990s
Launch Price	1,000–2,000 zł or DM (region-dependent pricing)
Country	United States
CPU	MOS 6502C @ 1.77 MHz (PAL only)
Units Sold	Estimated hundreds of thousands (mostly in Eastern Europe)
Power	External 5V DC power brick
Storage	Compatible with XF551 floppy drive and XC12 cassette via SIO
Expansion	SIO port, usually no PBI or ECI (varied by batch)
Cartridge Slot	1 × front-loading port
Keyboard	Full-travel 61-key keyboard
Sound	4-channel sound via POKEY chip
Graphics	Hardware sprites (Player/Missile), color scrolling, programmable palette
Display	ANTIC + GTIA: Up to 320×192 resolution, 16 colors
ROM	24KB (includes Atari BASIC, OS, and I/O routines)
RAM	64KB