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See :''Main article: [[Atari 2600 Hardware]].''
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{{Emulation|[[emulation:Atari 2600 emulators|Atari 2600 emulators]]}}
{{WIP}}{{Template:Infobox console
|Manufacturer = [[Atari]]
|Generation = [[:Category:Second_generation|Second generation]]
|Media type = ROM cartridge, tape
|Input controller = joystick, paddles, driving controller, track-ball, keypad
|Predecessor = [[Atari Pongconsoles]]
|Successor = [[Atari 5200]]
}}
Imbued with a mere 128 bytes of RAM, the Atari 2600 was originally designed to play Pong variations, simplistic action games, crude racing simulations, rudimentary educational titles, and the like. However, with the release of Space Invaders in 1980, the system skyrocketed in sales and became a mainstay of arcade conversions.
In 1980, after a limited marketing test in 1979, Mattel released its [[Intellivision]] system nationwide, setting the stage for the first true console war. Bolstered by a scries of commercials starring spokesman George Plimpton, the lntellivision had superior graphics and sounds and more power under the hood. Nevertheless, the Atari 2600 maintained a dominant following, thanks to its plethora of popular arcade titles and its propensity for fast-action games that were easy to pick up and play. By 1983, however, due in part to competition from other systems (like the [[ColecoVision]] and the [[Atari 5200]]) and a multitude of inferior titles cranked out by certain third-party companies, the shine began to wear off the aging console. By 1984, the Atari 2600 was all but dead, a victim of the fabled Great Videogame Crashgreat video game crash.
==Technical specifications==
*PIA 6532 - (128 bytes RAM, I/O Ports, Timer)
===CPU and Memorymemory===
*'''CPU''': MOS 6507, 8bit, 1.19MHz (cutdown 6502 with only 8K address space)
*'''RAM''': 128 bytes (additional 128 or 256 bytes in some cartridges)
*'''Sprites''': 2 sprites of 8pix width, 3 sprites of 1pix width
===Input/Output Portsoutput ports, Audioaudio, Timertimer===
*'''I/O''': two 8bit I/O ports, six 1bit input ports
*'''Timer''': one 8bit timer (with prescaler; 1,8,64,1024 machine cycles)
*'''Audio''': two sound channels (with frequency, volume, noise control)
===Console Switchesswitches===
*'''Switches''': color/mono switch (PAL/NTSC only), and two difficulty switches
*'''Buttons''': select button, reset button (or switches in older consoles)
*'''Slot''': one 24 pin cartridge slot (with 4K address bus)
*'''Controls''': two 9 pin joystick ports (also used for paddles, keyboards)
*'''TV''': one Cinch Socket socket (video/audio TV signal)
*'''Power''': 9V DC, 500mA (internally converted to 5V DC)
==Atari 2800==
The '''Atari 2800 ''' is the Japanese version of the Atari 2600, released in October 1983. It never captured a large market in Japan because it was released a short time after the [[Nintendo Entertainment System|Nintendo Famicom]], which became the dominant console in the Japanese video game market of the time.
Codenamed "Cindy", the Atari 2800 had four controller ports instead of the standard two on the Atari 2600's. The controllers are an all-in one design using a combination of an 8-direction digital joystick and a 270-degree paddle.
Sears liked the design of the Atari 2800 so much, they opted to sell a version under their Tele-Games label. It was released in the US in 1983 as the Sears Video Arcade II, and was packaged with 2 controllers and Space Invaders.
==Atari 2600 Jr.==
[[File:Atari-2600-Jr-Console.jpg|thumb|230px|Atari 2600 Jr.]]In 1985, a new version of the 2600 was released (although it had been planned for release two years earlier). The new redesigned version of the 2600, unofficially referred to as the 2600 Jr., featured a smaller cost-reduced form factor with a modernized [[Atari 7800]]-like appearance. The redesigned 2600 was advertised as a budget gaming system (under $50) that had the ability to run a large collection of classic games. With its introduction came a resurgence in software development both from Atari Corp. and from a few third parties (including Activision, Absolute Entertainment, Froggo, Epyx, and Exus). The Atari 2600 continued to sell in the USA and Europe until 1991, and in Asia until the early 1990s.
==Hardware==
== Gallery =====Power Supplysupply ===<gallery position="center">
Atari 2600 power supply 01.jpg
Atari 2600 power supply 02.jpg
</gallery>
==Games==
Former Atari employees founded the earliest example of the third-party game publisher. Alan Miller, designer of early launch titles like ''Surround'' and ''Basketball'', left with fellow designers Bob Whitehead, Larry Kaplan, and David Crane to form Activision in 1979 with the help of music lawyer Jim Levy. Atari unsuccessfully pursued legal action for a while to keep Activision from publishing games on ther platform. Another publisher, Imagic, was founded by Atari and Mattel Electronics alumni the following year.
The Atari 2600, which never featured any kind of copy protection, was mobbed as publishers as diverse as Parker Brothers to CBS began making and publishing video games. The flood of games and lack of quality control from other companies left many customers dissatisfied, which eventually became another factor in the 1983 Video Game Crashvideo game crash.
[[Category:Console]]
[[Category:Second generation]]
