I just came across this interesting bit of computing history.
Back in 1982, there was a peripheral that turned an Atari 2600 into an (incredibly simple, ZX-81 level) home computer, including a keyboard, BASIC, and cadette support.
But the addon is/was incredibly rare, and there's very little information about it online.
So it's interesting to see there's now a video up on YouTube profiling this device (known as a Spectravideo CompuMate) and how it works...
I've got one remark on this: the thing that this addon turned the 2600 into was way *below* 1982 #ZXSpectrum tech standards and specs in many ways. Just take a look and compare memory and screen resolution and you'll see. Not to mention the rich BASIC functionality of Sinclair BASIC.
Also, that addon came too late in many ways to be profitable as some of the real computers of the time (see above) were less costy and easier to get than this rather limited piece of addon hardware.
@ajsadauskas@technology@videogames@retrogaming come to think of it: the same year that the addon was released, Tandy released the #CoCo2 for an initial retail price of $159 - to me this shows how quickly prices for components dropped and tech evolved while the fierce competition (at least in the US market) made prices drop every month.
... and yes, as we all know #JackTramiel played a big role in this effect ...
Upon reading the Phoenix history of video games by Leonard Herman, I was amazed at how many times this was attempted with so many different consoles. Companies really wanted to go after the market of folks who wanted some kind of computer without paying the price for a real one.