The fans are always running, sometimes quite noticeably. It's probably for the best, though, since an internal power supply would increase the size of the case a bit and contribute to heating. I'm not a fan of power bricks: I much prefer when devices hide away their power supplies. Power is supplied by a generic power-brick rather than an internal power supply. The two rear ports are side-by-side, and live in harmony with the Ethernet, HDMI, and power ports. Two are on the left and right sides of the front of the Atari VCS, and two more are on the rear of the unit. The are four USB 3.0 ports on the Atari VCS for charging controllers or installing an operating system from a USB stick (I'll get to that later on). It's sleek and unassuming, but resembles an original Atari console just enough to get a knowing nod of respect from my retro-addled brain. It's also much smaller than the machine to which it pays homage. The case for the Atari VCS resembles the original in its shape, but lacks all the clunky switches and there's obviously no cartridge port. I tested an Onyx version, which is closer to the 'Darth Vader' Atari 2600 variant, and as you can see from the photos, it's an all-black device.

It was a different time, but it's a nice retro touch here. Lots of electronics in the early 1980s had a panel of wood veneer, for some reason. Black Walnut has a splash of classic woodgrain across the front, an homage to the original system's 1980s aesthetic.

There are two different versions of the Atari VCS: the Onyx and Black Walnut variants.

It definitely doesn't justify its price tag. It sets out to do some interesting things, but it doesn't do anything unique, and it doesn't do anything well. On its official website, the Atari VCS is championed as 'blending the best of consoles and PCs,' but in reality the system is nothing more than a watered-down combination of a console and a PC. People were very excited to secure a preorder for the first new Atari console since the Atari Jaguar in the 1990s. The modern-retro Atari VCS was announced with much fanfare when it first hit IndieGogo in May 2018.

Atari vcs reviews