Happy 1050 Upgrade for Atari 1050 Disk Drive
$39.99
The Happy 1050 Upgrade Board adds true double density, high speed backup, copy protected disks, and much more to Atari 1050 disk drives. Easy solderless plug-in installation!
Additional information
| Weight | 6 oz |
|---|
AtariMax
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Thank you for visiting and shopping AtariMax at 8bitclassics.com. The following are the terms and conditions that constitute our shipping policy. Shipment Processing Time All orders are processed within 1 to 2 weeks usually. Orders are not shipped or delivered on weekends or holidays. If we are experiencing a high volume of orders, shipments may be delayed by a few days. Please allow additional days in transit for delivery. If there will be a significant delay in shipment of your order, we will contact you via email. Shipping rates & delivery estimates Shipping charges for your order will be calculated and displayed during checkout. Options will vary based on speed of delivery including costs. Delivery delays can occasionally occur and out of our control. Shipment to P.O. boxes or APO/FPO addresses AtariMax ships to addresses within the U.S., U.S. Territories, and APO/FPO/DPO addresses. Shipment confirmation & Order tracking You will receive a Shipment Confirmation email once your order has shipped containing your tracking number(s). The tracking number will be active within 24 hours. Customs, Duties and Taxes AtariMax is not responsible for any customs and taxes applied to your order. All fees imposed during or after shipping are the responsibility of the customer (tariffs, taxes, etc.). Damages AtariMax is not liable for products damaged or lost during shipping unless it is found that the packing of the order was inadequate. If you received your order damaged, please contact the shipment carrier to file a claim. Please save all packaging materials and damaged goods before filing a claim. International Shipping Policy We currently ship to the following countries. Your order will be cancelled and refunded if your country is not listed here: All countries in North America, South America, and Western Europe.
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Returns You have 30 calendar days to return an item from the date you received it. To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. Your item must be in the original packaging. You will need to contact us before returning your item and it needs to have the a copy of the original receipt or invoice included. If we receive a product back without prior authorization, at our discretion, it may not be refunded and only returned to you at your expense. Shipping You will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are nonrefundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.
Questions and Answers
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stushug (verified owner) –
I installed the upgrade, and it gave my old 1050 new life and way better performance!
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Steve G. (verified owner) –
I remember when this was a $300+ upgrade that required soldering. I couldn’t afford it back then (and TBH if it was still $300 I wouldn’t buy it today) so back then I settled for the less-capable but still impressive US Doubler to improve my 1050. Over the years I acquired a number of (stock) 1050s in various states of disrepair. Recently I decided to overhaul all of them, and when I discovered this $40 solder-free Happy 1050 upgrade I just couldn’t say no. I bought five of them. 🙂
After doing a bunch of cleaning and repair work to the 1050s I installed the Happy 1050 upgrade, replacing the previous US Doublers as appropriate to my situation. Installation was dead-simple as all of my drives have socketed chips; remove two chips, install the board, done. I expected I/O performance to be equal to my US Doubler upgrade but I was surprised to discover the Happy upgrade was even a bit faster. Not by much, but it was measurable. I used CopyMate (my favorite disk copying program) to time how long it took to read and write a disk on my US Doubler drive and compared that to the Happy 1050 drive and found there to be about a 1 1/2 second improvement in both reading and writing. Now, I admit my test wasn’t exactly scientific as I was using my iPhone’s stopwatch and the Happy drive also benefited from a full set of replacement power regulators and capacitors, but even the slight boost over the US Doubler drive is worth mentioning.
I have encountered no compatibility issues, and the Happy 1050 board doesn’t interfere with the RF shield inside the 1050. The inclusion of a bootable Happy diagnostic floppy was a thankful touch, as was the inclusion of a Fireball candy and a pack of trading cards. 🙂
As someone who has been using Atari 8-bit computers for the past 40 years, if you have an Atari 1050 there is no reason for you to NOT get this upgrade. While I’m used to the performance boost due to my past US Doubler upgrade, I still vividly remember the first time I booted up my Atari with SpartaDOS on the US Doubler drive and was absolutely blown away by its performance. If you’re running a stock Atari 1050 with Atari DOS, you owe it to yourself to see what a Happy 1050 and SpartaDOS can give you.
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