We've seen a flood of modern-day mini versions of popular home computers, including the C64, ZX Spectrum, Amiga and Atari 400, but one platform which has thus far remained untapped is the Atari ST.
Released in 1985, the ST was one of the first 16-bit platforms on the market and instantly gained traction with both developers and players, but the rise of the Commodore Amiga towards the end of the decade saw the ST's user base decline.
Despite this, many (myself included) grew up with the ST and have fond memories – so the news that a new fan-made reproduction of the computer is in development got me quite excited (thanks, Tom's Hardware).
That excitement was dampened somewhat by the news that Dennis Shaw's MiniST (for that is its name) is limited to just five hand-built units – although Shaw is quick to point out that the entire venture is open source, so you can buy the required components and make your own.
Costing “approximately 350 euros” (just under $400), the MiniST is powered by a Tang Nano FPGA running the MiSTeryNano core, and comes in a tasteful black case, which is based on this design.
The MiSTeryNano core offers a “cycle exact 8 MHz 68000 CPU,” according to Shaw, and the device connects to your TV via HDMI. There are physical MIDI-IN and OUT ports, and you can connect a mouse, keyboard, and joystick via USB.