Atari to kick off preorders for the Atari 2600-inspired Ataribox on 14 December

Having teased the **Ataribox** first at E3 earlier this year followed by a clearer unveiling in July, console-game maker **Atari** is likely to begin preorders for its Atari 2600-inspired console. The preorders are supposed to go live on Thursday 14 December. [caption id=“attachment_4089513” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] A sneak peek at the upcoming Ataribox console. Image: Atari[/caption] For the uninitiated, the Ataribox is the company’s modern take on its popular 1977 release, the Atari 2600 (also known as the Atari VCS). As per a report by CNET, Atari sent out emails to consumers who had shown interest in the console. Potential buyers who had signed up for email alerts will have a chance of getting their hands on the console at a discount. However, Atari did mention in the mail that the deal will be “extremely limited”. Not much else was revealed in the mail. Based on what we know from an earlier report, the Ataribox is expected to start shipping in the spring of 2018, with expected prices to range between $250 and $300. The console is also expected to be powered by **AMD** which does suggest the presence of a custom AMD CPU and a Radeon GPU. Previous reports also state that the Ataribox will be more like a Linux-powered PC than a dedicated games console like a PS4 or an Xbox. It will launch with a back catalogue of some of Atari’s classic titles, however, since it’s running Linux, any Linux-supported game should be able to run on the console.