Atari800 vs Gearlynx
Atari800
atari800.github.ioGearlynx
github.comSide by side
| Figure | Atari800 | Gearlynx |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 0 |
| Spec score · Atari Emulators | 8.1 (#4) | 7.5 (#12) |
| Emulation | It supports cycle-exact 6502, NMI, POKEY, ANTIC and GTIA emulation. | It supports the commercial Atari Lynx catalog and most homebrew games and demos, with selectable Lynx I or Lynx II emulation. |
| Security | The project page describes Atari800 as a freely distributable emulator with source code available; it does not state security certifications or compliance claims. | For HTTP mode, authentication is optional on loopback binds and required for wildcard or other non-loopback binds; the server also checks Host and browser Origin against the connection address. |
| Support | The project directs questions, bug reports and discussions to its user mailing list and invites bug reports or pull requests through GitHub Issues. | The project asks users to report bugs or request features by opening a GitHub issue. |
Plans
In their own words
Atari800
Atari800 emulates Atari 8-bit computer systems and the Atari 5200 game console. It supports cycle-exact emulation of the 6502 processor and the NMI, POKEY, ANTIC and GTIA components. The emulator handles ATR, XFD, DCM, ATR.GZ and XFD.GZ disk images, with up to eight emulated drives. It can load Atari executable files and BASIC programs, emulate cassette tapes, and save files to the host computer through the H: device. Users can connect real joysticks or emulate paddles, light pens, light guns, mice and trackballs. Atari800 can save screen snapshots as PCX or PNG and write sound output to WAV files. It runs on Linux, Windows, macOS and Android; source and binary packages are available through GitHub releases, with Linux package instructions for Debian and Fedora. The project describes Atari800 as freely distributable, with source under GPL version 2. Its release notes describe NetSIO and FujiNet support for network SIO over UDP. Atari800 is written in C, and a BIOS is required.
Gearlynx
Gearlynx is a free, open-source Atari Lynx emulator and debugger written in C++. It supports the commercial Lynx catalog and most homebrew and demo software, with Lynx I or Lynx II emulation selectable. Supported ROM formats include lnx, lyx, o, bin, and zip, including compressed and homebrew files. Gaming tools include save states with previews, rewind, run-ahead to reduce input latency, audio emulation, VGM recording, and EEPROM and NVRAM save files. ComLynx multiplayer connects up to eight emulator instances on one computer. The debugger provides disassembly, CPU and memory breakpoints, debug symbols, memory editing and search, hardware register views, and cartridge and video inspectors. An embedded MCP server supports AI-assisted debugging, with execution controls, memory inspection, breakpoints, screenshots, and rewind over STDIO or HTTP. Standalone builds are listed for Windows, Linux, BSD, and macOS; libretro includes Android and iOS. Gearlynx requires a BIOS. Concurrent HTTP clients control the same emulator instance and may interfere with one another.