📰 New article from Retro Handhelds
MiniST Gives The Atari ST The Boutique Revival It Deserves
https://retrohandhelds.gg/minist-gives-the-atari-st-the-boutique-revival-it-deserves/
If you’ve been pining for a modern Atari ST but keep getting handed cheap plastic knockoffs… breathe easy. Dennis Shaw just dropped the MiniST—a boutique, FPGA-powered love letter to the 16-bit legend that actually feels like the real deal.
This isn’t a toy. It’s a meticulously hand-assembled relic of the future, built on an open-source FPGA core with full 8 MHz 68000 power, authentic TOS ROMs, MIDI I/O (yes, for your Moog), and even Blitter acceleration. It runs in color or mono, sounds like a 1989 studio session, and looks like it was carved from obsidian by a retro-obsessed monk.
Here’s the twist: only five units exist. Not because no one wants it—but because Shaw is literally sanding, painting, and assembling each one by hand. No factory. No automation. Just passion, patience, and a 3D printer.
At €350, it’s pricey—but so is nostalgia. And if this tiny wedge of Atari magic can make the ST feel cool again, maybe it’s not about scaling up… but about keeping it special.
Now someone go make a mass-market version. Please.