Dragon Beta Prototype

The Dragon Beta, also known as the Dragon 128 or 256, was a far more ambitious professional prototype than the company’s established home computers. Twin 68B09 processors, 256KB of RAM and two internal 3.5-inch drives targeted multi-user, graphics and business applications.

Memory could expand to 768KB and an external hard disk was planned. High-resolution colour modes, an 80-column display and a detached keyboard with numeric pad placed the machine in workstation territory, but Dragon Data closed before development could be completed.

Notable Features

• Twin 68B09 processors and 256KB RAM, expandable to 768KB.
• Two internal 3.5-inch floppy drives with an external hard-disk option.
• Advanced graphics included 320 x 256 in 16 colours and high-resolution modes.

Historical Significance

• The most technically ambitious computer developed by Dragon Data.
• Shows that the company was planning a professional workstation rather than merely revising the Dragon 64.

Collector’s Notes

• Only prototype hardware exists and specifications changed during development.
• Beta, Dragon 128 and Dragon 256 names occur in surviving documentation for related configurations.

Specifications

Technical Information
Name	Dragon Beta Prototype
Manufacturer	Dragon Data Ltd
Launched	Sunday, January 1, 1984
Country	United Kingdom
CPU	Two Motorola 68B09 processors
Units Sold
Operating System	Prototype professional operating environment
I/O	Centronics, RS-232, light pen, mouse, RGB and expansion motherboard
Keyboard	Detached keyboard with separate numeric keypad
Storage	Two internal 3.5-inch floppies; external hard disk planned
Sound	Prototype programmable sound
Graphics	Up to 320 x 256 in 16 colours or 640 x 512 in four colours
Display	80-column RGB display
ROM	Prototype boot and system ROMs
RAM	256KB standard design; expandable to 768KB
CPU Speed	Prototype-dependent dual 68B09