Accelerator Cards
Put the pedal to the metal with one of these easy-to-install accelerator cards
Caroline D. Hanlon
An accelerator card replaces the 8088 or 80286 chip in your PC with a faster 286 or 386. With one of these cards, you get many of the benefits of upgrading without the cost of a new system.
An accelerator card is generally easier to install than a motherboard, and doing so usually doesn't affect your computer's warranty.
| Company | Board | Speed(MHx) | Populated | Cathe | Add-ons | Installation Requirements | Restrictions | Warranty | Prices |
| American Micronics | ZX386 Upgrade | 16, 20, 25, 33 | 0 | 0 | Up to 8MB of RAM | Designed for Zenith 241 and 248 machines | 0 | 1 year | $1,350 |
| AOX | MASTER 386 | 16 or 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Plugs into any 16-bit expansion slot | 0 | 2 years | $795 (16 MHz) $995 (20 MHz) |
| AOX | Micro-MASTER 386 | 20, 25, 33 | 0 | 32K | 0 | Installs in a standard 16-bit PS/2 slot | Requires a full slot; designed for the IBM PS/2 models 50, 60, and 50Z | 1 year | $1,495(20 MHz) $1,795(25 MHz) |
| Intel | Inboard 386/PC | 16 | 1MB | Up to 5MB of RAM; socket for 16-MHz 387 math coprocessor | Compatible with PCs and XTs; contact Intel for other versions | 5 years | $895 | ||
| Konan | Ten Time | 8–39 | 512K | 512K to 10MB | Expands RAM to 10MB | Requires a full slot in AT bus | Requires 120-ns chips | 1 year | $1,095 (512K) $1,595 (2MB) |
| MicroWay | 287Turbo | 8, 10, or 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Plugs into the existing 80287 coprocessor socket on the motherboard | 0 | 1 Year | $250 (8 MHz) $300 (10 MHz) |
| MicroWay | 287Turbo-PLUS | 10 or 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Plugs into the 80287 socket on the motherboard and doesn't use an expansion slot | 0 | 1 Year | $375 (10 MHz) $475 (12 MHz) |
| MicroWay | Super-CACHE-286 | 12 | 0 | 32K | Includes a socket for an optional 8- or 12-MHz 80287 math coprocessor | Requires a half-slot | 1 Year | $399 | |
| Orchid Technology | Tiny Turbo 286 | 8 | 0 | 8K | 0 | Requires a half slot and a 16-bit bus | 0 | 4 Years | $349 |
| Orchid Technology | Tiny Turbo XTra | 12 | 0 | 8K | 0 | Requires a half-slot and a 16-bit bus | 0 | 4 Years | $449 |
| Orchid Technology | Tiny Turbo AT | 12 or 16 | 0 | 32K | 0 | Requires a full slot and 16-bit bus | Requires true IBM AT running at 6 or 8 MHz | 4 Years | $599 |
| SMT Peripherals | XT286 Speed Card | 10 or 12 | 0 | 8K | Not on board, but compatible with most add-ons | Requires short (8-bit) slot | 0 | 1 Year | $349 (10 MHz) $379 (12 MHz) |
| Sota Technology | SOTA 286i | 12.5 | 0 | 16K | Accepts up to 8MB of RAM on daughter card with AT-style BIOS and realtime clock | Requires one-third of a slot for board and a full slot for board with memory | Requires 100-ns static RAM chips for 0 wait-state operation; memory requires 100-ns SIMMs for 0.5–0.7 wait-state operation | 2 years | $445 |
| Sota Technology | SOTA 386SI | 16 | 0 | 16K | Accepts up to 8MB of RAM as daughter-board with AT-style BIOS and realtime clock | Requires one-third of a slot for the board alone and a full slot for the board with memory | Requires 100-ns static RAM for 0 wait-state cache operation; memory requires 100-ns SIMMs for 0.5–0.7 wait-state operation | 2 Years | $645 |
| Veritek | GO FAST! | 12 | 0 | 8K | Accepts 80286 math coprocessor running at 6, 8, or 12 MHz | Installs into an XT; GO FAST! is a short card | 0 | 1 Year | $399 |
How to Read the Chart
Speed refers to the maximum processing speed you can expect after installing the accelerator card. Add-ons refers to whether you can add another card to the accelerator card. Size of slots and installation requirements are given to help you determine if the card will work with your machine. Restrictions let you know what the card requires to work properly. Prices are for unpopulated (without memory) cards. Most companies offer technical support, and that's a good place to check if you have any questions about a card before, as well as after, you buy.
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For more Information about any product listed in this chart, contact the manufacturer at the address listed below. American Micronics 18005 Skypark Cir. Suite A Irvine, CA 92714 (714)261-0693 AOX 486 Totten Pond Rd. Waltham, MA 02154 (617)890-4402 Intel 5200 NE Elam Young Pkwy. Hillsboro, OR 97124 (800)538-3373 Konan 1829 W. Drake Dr. Tempe, AZ 85283 (602)345-1300 MicroWay P.O. Box 79 Kingston, MA 02364 (508)746-7341 Orchid Technology 45365 Northport Loop W Fremont, CA 94538 (415)683-0348 SMT Peripherals 310 Via Vera Crux Suite 112 San Marcos,CA 92069 (619)591-0268 Sota Technology 551 Weddell Dr. Sunnyvale, CA 94089 (408)745-1111 Veritek 1205 Linda Vista Dr. San Marcos, CA 92069 (619)744-2313 |