PC3270 Graphics Adapter

The main intent of the PC3270 graphics card was to relay terminal text and graphics from a mainframe. It did this in 720x350, 720x512, or 1024x1024 graphics, 80x24, 80x31, 80x32, 80x44, 132x27 text, and in 4, 7 or 16 colors. The secondary purpose was to provide an IBM-PC with CGA and MDA graphics. This graphics card did both its jobs well but the rest of the hardware only managed the terminal task; is was buggy and somewhat incompatible with MS-DOS and IBM-DOS. To get the most out of a PC3270 graphics card it needs to be in a real IBM-PC or compatible and sacrifice mainframe connection features. In an average IBM PC, the terminal graphics modes are usable by DOS and do not interfere with CGA and MDA being installed and used simultaneously as long as the proper dip switches are set. This allows for using three monitors at once. The PC3270 had a minimum cost of $6,210 in 1983 (not counting the monitor). This was the only way to get PC3270 graphics card as it was not sold separately. It is not a popular target for games.