We present preliminary results of Beppo SAX AO1 Core Program observations of 3C 273 performed in January 1997 .
The source was observed 4 times , from January 13th to January 23nd , with typical on–source time for the LECS and MECS of \simeq 12 and \simeq 25 ksec respectively , and of \simeq 11 ksec for the PDS .
We also present a close comparison with data obtained during the satellite SVP , in July 1996 .

On average , the AO1 flux is about a factor \sim 1.8 higher than the flux detected during the SVP , and roughly on the middle of the historical X–ray flux range .
Power law fits with galactic absorption to all observations yield spectral indices in the range \Gamma = 1.53 - 1.6 , with the spectrum extending from 0.2 to at least up to 200 keV without any significant slope change .
The broad band spectrum appears basically featureless , marking a clear difference from the SVP data , where an absorption feature at low energy and a fluorescence iron emission line are present .

The lack of cold/warm matter signatures in our data may indicate that , at this ” high ” level of luminosity , the featureless continuum produced in a relativistic jet overwhelms any thermal and/or reprocessing component , while the two components were at least comparable during the ” low ” state of July 1996 .