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home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research. Based on a Zilog Z80 CPU running at 3.50 MHz, the Spectrum came with either 16KB or 48KB of RAM (an expansion pack was also available to upgrade the former).
Video output was to a TV, for a simple colour graphic display. The rubber keyboard (on top of a membrane, similar to calculator keys) was marked with Sinclair BASIC programming language keywords, so that pressing, say, "G" when in programming mode would insert the BASIC command GOTO. Programs and data were stored using a normal cassette recorder.
The Spectrum's video display, although rudimentary by today's standards, was perfect at the time for display on portable TV sets, and didn't present a much of a barrier to game development. The text mode display was 32 columns × 24 rows, with a choice of 8 colours in either normal or bright mode, which gave 15 shades (black was the same in both modes). The graphics resolution was 256×192 with the same colour limitations. The Spectrum had an interesting method of handling colour; the colour attributes were held in a 32×24 grid, separate from the text or graphical data, but was still limited to only two colours in any given character cell. This led to what was called colour clash or attribute clash with some bizarre effects in arcade style games.
The Spectrum was the first mainstream audience home computer in the UK, similar in significance to the Commodore 64 in the USA (the C64 also being the main rival to the Spectrum in the UK market). An enhanced version of the Spectrum with better sound, graphics and other modifications was marketed in the USA by Timex as the TS2068.
A number of current leading games developers and development companies began their careers on the ZX Spectrum, including Peter Molyneux (ex-Bullfrog Games), Dave Perry of Shiny Entertainment, and Ultimate Play The Game (now known as Rare, Inc, maker of many famous titles for Nintendo game consoles).
Released by Sinclair in 1982 and available with either 16KB (£125, later £99) or 48KB (£175, later £129) of RAM and 16KB ROM. Remembered for its rubber keyboard and diminutive size.
The 48K Spectrum gets a much needed solid keyboard and reset button, retailing for £180.
The last Spectrum to be produced by Sinclair (although developed by Investronica of Spain) and based on the Spectrum+. New features included three-channel audio via the AY-3-8912 chip, MIDI compatibility, 128 KB of paging RAM, an RS232 serial port and RGB monitor output.
Shortly after Amstrad's buyout of Sinclair Research in 1986 came the ZX Spectrum +2 with an all-new keyboard, a built-in cassette recorder (like the Amstrad CPC 464) and dual joystick ports. Production cost cutting saw the retail price drop to £139-£149. Aside from the tape drive, revised keyboard and casing the +2 was essentially the same as the 128 model.
The inital version of the +2 departed from the traditional black plastics of other Spectrum models to favour grey. Subsequent models were in fact based on the +3 model with the unnecessary disk circuitry removed, easily distinguishable with the casing having returned to black (unofficially dubbed the +2A). A final revision purely for cost cuting saw the chip count reduced and manufacturing relocated for the final revision (unofficially dubbed the +2B).
Amstrad produced disk version based on the +2 but featuring a built-in 3-inch floppy disk drive (like the Amstrad CPC 6128). Most models featured distorted sound thanks to a design fault later rectified in the "4.1 ROM" model. Retailed for £249 then later £199 and the only model capable of running CP/M.
Sinclair licensed the Spectrum design to Timex in the USA who produced their own, largely incompatible, derivatives.
In the UK Spectrum peripheral vendor Miles Gordon Technology (MGT) released the SAM Coupe as the natural successor with some Spectrum compatibility however the Commodore Amiga and Atari ST had taken hold of the market by this point leaving MGT in eventual recievership.
Many unofficial Spectrum clones were produced, especially in Eastern Europe and South America. Some of them are still being produced such as Didaktik and the Sprinter from Peters Plus Ltd. Russian clones include the Hobbit, Pentagon and protocol for the ZX81's printer. The Interface 1 added a standard RS-232 serial port, a proprietary format local area networking port, and the ability to connect up to eight ZX Microdrives – somewhat unreliable but speedy tape-loop storage devices that were later used in a revised version on the Sinclair QL (the QL's Microdrive data storage format was electrically compatible but logically incompatible with the Spectrum's). Sinclair also released the Interface 2 which added two joystick ports and a ROM cartridge port.
There were also a plethora of third-party hardware addons. These more well-known of these included the Kempston joystick interface, the Currah Microspeech unit (speech synthesis), and the Multiface (snapshot and disassembly tool), from Romantic Robot. There were numerous disk drive interfaces, including the Opus Discovery and the DISCiPLE/PlusD from Miles Gordon Technology. During the mid-80s, the company Micronet800 launched a service allowing users to connect their ZX Spectrums to a network known as Prestel. This service had some similarities to the Internet, but was proprietary and fee-based.
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