Sinclair Research Ltd
Encyclopedia
Sinclair Research Ltd is a British consumer electronics company founded by Sir Clive Sinclair
in Cambridge
. Originally incorporated in 1973 as Ablesdeal Ltd., it remained dormant until 1976, and did not adopt the name Sinclair Research until 1981.
In 1980, Clive Sinclair entered the home computer
market with the ZX80
at £99.95, at the time the cheapest personal computer for sale in the UK. In 1982 the ZX Spectrum
was released, later becoming Britain's best selling computer, competing aggressively against Commodore
and Amstrad
. At the height of its success, and largely inspired by the Japanese Fifth Generation Computer
programme, the company established the "MetaLab" research centre at Milton Hall (near Cambridge), in order to pursue artificial intelligence
, wafer-scale integration
, formal verification
and other advanced projects. The combination of the failures of the Sinclair QL
computer and the TV80
led to financial difficulties in 1985, and a year later Sinclair sold the rights to their computer products and brand name to Amstrad. Sinclair Research Ltd still exists today as a one man company, continuing to market Sir Clive Sinclair's newest inventions.
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. Sinclair Radionics developed hifi products, radios, calculators and scientific instruments. When it became clear that Radionics was failing, he took steps to ensure that he would be able to continue to pursue his commercial goals: in February 1975, he changed the name of Ablesdeal Ltd. (an off-the-shelf company he bought in September 1973 for just such an eventuality) to Westminster Mail Order Ltd; this was changed to Sinclair Instrument Ltd in August 1975.
Finding it inconvenient to share control after the National Enterprise Board
became involved in Radionics in 1976, Sinclair encouraged Chris Curry
, who had been working for Radionics since 1966, to leave and get Sinclair Instrument up and running. The company's first product was a watch-like Wrist Calculator.
based around a National Semiconductor
SC/MP microprocessor
and some parts taken from an earlier Sinclair calculator. Curry was impressed and encouraged Sinclair to adopt this as a product; an agreement was reached with Williamson but no contract was ever signed. National Semiconductor had offered to redesign the project so that it used only their components and they also offered to manufacture the boards.
In June 1978, Science of Cambridge launched the microcomputer in kit form, marketed as the MK14
. In May 1979, Jim Westwood
started a project to design a new microcomputer based on the Zilog Z80
microprocessor at Science of Cambridge. This was launched as the ZX80 in February 1980 in two forms: kit and ready-built. In November of the same year Science of Cambridge was renamed Sinclair Computers Ltd.
In March 1981, Sinclair Computers was renamed Sinclair Research Ltd and the Sinclair ZX81
was launched. In February 1982 Timex Corporation obtained a license to manufacture and market Sinclair's computers in the USA under the name Timex Sinclair
. In April the ZX Spectrum
was launched. In July Timex launched the TS 1000
(a version of the ZX81) in the United States. In March 1982 Sinclair made an £8.55m profit on turnover of £27.17m, including £383,000 government grants for flat screen.
In 1982 Clive Sinclair converted the Barker & Wadsworth mineral water
bottling factory
at 25 Willis Road, Cambridge, into the company's new headquarters. It was sold to Cambridgeshire County Council in December 1985 due to Sinclair's finance troubles.
In January 1983 the ZX Spectrum personal computer was presented at the Las Vegas
Consumer Electronics Show
. In September the Sinclair TV80
pocket television
was launched, but was a commercial failure.
In 1983 the company bought Milton Hall in the village of Milton, Cambridgeshire
, for £2m, establishing their MetaLab research and development facility there.
In late 1983 Timex decided to pull out of the Timex Sinclair venture, which had failed to break the United States market as expected due to strong competition. However Timex computers continued to be produced for several years in other countries. Timex Portugal launched improved versions, the TS 2048
and 2068
. They also developed and launched the FDD 3000, a floppy disk system, that was not well received by the market.
was announced on 12 January 1984, shortly before the Apple Macintosh actually went on sale. It suffered from several design flaws, and Your Sinclair
noted that it was "difficult to find a good word for Sinclair Research in the computer press".
Fully working QLs were not available until late summer; complaints against Sinclair regarding delays were upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority
in May of the year (in 1982 it had upheld complaints about delays in shipping Spectrums). Especially severe were allegations that it was cashing cheques months before machines were shipped. The QL was nowhere near as successful as Sinclair's earlier computers. In the autumn Sinclair were still publicly predicting it would be a "million seller", with 250,000 sold by the end of the year. QL production was suspended in February 1985, and the price was halved by the end of the year.
The ZX Spectrum+, a repackaged ZX Spectrum with a QL-like keyboard, was launched in October 1984 and appeared on W H Smith
's shelves the day after release. Retailers stocked the machine in large numbers in expectation of good Christmas sales. However the machine did not sell in the numbers expected and, because retailers still had unsold stock, Sinclair's income from orders dipped alarmingly in January. The Spectrum+ had the same technical specifications as the original Spectrum. However, an enhanced model, the ZX Spectrum 128, was launched in Spain in September 1985, with development funded by the Spanish distributor Investronica. However, the UK launch was delayed until January 1986, due to large unsold stocks of previous models held by retailers.
At the January 1985 Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show, Sinclair re-entered the United States market, announcing the "FM Wristwatch Radio", an LCD wristwatch with a radio
attached. However, the watch had several usage problems and never went into full production.
Sir Clive had long held an interest in electric vehicles and during the early 1980s worked on the design of a single-seater "personal vehicle", eventually starting a company called Sinclair Vehicles Ltd in March 1983, and launching the Sinclair C5
electric vehicle on 10 January 1985. It was a commercial disaster, selling only 17,000 units and losing Sinclair £7m, Sinclair Vehicles going into liquidation later the same year. The C5, combined with the failures of the QL and the TV80
, caused investors to lose confidence in Sir Clive.
Robert Maxwell
announced a takeover of Sinclair Research, through Hollis Brothers, a subsidiary of his Pergamon Press
business. However the deal was aborted in August 1985.
Sinclair Research's future remained uncertain, until 7 April 1986, when the company sold its entire computer product range and the "Sinclair" brand name to Amstrad
. This deal did not involve the company, merely its name and products.
Sinclair Research was reduced to an R&D business and holding company
, with shareholdings in several new "spin-off" companies, formed to exploit technologies developed by the company. These included Anamartic Ltd. (wafer-scale integration
), Shaye Communications Ltd. (CT2
mobile telephony) and Cambridge Computer Ltd. (Z88
portable computer and satellite TV receivers).
In 1992 the "Zike" electric bicycle was released, Sinclair's second attempt at changing means of transportation. The "Zike" was a commercial failure much like the C5
was, and only sold a total of 2,000 units. It had a maximum speed of 10 mph (16 km/h), and was only available through mail order.
In 2003 the Sinclair "ZA20 Wheelchair Drive Unit" was introduced, designed and manufactured in conjunction with Hong Kong's Daka Designs, a partnership which also led to the SeaDoo Sea Scooter underwater propulsion unit. In 1999 Sinclair released the world's smallest radio with the "Z1 Micro AM Radio".
On 12 July 2006, the A-bike
, a folding bicycle
invented by Sir Clive Sinclair, was released and went on sale for £200. It had been originally announced two years previously, in 2004.
In November 2010 Sinclair Research announced the X-1
electric vehicle, to be launched in July 2011 in the UK.
The Wrist Calculator was released by Sinclair Instrument in 1977.
MK14
The MK14
(Microcomputer Kit 14) was a computer kit sold by Science of Cambridge of the United Kingdom, first introduced in 1977 for UK£39.95.
ZX80
The ZX80 home computer
was launched in February 1980 at £79.95 in kit form and £99.95 ready-built. In November of the same year Science of Cambridge was renamed Sinclair Computers Ltd.
ZX81
The ZX81
(known as the TS 1000
in the United States) was priced at £49.95 in kit form and £69.95 ready-built, by mail order.
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum
was launched on 23 April 1982, priced at £125 for the 16 KB
RAM version and £175 for the 48 KB version.
TV80
The TV80
was a pocket television
. Launched in September 1983. It used a flattened CRT
unlike Sinclair's previous portable televisions. The TV80 was a commercial failure selling only 15,000 units and not covering its development costs of £4m.
Sinclair QL
The Sinclair QL
was announced in January 1984, priced at £399. Marketed as a more sophisticated 32-bit
microcomputer
for professional users, it used a Motorola 68008
processor. Production was delayed by several months, due to unfinished development of hardware and software at the time of the QL's launch. Hardware reliability problems and software bugs resulted in the QL acquiring a poor reputation from which it never really recovered.
ZX Spectrum+
The ZX Spectrum+ was a repackaged ZX Spectrum 48K launched in October 1984.
ZX Spectrum 128
The ZX Spectrum 128, with RAM expanded to 128 kB, a sound chip
and other enhancements, was launched in Spain in September 1985 and the UK in January 1986, priced at £179.95.
Computer peripherals
Sinclair created various peripherals for their computers including memory expansion modules, the ZX Printer
, and the ZX Interface 1
and ZX Interface 2
add-ons for the ZX Spectrum. A number of QL peripherals were developed by other companies but marketed under the Sinclair brand. External storage for the Spectrum was usually on cassette tapes, as was common in the era. Rather than an optional floppy disk drive, Sinclair instead opted to offer their own mass storage
system, the ZX Microdrive
, a tape-loop cartridge system that was rather unreliable. This was also the primary storage device for the QL.
X1 Button FM Radio
In June 1997 Sinclair Research released the X1 radio for £9.50. This miniature mono FM radio, powered by a CR2032 battery was inserted in the ear and had a fixed volume. The X1 radio had three buttons, an on/off switch, a Scan button and a Reset to restart the scanning process. It came with a short length of aerial and a detachable ear hook.
Sinclair X-1
In November 2010 Sinclair told The Guardian
newspaper that he was working on a new prototype electric vehicle, called the X-1
, to be launched within a year. "Technology has moved on quite a bit, there are new batteries available and I just rethought the thing. The C5 was OK, but I think we can do a better job now." The X-1 will be available on July 2011 at the price of £595.
LC3
Standing for "Low Cost Colour Computer", the LC3 was developed during 1983 by Martin Brennan
and was intended to be a cheap Z80-based games console implemented in two chips, using ROM and (non-volatile) RAM cartridges for storage. A multi-tasking OS
for the LC3 with a full windowing GUI
was designed by Steve Berry. It was cancelled in November 1983 in favour of the QL
.
SuperSpectrum
Intended to be a 68008
-based home computer
, equipped with built-in ZX Microdrive
, joystick, RS-232
and ZX Net ports. Sinclair's SuperBASIC
programming language was originally intended for this model but was later adopted for the QL. SuperSpectrum was cancelled in 1982 after the specification of the ZX83 (QL) had converged with it. This project is not to be confused with Loki, which was described as the "SuperSpectrum" in an article in the June 1986 issue of Sinclair User
magazine.
Pandora
This was to be a portable computer with an integral flat-screen CRT
display. Initially to be ZX Spectrum
-compatible with a faster Z80
CPU
, a built-in ZX Microdrive
and a new 512×192-pixel monochrome video mode. Due to the limited size of flat CRT that could be manufactured, a series of folding lenses and mirrors were necessary to magnify the screen image to a usable size. The project was cancelled after the Amstrad take-over; however, the Pandora concept eventually transformed into the Cambridge Computer Z88
.
Loki
This project was intended to create a greatly enhanced ZX Spectrum
, possibly rivalling the Commodore Amiga
. Loki was to have a 7 MHz Z80
H CPU
, 128 KiB of RAM and two custom chips providing much enhanced graphics and audio capabilities. After the Amstrad buy-out in 1986, two engineers who had worked on the project, John Mathieson
and Martin Brennan
, founded Flare Technology
to continue their work.
Bob/Florin
According to Rupert Goodwins
, this was a project to produce an add-on floppy disk
drive for the ZX Spectrum
.
Tyche
This codename was assigned to a QL follow-on project running from 1984 to 1986. Among the features associated with Tyche were increased RAM capacity, internal floppy disk
drives, the Psion Xchange application suite on ROM, and possibly the GEM
GUI
.
Janus
This name has been associated with a design concept for a "Super QL" based on wafer-scale integration
technology.
Proteus
This was rumoured to be a hypothetical portable version of the QL similar to Pandora.
Magazines
Clive Sinclair
Sir Clive Marles Sinclair is a British entrepreneur and inventor, most commonly known for his work in consumer electronics in the late 1970s and early 1980s....
in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. Originally incorporated in 1973 as Ablesdeal Ltd., it remained dormant until 1976, and did not adopt the name Sinclair Research until 1981.
In 1980, Clive Sinclair entered the home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
market with the ZX80
Sinclair ZX80
The Sinclair ZX80 is a home computer brought to market in 1980 by Science of Cambridge Ltd. . It is notable for being the first computer available in the United Kingdom for less than a hundred pounds...
at £99.95, at the time the cheapest personal computer for sale in the UK. In 1982 the ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
was released, later becoming Britain's best selling computer, competing aggressively against Commodore
Commodore International
Commodore is the commonly used name for Commodore Business Machines , the U.S.-based home computer manufacturer and electronics manufacturer headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which also housed Commodore's corporate parent company, Commodore International Limited...
and Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
. At the height of its success, and largely inspired by the Japanese Fifth Generation Computer
Fifth generation computer
The Fifth Generation Computer Systems project was an initiative by Japan'sMinistry of International Trade and Industry, begun in 1982, to create a "fifth generation computer" which was supposed to perform much calculation using massive parallel processing...
programme, the company established the "MetaLab" research centre at Milton Hall (near Cambridge), in order to pursue artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
, wafer-scale integration
Wafer-scale integration
Wafer-scale integration, WSI for short, is a yet-unused system of building very-large integrated circuit networks that use an entire silicon wafer to produce a single "super-chip". Through a combination of large size and reduced packaging, WSI could lead to dramatically reduced costs for some...
, formal verification
Formal verification
In the context of hardware and software systems, formal verification is the act of proving or disproving the correctness of intended algorithms underlying a system with respect to a certain formal specification or property, using formal methods of mathematics .- Usage :Formal verification can be...
and other advanced projects. The combination of the failures of the Sinclair QL
Sinclair QL
The Sinclair QL , was a personal computer launched by Sinclair Research in 1984, as the successor to the Sinclair ZX Spectrum...
computer and the TV80
TV80
The Sinclair TV80, also known as the Flat Screen Pocket TV or FTV1, was a pocket television launched by Sinclair Research in 1984. Unlike Sinclair's earlier attempts at a portable television, the TV80 used a flat CRT with a side-mounted electron gun instead of a conventional CRT; the picture was...
led to financial difficulties in 1985, and a year later Sinclair sold the rights to their computer products and brand name to Amstrad. Sinclair Research Ltd still exists today as a one man company, continuing to market Sir Clive Sinclair's newest inventions.
History
| width="94%" |
| Period | Profit | Turnover |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | £131,000 | £640,000 |
| 1981 | £818,000 | £4.6m |
| 1982 | £8.55m | £27.17m |
| 1983 | £13.8m | £54.53m |
| 1984 | £14.28m | £77.69m |
| 1985 | -£18m | £102m |
| 1988 to 1989 | -£183,015 | £7,825 |
| 1989 to 1990 | £618,389 | £4,754 |
| 1989 to 1990 | -£271,734 | £5,486 |
| 1991 to 1992 | -£592,600 | £1,115 |
| 1992 to 1993 | -£169,197 | £379,836 |
| 1993 to 1994 | -£194,826 | £510,943 |
| 1994 to 1995 | -£303,630 | £435,742 |
| 1995 to 1996 | -£122,873 | £255,826 |
| *All profit and turnover data from | ||
Founding and early years
On 25 July 1961, Clive Sinclair founded his first company, Sinclair Radionics Ltd. in CambridgeCambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. Sinclair Radionics developed hifi products, radios, calculators and scientific instruments. When it became clear that Radionics was failing, he took steps to ensure that he would be able to continue to pursue his commercial goals: in February 1975, he changed the name of Ablesdeal Ltd. (an off-the-shelf company he bought in September 1973 for just such an eventuality) to Westminster Mail Order Ltd; this was changed to Sinclair Instrument Ltd in August 1975.
Finding it inconvenient to share control after the National Enterprise Board
National Enterprise Board
-History:The National Enterprise Board was set up in the United Kingdom in 1975 to implement the Wilson Labour government's objective of extending public ownership of industry...
became involved in Radionics in 1976, Sinclair encouraged Chris Curry
Chris Curry
Christopher Curry is the co-founder of Acorn Computers, with Hermann Hauser and Andy Hopper.-Early life:...
, who had been working for Radionics since 1966, to leave and get Sinclair Instrument up and running. The company's first product was a watch-like Wrist Calculator.
Development of the ZX80
In July 1977, Sinclair Instrument Ltd was renamed as Science of Cambridge Ltd. Around the same time Ian Williamson showed Chris Curry a prototype microcomputerMicrocomputer
A microcomputer is a computer with a microprocessor as its central processing unit. They are physically small compared to mainframe and minicomputers...
based around a National Semiconductor
National Semiconductor
National Semiconductor was an American semiconductor manufacturer, that specialized in analog devices and subsystems,formerly headquartered in Santa Clara, California, USA. The products of National Semiconductor included power management circuits, display drivers, audio and operational amplifiers,...
SC/MP microprocessor
Microprocessor
A microprocessor incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit on a single integrated circuit, or at most a few integrated circuits. It is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and...
and some parts taken from an earlier Sinclair calculator. Curry was impressed and encouraged Sinclair to adopt this as a product; an agreement was reached with Williamson but no contract was ever signed. National Semiconductor had offered to redesign the project so that it used only their components and they also offered to manufacture the boards.
In June 1978, Science of Cambridge launched the microcomputer in kit form, marketed as the MK14
MK14
The Microcomputer Kit 14, or MK14 was a computer kit sold by Science of Cambridge of the United Kingdom, first introduced in 1977 for UK£39.95. The MK14 eventually sold over 50,000 units. It used a National Semiconductor SC/MP CPU , 256 bytes of random access memory which was directly expandable...
. In May 1979, Jim Westwood
Jim Westwood
Jim Westwood was the chief engineer at Sinclair Research Ltd in the 1980s, starting at the company in 1963. Westwood was the technical mastermind behind many of Sinclair's products and worked there for more than twenty years...
started a project to design a new microcomputer based on the Zilog Z80
Zilog Z80
The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog and sold from July 1976 onwards. It was widely used both in desktop and embedded computer designs as well as for military purposes...
microprocessor at Science of Cambridge. This was launched as the ZX80 in February 1980 in two forms: kit and ready-built. In November of the same year Science of Cambridge was renamed Sinclair Computers Ltd.
Commercial success and home computers
Sinclair ZX81
The ZX81 was a home computer produced by Sinclair Research and manufactured in Scotland by Timex Corporation. It was launched in the United Kingdom in March 1981 as the successor to Sinclair's ZX80 and was designed to be a low-cost introduction to home computing for the general public...
was launched. In February 1982 Timex Corporation obtained a license to manufacture and market Sinclair's computers in the USA under the name Timex Sinclair
Timex Sinclair
Timex Sinclair was a joint venture between the British company Sinclair Research and Timex Corporation in an effort to gain an entry into the rapidly-growing early-1980s home computer market in the United States...
. In April the ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
was launched. In July Timex launched the TS 1000
Timex Sinclair 1000
The Timex Sinclair 1000 was the first computer produced by Timex Sinclair, a joint-venture between Timex Corporation and Sinclair Research. It was launched in July 1982....
(a version of the ZX81) in the United States. In March 1982 Sinclair made an £8.55m profit on turnover of £27.17m, including £383,000 government grants for flat screen.
In 1982 Clive Sinclair converted the Barker & Wadsworth mineral water
Mineral water
Mineral water is water containing minerals or other dissolved substances that alter its taste or give it therapeutic value, generally obtained from a naturally occurring mineral spring or source. Dissolved substances in the water may include various salts and sulfur compounds...
bottling factory
Bottle
A bottle is a rigid container with a neck that is narrower than the body and a "mouth". By contrast, a jar has a relatively large mouth or opening. Bottles are often made of glass, clay, plastic, aluminum or other impervious materials, and typically used to store liquids such as water, milk, soft...
at 25 Willis Road, Cambridge, into the company's new headquarters. It was sold to Cambridgeshire County Council in December 1985 due to Sinclair's finance troubles.
In January 1983 the ZX Spectrum personal computer was presented at the Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
. In September the Sinclair TV80
TV80
The Sinclair TV80, also known as the Flat Screen Pocket TV or FTV1, was a pocket television launched by Sinclair Research in 1984. Unlike Sinclair's earlier attempts at a portable television, the TV80 used a flat CRT with a side-mounted electron gun instead of a conventional CRT; the picture was...
pocket television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
was launched, but was a commercial failure.
In 1983 the company bought Milton Hall in the village of Milton, Cambridgeshire
Milton, Cambridgeshire
Milton is a village just north of Cambridge, England. It has a population of approximately 4,300 with 3,200 being on the electoral register. It expanded considerably in the late 1980s when two large housing estates were built between the bypass and the village resulting in a doubling of the...
, for £2m, establishing their MetaLab research and development facility there.
In late 1983 Timex decided to pull out of the Timex Sinclair venture, which had failed to break the United States market as expected due to strong competition. However Timex computers continued to be produced for several years in other countries. Timex Portugal launched improved versions, the TS 2048
Timex Sinclair 2048
The "Timex Sinclair 2048" was to be an improved version of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum computer. Never released by Timex Corporation because of TS1500 failure...
and 2068
Timex Sinclair 2068
The Timex Sinclair 2068 , released in November 1983, was Timex Sinclair's fourth and last home computer for the United States market...
. They also developed and launched the FDD 3000, a floppy disk system, that was not well received by the market.
Mid-1980s developments
The Sinclair QLSinclair QL
The Sinclair QL , was a personal computer launched by Sinclair Research in 1984, as the successor to the Sinclair ZX Spectrum...
was announced on 12 January 1984, shortly before the Apple Macintosh actually went on sale. It suffered from several design flaws, and Your Sinclair
Your Sinclair
Your Sinclair or YS as it was commonly abbreviated, was a British computer magazine for the Sinclair range of computers, mainly the ZX Spectrum.-History:...
noted that it was "difficult to find a good word for Sinclair Research in the computer press".
Fully working QLs were not available until late summer; complaints against Sinclair regarding delays were upheld by the Advertising Standards Authority
Advertising Standards Authority (United Kingdom)
The Advertising Standards Authority is the self-regulatory organisation of the advertising industry in the United Kingdom. The ASA is a non-statutory organisation and so cannot interpret or enforce legislation. However, its code of advertising practice broadly reflects legislation in many instances...
in May of the year (in 1982 it had upheld complaints about delays in shipping Spectrums). Especially severe were allegations that it was cashing cheques months before machines were shipped. The QL was nowhere near as successful as Sinclair's earlier computers. In the autumn Sinclair were still publicly predicting it would be a "million seller", with 250,000 sold by the end of the year. QL production was suspended in February 1985, and the price was halved by the end of the year.
The ZX Spectrum+, a repackaged ZX Spectrum with a QL-like keyboard, was launched in October 1984 and appeared on W H Smith
W H Smith
WHSmith plc is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It is best known for its chain of high street, railway station, airport, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, and entertainment products...
's shelves the day after release. Retailers stocked the machine in large numbers in expectation of good Christmas sales. However the machine did not sell in the numbers expected and, because retailers still had unsold stock, Sinclair's income from orders dipped alarmingly in January. The Spectrum+ had the same technical specifications as the original Spectrum. However, an enhanced model, the ZX Spectrum 128, was launched in Spain in September 1985, with development funded by the Spanish distributor Investronica. However, the UK launch was delayed until January 1986, due to large unsold stocks of previous models held by retailers.
At the January 1985 Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show, Sinclair re-entered the United States market, announcing the "FM Wristwatch Radio", an LCD wristwatch with a radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
attached. However, the watch had several usage problems and never went into full production.
Sir Clive had long held an interest in electric vehicles and during the early 1980s worked on the design of a single-seater "personal vehicle", eventually starting a company called Sinclair Vehicles Ltd in March 1983, and launching the Sinclair C5
Sinclair C5
The Sinclair Research C5 is a battery electric vehicle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair and launched by Sinclair Research in the United Kingdom on 10 January 1985. The vehicle is a battery-assisted tricycle steered by a handlebar beneath the driver's knees. Powered operation is possible making it...
electric vehicle on 10 January 1985. It was a commercial disaster, selling only 17,000 units and losing Sinclair £7m, Sinclair Vehicles going into liquidation later the same year. The C5, combined with the failures of the QL and the TV80
TV80
The Sinclair TV80, also known as the Flat Screen Pocket TV or FTV1, was a pocket television launched by Sinclair Research in 1984. Unlike Sinclair's earlier attempts at a portable television, the TV80 used a flat CRT with a side-mounted electron gun instead of a conventional CRT; the picture was...
, caused investors to lose confidence in Sir Clive.
Amstrad acquisition of assets
On 28 May 1985, Sinclair had announced that it wanted to raise an extra £10m to £15m to restructure Sinclair Research. Given the loss of confidence in the company, this proved hard to find. In June 1985, the business magnateBusiness magnate
A business magnate, sometimes referred to as a capitalist, czar, mogul, tycoon, baron, oligarch, or industrialist, is an informal term used to refer to an entrepreneur who has reached prominence and derived a notable amount of wealth from a particular industry .-Etymology:The word magnate itself...
Robert Maxwell
Robert Maxwell
Ian Robert Maxwell MC was a Czechoslovakian-born British media proprietor and former Member of Parliament , who rose from poverty to build an extensive publishing empire...
announced a takeover of Sinclair Research, through Hollis Brothers, a subsidiary of his Pergamon Press
Pergamon Press
Pergamon Press was an Oxford-based publishing house, founded by Paul Rosbaud and Robert Maxwell, which published scientific and medical books and journals. It is now an imprint of Elsevier....
business. However the deal was aborted in August 1985.
Sinclair Research's future remained uncertain, until 7 April 1986, when the company sold its entire computer product range and the "Sinclair" brand name to Amstrad
Amstrad
Amstrad is a British electronics company, now wholly owned by BSkyB. As of 2006, Amstrad's main business is manufacturing Sky Digital interactive boxes....
. This deal did not involve the company, merely its name and products.
Sinclair Research was reduced to an R&D business and holding company
Holding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
, with shareholdings in several new "spin-off" companies, formed to exploit technologies developed by the company. These included Anamartic Ltd. (wafer-scale integration
Wafer-scale integration
Wafer-scale integration, WSI for short, is a yet-unused system of building very-large integrated circuit networks that use an entire silicon wafer to produce a single "super-chip". Through a combination of large size and reduced packaging, WSI could lead to dramatically reduced costs for some...
), Shaye Communications Ltd. (CT2
CT2
CT2 is a cordless telephony standard that was used in the early 1990s to provide short-range proto-mobile phone service in some countries in Europe. It is considered the precursor to the popular DECT system...
mobile telephony) and Cambridge Computer Ltd. (Z88
Cambridge Z88
The Cambridge Computer Z88 is an A4-size, lightweight, portable Z80-based computer with a built-in combined word processing/spreadsheet/database application called PipeDream, along with several other applications and utilities, such as a Z80-version of the BBC BASIC programming language.The Z88...
portable computer and satellite TV receivers).
Return to invention
Since 1986 the company has continued to exist, but in a completely different form than it did in the early 1980s. In 1993, 1994 and 1995 Sinclair made continuing losses on decreasing turnover, and began to worry investors since Clive Sinclair himself was using his own personal wealth to fund his inventions. By 1990 Sinclair's entire staff had been reduced to Sinclair himself, a salesperson/administrator, and an R&D employee. By 1997 reportedly only Sinclair on his own was working at his company.In 1992 the "Zike" electric bicycle was released, Sinclair's second attempt at changing means of transportation. The "Zike" was a commercial failure much like the C5
Sinclair C5
The Sinclair Research C5 is a battery electric vehicle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair and launched by Sinclair Research in the United Kingdom on 10 January 1985. The vehicle is a battery-assisted tricycle steered by a handlebar beneath the driver's knees. Powered operation is possible making it...
was, and only sold a total of 2,000 units. It had a maximum speed of 10 mph (16 km/h), and was only available through mail order.
In 2003 the Sinclair "ZA20 Wheelchair Drive Unit" was introduced, designed and manufactured in conjunction with Hong Kong's Daka Designs, a partnership which also led to the SeaDoo Sea Scooter underwater propulsion unit. In 1999 Sinclair released the world's smallest radio with the "Z1 Micro AM Radio".
On 12 July 2006, the A-bike
A-bike
The A-bike is a type of folding bicycle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair in the United Kingdom and released on 12 July 2006. It weighs and folds to 67×30×16 cm, small enough to fit in a rucksack....
, a folding bicycle
Folding bicycle
A folding bicycle is a bicycle designed to fold into a compact form, facilitating transport and storage. When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings and workplaces or onto public transportation or more easily stored in compact living quarters or aboard a car, boat or plane...
invented by Sir Clive Sinclair, was released and went on sale for £200. It had been originally announced two years previously, in 2004.
In November 2010 Sinclair Research announced the X-1
Sinclair X-1
The Sinclair X-1, is an electric vehicle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair and marketed by his company Sinclair Research. The X-1 was announced in November 2010. , the X-1 is expected to be available on July 2011 at the price of £595....
electric vehicle, to be launched in July 2011 in the UK.
Products
Wrist CalculatorThe Wrist Calculator was released by Sinclair Instrument in 1977.
MK14
The MK14
MK14
The Microcomputer Kit 14, or MK14 was a computer kit sold by Science of Cambridge of the United Kingdom, first introduced in 1977 for UK£39.95. The MK14 eventually sold over 50,000 units. It used a National Semiconductor SC/MP CPU , 256 bytes of random access memory which was directly expandable...
(Microcomputer Kit 14) was a computer kit sold by Science of Cambridge of the United Kingdom, first introduced in 1977 for UK£39.95.
ZX80
The ZX80 home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
was launched in February 1980 at £79.95 in kit form and £99.95 ready-built. In November of the same year Science of Cambridge was renamed Sinclair Computers Ltd.
ZX81
The ZX81
Sinclair ZX81
The ZX81 was a home computer produced by Sinclair Research and manufactured in Scotland by Timex Corporation. It was launched in the United Kingdom in March 1981 as the successor to Sinclair's ZX80 and was designed to be a low-cost introduction to home computing for the general public...
(known as the TS 1000
Timex Sinclair 1000
The Timex Sinclair 1000 was the first computer produced by Timex Sinclair, a joint-venture between Timex Corporation and Sinclair Research. It was launched in July 1982....
in the United States) was priced at £49.95 in kit form and £69.95 ready-built, by mail order.
The ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
was launched on 23 April 1982, priced at £125 for the 16 KB
Kilobyte
The kilobyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information. Although the prefix kilo- means 1000, the term kilobyte and symbol KB have historically been used to refer to either 1024 bytes or 1000 bytes, dependent upon context, in the fields of computer science and information...
RAM version and £175 for the 48 KB version.
TV80
The TV80
TV80
The Sinclair TV80, also known as the Flat Screen Pocket TV or FTV1, was a pocket television launched by Sinclair Research in 1984. Unlike Sinclair's earlier attempts at a portable television, the TV80 used a flat CRT with a side-mounted electron gun instead of a conventional CRT; the picture was...
was a pocket television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
. Launched in September 1983. It used a flattened CRT
Cathode ray tube
The cathode ray tube is a vacuum tube containing an electron gun and a fluorescent screen used to view images. It has a means to accelerate and deflect the electron beam onto the fluorescent screen to create the images. The image may represent electrical waveforms , pictures , radar targets and...
unlike Sinclair's previous portable televisions. The TV80 was a commercial failure selling only 15,000 units and not covering its development costs of £4m.
Sinclair QL
The Sinclair QL
Sinclair QL
The Sinclair QL , was a personal computer launched by Sinclair Research in 1984, as the successor to the Sinclair ZX Spectrum...
was announced in January 1984, priced at £399. Marketed as a more sophisticated 32-bit
32-bit
The range of integer values that can be stored in 32 bits is 0 through 4,294,967,295. Hence, a processor with 32-bit memory addresses can directly access 4 GB of byte-addressable memory....
microcomputer
Microcomputer
A microcomputer is a computer with a microprocessor as its central processing unit. They are physically small compared to mainframe and minicomputers...
for professional users, it used a Motorola 68008
Motorola 68008
The Motorola 68008 is an 8/16/32-bit microprocessor made by Motorola. It is a version of the Motorola 68000 with an 8-bit external data bus, as well as a smaller address bus.The original 68000 had a 24-bit address bus and a 16-bit data bus...
processor. Production was delayed by several months, due to unfinished development of hardware and software at the time of the QL's launch. Hardware reliability problems and software bugs resulted in the QL acquiring a poor reputation from which it never really recovered.
ZX Spectrum+
The ZX Spectrum+ was a repackaged ZX Spectrum 48K launched in October 1984.
ZX Spectrum 128
The ZX Spectrum 128, with RAM expanded to 128 kB, a sound chip
Sound chip
A sound chip is an integrated circuit designed to produce sound . It might be doing this through digital, analog or mixed-mode electronics...
and other enhancements, was launched in Spain in September 1985 and the UK in January 1986, priced at £179.95.
Computer peripherals
Sinclair created various peripherals for their computers including memory expansion modules, the ZX Printer
ZX Printer
The Sinclair ZX Printer is a spark printer which was produced by Sinclair Research for its ZX81 home computer. It was launched in 1981, with a recommended retail price of £49.95....
, and the ZX Interface 1
ZX Interface 1
A peripheral from Sinclair Research for its ZX Spectrum home computer, the ZX Interface 1 was launched in 1983. Originally intended as a local area network interface for use in school classrooms, it was revised before launch to also act as the controller for up to eight ZX Microdrive high-speed...
and ZX Interface 2
ZX Interface 2
The ZX Interface 2 was a peripheral from Sinclair Research for its ZX Spectrum home computer released in September 1983. It had two joystick ports and a ROM cartridge slot, which offered instant loading times. The joystick ports were not compatible with the popular Kempston interface, and thus...
add-ons for the ZX Spectrum. A number of QL peripherals were developed by other companies but marketed under the Sinclair brand. External storage for the Spectrum was usually on cassette tapes, as was common in the era. Rather than an optional floppy disk drive, Sinclair instead opted to offer their own mass storage
Mass storage
In computing, mass storage refers to the storage of large amounts of data in a persisting and machine-readable fashion. Devices and/or systems that have been described as mass storage include tape libraries, RAID systems, hard disk drives, magnetic tape drives, optical disc drives, magneto-optical...
system, the ZX Microdrive
ZX Microdrive
The ZX Microdrive is a magnetic tape data storage system launched in July 1983 by Sinclair Research for their ZX Spectrum home computer. The Microdrive technology was later also used in the Sinclair QL and ICL One Per Desk personal computers.-Development:...
, a tape-loop cartridge system that was rather unreliable. This was also the primary storage device for the QL.
X1 Button FM Radio
In June 1997 Sinclair Research released the X1 radio for £9.50. This miniature mono FM radio, powered by a CR2032 battery was inserted in the ear and had a fixed volume. The X1 radio had three buttons, an on/off switch, a Scan button and a Reset to restart the scanning process. It came with a short length of aerial and a detachable ear hook.
Sinclair X-1
In November 2010 Sinclair told The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
newspaper that he was working on a new prototype electric vehicle, called the X-1
Sinclair X-1
The Sinclair X-1, is an electric vehicle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair and marketed by his company Sinclair Research. The X-1 was announced in November 2010. , the X-1 is expected to be available on July 2011 at the price of £595....
, to be launched within a year. "Technology has moved on quite a bit, there are new batteries available and I just rethought the thing. The C5 was OK, but I think we can do a better job now." The X-1 will be available on July 2011 at the price of £595.
Cancelled projects
The following computer products were under development at Sinclair Research during the 1980s but never reached production:LC3
Standing for "Low Cost Colour Computer", the LC3 was developed during 1983 by Martin Brennan
Martin Brennan (engineer)
Martin Brennan is a computer engineer who developed pioneering personal computers such as the Loki and the Atari Jaguar video game console....
and was intended to be a cheap Z80-based games console implemented in two chips, using ROM and (non-volatile) RAM cartridges for storage. A multi-tasking OS
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
for the LC3 with a full windowing GUI
Gui
Gui or guee is a generic term to refer to grilled dishes in Korean cuisine. These most commonly have meat or fish as their primary ingredient, but may in some cases also comprise grilled vegetables or other vegetarian ingredients. The term derives from the verb, "gupda" in Korean, which literally...
was designed by Steve Berry. It was cancelled in November 1983 in favour of the QL
Sinclair QL
The Sinclair QL , was a personal computer launched by Sinclair Research in 1984, as the successor to the Sinclair ZX Spectrum...
.
SuperSpectrum
Intended to be a 68008
Motorola 68008
The Motorola 68008 is an 8/16/32-bit microprocessor made by Motorola. It is a version of the Motorola 68000 with an 8-bit external data bus, as well as a smaller address bus.The original 68000 had a 24-bit address bus and a 16-bit data bus...
-based home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
, equipped with built-in ZX Microdrive
ZX Microdrive
The ZX Microdrive is a magnetic tape data storage system launched in July 1983 by Sinclair Research for their ZX Spectrum home computer. The Microdrive technology was later also used in the Sinclair QL and ICL One Per Desk personal computers.-Development:...
, joystick, RS-232
RS-232
In telecommunications, RS-232 is the traditional name for a series of standards for serial binary single-ended data and control signals connecting between a DTE and a DCE . It is commonly used in computer serial ports...
and ZX Net ports. Sinclair's SuperBASIC
SuperBASIC
SuperBASIC was an advanced variant of the BASIC programming language with many structured programming additions. It was developed at Sinclair Research by Jan Jones during the early 1980s. Originally SuperBASIC was intended for a home computer, code-named SuperSpectrum, then under development...
programming language was originally intended for this model but was later adopted for the QL. SuperSpectrum was cancelled in 1982 after the specification of the ZX83 (QL) had converged with it. This project is not to be confused with Loki, which was described as the "SuperSpectrum" in an article in the June 1986 issue of Sinclair User
Sinclair User
Sinclair User, often abbreviated SU, was a magazine dedicated to the Sinclair Research range of home computers, most specifically the ZX Spectrum...
magazine.
Pandora
This was to be a portable computer with an integral flat-screen CRT
Cathode ray tube
The cathode ray tube is a vacuum tube containing an electron gun and a fluorescent screen used to view images. It has a means to accelerate and deflect the electron beam onto the fluorescent screen to create the images. The image may represent electrical waveforms , pictures , radar targets and...
display. Initially to be ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
-compatible with a faster Z80
Zilog Z80
The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog and sold from July 1976 onwards. It was widely used both in desktop and embedded computer designs as well as for military purposes...
CPU
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
, a built-in ZX Microdrive
ZX Microdrive
The ZX Microdrive is a magnetic tape data storage system launched in July 1983 by Sinclair Research for their ZX Spectrum home computer. The Microdrive technology was later also used in the Sinclair QL and ICL One Per Desk personal computers.-Development:...
and a new 512×192-pixel monochrome video mode. Due to the limited size of flat CRT that could be manufactured, a series of folding lenses and mirrors were necessary to magnify the screen image to a usable size. The project was cancelled after the Amstrad take-over; however, the Pandora concept eventually transformed into the Cambridge Computer Z88
Cambridge Z88
The Cambridge Computer Z88 is an A4-size, lightweight, portable Z80-based computer with a built-in combined word processing/spreadsheet/database application called PipeDream, along with several other applications and utilities, such as a Z80-version of the BBC BASIC programming language.The Z88...
.
Loki
Loki (computer)
Loki was the codename for a home computer under development at Sinclair Research during the mid-1980s. The name came from the Norse god Loki, god of mischief and thieves. Loki was based on the ZX Spectrum, but intended to rival the Commodore Amiga as a games platform. When Amstrad bought out...
This project was intended to create a greatly enhanced ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
, possibly rivalling the Commodore Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
. Loki was to have a 7 MHz Z80
Zilog Z80
The Zilog Z80 is an 8-bit microprocessor designed by Zilog and sold from July 1976 onwards. It was widely used both in desktop and embedded computer designs as well as for military purposes...
H CPU
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
, 128 KiB of RAM and two custom chips providing much enhanced graphics and audio capabilities. After the Amstrad buy-out in 1986, two engineers who had worked on the project, John Mathieson
John Mathieson (computer scientist)
John Mathieson is a Computer Science graduate who initially worked for Sinclair Research before going on to found Flare with fellow ex-Sinclair colleagues Martin Brennan and Ben Cheese....
and Martin Brennan
Martin Brennan (engineer)
Martin Brennan is a computer engineer who developed pioneering personal computers such as the Loki and the Atari Jaguar video game console....
, founded Flare Technology
Flare Technology
Flare Technology was a computer hardware company based in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1986 by Martin Brennan, Ben Cheese, and John Mathieson, former engineers at Sinclair Research....
to continue their work.
Bob/Florin
According to Rupert Goodwins
Rupert Goodwins
Rupert Goodwins is a British writer, broadcaster and technology journalist.He began his career as a programmer for Sinclair Research in the early 1980s, working on the ZX Spectrum ROM...
, this was a project to produce an add-on floppy disk
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
drive for the ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
.
Tyche
This codename was assigned to a QL follow-on project running from 1984 to 1986. Among the features associated with Tyche were increased RAM capacity, internal floppy disk
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
drives, the Psion Xchange application suite on ROM, and possibly the GEM
Graphical Environment Manager
GEM was a windowing system created by Digital Research, Inc. for use with the CP/M operating system on the Intel 8088 and Motorola 68000 microprocessors...
GUI
Gui
Gui or guee is a generic term to refer to grilled dishes in Korean cuisine. These most commonly have meat or fish as their primary ingredient, but may in some cases also comprise grilled vegetables or other vegetarian ingredients. The term derives from the verb, "gupda" in Korean, which literally...
.
Janus
This name has been associated with a design concept for a "Super QL" based on wafer-scale integration
Wafer-scale integration
Wafer-scale integration, WSI for short, is a yet-unused system of building very-large integrated circuit networks that use an entire silicon wafer to produce a single "super-chip". Through a combination of large size and reduced packaging, WSI could lead to dramatically reduced costs for some...
technology.
Proteus
This was rumoured to be a hypothetical portable version of the QL similar to Pandora.
See also
- Sinclair BASICSinclair BASICSinclair BASIC is a dialect of the BASIC programming language used in the 8-bit home computers from Sinclair Research and Timex Sinclair...
- Sinclair C5Sinclair C5The Sinclair Research C5 is a battery electric vehicle invented by Sir Clive Sinclair and launched by Sinclair Research in the United Kingdom on 10 January 1985. The vehicle is a battery-assisted tricycle steered by a handlebar beneath the driver's knees. Powered operation is possible making it...
- Sinclair ExecutiveSinclair ExecutiveThe Sinclair Executive was Clive Sinclair's first venture into the pocket calculator market. The Executive was the world's first "slimline" pocket calculator. It was variously described as "a piece of personal jewelry" and "at once a conversation piece, a rich man's plaything and a functional...
- Sinclair Radionics
- Sinclair ScientificSinclair ScientificThe Sinclair Scientific calculator was a 12-function, pocket-sized calculator, selling for about $100 in the USA and around £45 in the UK.The Sinclair Scientific first appeared in a case derived from that of the Sinclair Cambridge, but it was not part of the same range. At the time it was launched,...
- Sinclair VehiclesSinclair VehiclesSinclair Vehicles Ltd was a company formed in March 1983 by Sir Clive Sinclair as a focus for his work in the field of electric vehicles. The initial investment was £8.6m, which came from the proceeds of the sale of some of Sir Clive's shares in Sinclair Research...
- Timex SinclairTimex SinclairTimex Sinclair was a joint venture between the British company Sinclair Research and Timex Corporation in an effort to gain an entry into the rapidly-growing early-1980s home computer market in the United States...
- TV80TV80The Sinclair TV80, also known as the Flat Screen Pocket TV or FTV1, was a pocket television launched by Sinclair Research in 1984. Unlike Sinclair's earlier attempts at a portable television, the TV80 used a flat CRT with a side-mounted electron gun instead of a conventional CRT; the picture was...
- Sinclair PresidentSinclair PresidentThe Sinclair President is a calculator that was made by Sinclair Research Ltd. It was launched in 1978. Writing embossed in the black plastic on the back of the calculator states that they were assembled in Hong Kong and designed in Great Britain....
External links
- Sinclair Research Corporate website
- Sinclair Nostalgia Products
- Sinclair Heaven website
- The Sinclair Story book extract
- Planet Sinclair
- 'Pocket TVs failed before. What's changed?', BBC News Magazine article
- ZX81 Online Museum
- www.1000bit.net, 1000BiT Sinclair's section
Further reading
Books- Adamson, Ian; Kennedy, Richard (1986). Sinclair and the "Sunrise" Technology. London: Penguin Books. 224 pp. ISBN 0-14-008774-5.
- Dale, Rodney (1985). The Sinclair Story. London: Duckworth. 184 pp. ISBN 0-7156-1901-2.
- Tedeschi, Enrico (1986). Sinclair Archaeology: The Complete Photo Guide to Collectable Models. Portslade: Hove Books. 130 pp. ISBN 0-9527883-0-6.
Magazines
- CRASHCRASH (magazine)Crash was a magazine dedicated to the ZX Spectrum home computer. It was published from 1984 to 1991 by Newsfield Publications Ltd until their liquidation, and then until 1992 by Europress.-Development:...
- Everyday Electronics, various issues
- Practical Electronics, various issues
- Practical Wireless, various issues
- Radio Constructor, The, various issues
- Sinclair Programs, various issues
- Sinclair Projects, various issues
- Sinclair UserSinclair UserSinclair User, often abbreviated SU, was a magazine dedicated to the Sinclair Research range of home computers, most specifically the ZX Spectrum...
- Your SinclairYour SinclairYour Sinclair or YS as it was commonly abbreviated, was a British computer magazine for the Sinclair range of computers, mainly the ZX Spectrum.-History:...