April 23, 1982: Sir Clive Sinclair gave the world, the ZX Spectrum. This 8-bit wonder took the UK by storm. It proved so popular that it was in production till 1992. It celebrates its 30th birthday today. So, to you, the ZX Speccy, we wish you a happy 30th birthday. May you celebrate many more to come !
By the numbers:
Launch Date: 23 April 1982
Launch Price: £125 (16KB), £175 (48KB)
Dimensions: 232x144x30mm
Weight: 552g
Processor: Zilog Z80A (running at 3.5MHz)
RAM: 16/48KB
ROM: 16KB
Onboard Language: Sinclair BASIC
Display: 32×24 characters, 256×192 pixels
Colours: Eight available (plus seven variations)
Sound: Internal speaker (buzzing)
Interesting key technical component: The ULA (Uncommitted Logic Array) chip, aka: the ‘glue chip’, combines the functions of several chips and controls the I/O functions.
