A Kickstarter project to recreate the ZX Spectrum is in disarray after it was revealed that many of the original developers of the included Spectrum games had never been paid for the.
New games are being launched all the time, the demoscene carries on pushing the hardware limits to the unimaginable, artists keep on creating great 8-bit eyecandy and music with it. The Speccy was, and still is, on a league of its own.Decades have come and gone and the Speccy is still alive and kicking. Why wouldn’t we? It was much more than just a computer: it was a machine that sparked a gaming revolution, neatly housed within its iconic design powered by sheer simplicity. A Sinclair ZX Spectrum computer Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty ImagesBut even many of Sinclair’s less successful inventions were later validated Sinclair’s Black Watch, which used “integrated circuit technology” according to a 1970s print ad, didn’t really catch on, but looks it could have inspired some of the fitness trackers everyone wears on their wrists now. Sinclair’s TV80 pocket television wasn’t popular back in the day, but now we all carry little screens around with us wherever we go. And Elon Musk tweeted his condolences on Thursday, saying he “loved” the ZX Spectrum.The Sinclair C5 electric vehicle, which launched in 1985 with a starting price of around £399 (roughly $550) wasn’t a hit with consumers either you had to pedal it when the battery died, and when seated the operator was below the line of sight of most cars on the road.
Memory: 512Kb RAM (expandable to 1.5Mb internally and 2.5Mb externally) Here’s what under the hood of the machine: Problem is, these expansions can be difficult to get hold of, and without a standardised Spectrum, no one knows what to support or develop for.Here is our answer: The Spectrum Next - an updated and enhanced version of the ZX Spectrum totally compatible with the original, featuring the major hardware developments of the past many years packed inside a simple (and beautiful) design by the original designer, Rick Dickinson, inspired by his seminal work at Sinclair Research.The latest pre-production fully working prototype boardThe Spectrum Next is fully implemented with FPGA technology, ensuring it can be upgraded and enhanced while remaining truly compatible with the original hardware by using special memory chips and clever design.
Special: Multiface functionality for memory access, savegames, cheats etc. PS/2 port: Mouse with Kempston mode emulation and an external keyboard Joystick: DB9 compatible with Cursor, Kempston and Interface 2 protocols (selectable) Audio: 3x AY-3-8912 audio chips with stereo output + FM sound Storage: SD Card slot, with DivMMC-compatible protocol
Kickstarter Zx Spectrum Next Trial Designs Ever
We think the job is done!Rick also took great care to create a keyboard that’s more responsive and features higher bandwidth input than the original, using a butterfly mechanism to power a tactile response to any fingertip touching its keys. We got to thank Rick Dickinson, the designer of all things Sinclair, for dedicating his time and amazing team to come up with a spiritual successor to one of the best and most loved industrial designs ever. Extras: Real Time Clock (optional), internal speaker (optional)Yes, we know. Accelerator board (optional): GPU / 1Ghz CPU / 512Mb RAM Expansion: Original external bus expansion port and accelerator expansion port
He also holds a Guinness World Record for cramming Dragons Lair into a ZX81. He’s the co-creator of the TBBlue Spectrum board, the starting point of the Next hardware.One of the most celebrated ZX Spectrum developers, Jim is the coder behind classics such as Cabal and Midnight Resistance among many others. Perhaps his mostly recognised project is the multisystem cartridge emulator, enabling many consoles to use a single device to load games from SD cards.Recognised as a key figure in the MSX hardware scene in Brazil, Fabio is a computer scientist with a not-so-hidden passion for the Speccy (the MSX vs Speccy in Brazil was analogous to the C64 vs Speccy in the UK). If you think the Spectrum Next looks gorgeous, it’s all his doing.One of the most gifted retro hackers on the planet, Victor is responsible for an endless string of open source hardware aimed at keeping our beloved oldies alive. Over the decades his creations have stood out of the crowd and survived the test of time, remaining icons of design to this day.
During the past 12 months we've been collecting feedback from the community and expanding the machine's features based on suggestions and requests.This process will continue during production even after the Next's launch, as its firmware will be constantly upgraded to improve the machine and include more things it's able to do - such as the Jupiter Ace and ZX81 modes already available.It's also important to note that some aspects of its board layout have been changed (such as the joystick port moving to the front of the computer for easier access), and might still be improved before final production. Our imagination is the limit!When we first conceived the Spectrum Next, it was a very different, much more humble machine. And for a super trip down the memory lane of you favourite games, check Jim's website here.We hope the ZX Next will lead to a new generation of games made specifically for it, on top of amazing ports of old classics taking advantage of more speed, memory, colours. For all things design, head over here for Rick Dickinson’s company. His passion for games and demoscene powers the developer relations of the Next project.Check out Victor and Fabio's hardware work at and Retrocomputaria (tip: in Brazil, where they live, the ZX Spectrum is represented by clones called ‘TK90X’ and ‘TK95’).
One of the best-looking (and playable) games ever, now poised to look (and play) even better!The Oliver Twins and Lyndon Sharp working on a special version of DreamWorld Pogie making full use of the Next palette, sprites and hardware scrolling.Garry is working on a new version of his celebrated +3e OS for the Next's SD card, packed with more performance and features.The team behind the amazing Castlevania: Spectral Interlude are working on a new Beat'em'Up for the Next called No Fate. The Oliver Twins and Codemasters generously donate all their royalties to Special Effect & The National Videogame Arcade on any Dizzy games sales.One of the best OS for the Spectrum by Miguel Guerreiro, updated and expanded for the Next, making use of its full features.Jas Austin's celebrated Speccy classic gets a mini follow-up made for the Next. “Dizzy” is a trademark of Codemasters. This game will created and distributed under license. They all have busy day jobs! As a result we are delighted to provide this New Dizzy game for FREE to all backers.We must also give a massive thanks to the Oliver Twins and Codemasters.
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