Back Sinclair ZX80 ALS Sinclair ZX80 Catalan ZX80 Czech Sinclair ZX80 German Sinclair ZX80 Greek Sinclair ZX80 Spanish ZX80 French ZX 80 Croatian Sinclair ZX80 Italian シンクレア ZX80 Japanese
 |
 | |
| Type | Home computer |
|---|---|
| Release date | United Kingdom: 29 January 1980 |
| Introductory price | £99.95 GBP (£541; $741 at 2024 prices) |
| Discontinued | 1981 |
| Units shipped | 100,000[1] |
| Media | Cassette tape |
| Operating system | Sinclair BASIC |
| CPU | Z80 @ 3.25-3.55 MHz (most machines used the NEC μPD780C-1 equivalent) |
| Memory | 1 KB (16 KB max.) |
| Storage | External Compact Cassette recorder |
| Display | Monochrome display on UHF television |
| Graphics | 24 lines × 32 characters or 64 × 48 block graphics mode |
| Predecessor | MK14 |
| Successor | ZX81 |
The Sinclair ZX80 is a home computer launched on 29 January 1980[2] by Science of Cambridge Ltd. (later to be better known as Sinclair Research). It is notable for being one of the first computers available in the United Kingdom for less than a hundred pounds. It was available in kit form for £79.95, where purchasers had to assemble and solder it together, and as a ready-built version at £99.95.[3][4]
The ZX80 was advertised as the first personal computer for under £100 and received praise for its value and documentation. However, it faced criticism for screen blanking during program execution, small RAM size, and the keyboard design. It was very popular straight away, and for some time there was a waiting list of several months for either version of the machine.
- ^ Hayman, Martin (July 1982). "Interview – Clive Sinclair". Practical Computing. Vol. 5, no. 7.
- ^ "Sinclair ZX80 Launched". Centre for Computing History. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
- ^ "Advertisement for Sinclair ZX81". Practical Computing. Vol. 4, no. 4. April 1981. pp. 72–73.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
byte198101was invoked but never defined (see the help page).