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SINCLAIR ZX SPECTRUM+ 128

When I recently saw this home computer on a flee market, I almost got mislead. I wanted to leave it were it was, because I thought it was a regular Spectrum+, until I noticed the bit bigger case with '128 K' printed on it. Outward the Spectrum+ 128 is very similar to its predecessor, but inside there is a world of difference between the two computers.

RAM disk
One of the big differences is of course the substantially extended RAM of 128 KB, compared to the 48 K of the Spectrum and the Spectrum+. Now Sinclair had made a real computer! And the funniest thing was that one could use the 128 KB (at least a big part of it) as a so-called RAM disk. This meant that in RAM several programs could be saved and loaded, just like on tape or on Sinclair's microdrives, but many times faster.

Finally: real sound! The second big plus of the Spectrum 128 was the mature sound. The user wasn't annoyed any longer at the simple, beeping speaker of the preceding Spectrums. The moment had come for the real gaming with matching sound effects, thanks to the Yamaha sound chip. Just like competitor Commodore 64, the Spectrum now let itself heard through the TV. And the MIDI/RS232 at the back of the Spectrum offered extra musical possibilities.

Basic editor
The third major difference was the extended Basic version. Besides, one wrote programs on the Spectrum 128 with a Basic editor, so that it was much easier now to make changes in a listing. On the other hand, Sinclair had abandoned its famous system with which one could enter Basic commands with one touch. The commands had to be entered letter for letter now. But the syntax check was maintained.

Menu When booting the computer one also noticed that this was a revised model of the Spectrum. On the screen a real menu appeared, with five possibilities: Tape Loader (to load a program directly from tape), 128 BASIC, Calculator (to use the computer as a calculator), 48 BASIC and Tape Tester (to check the sound level of the tape recorder). Not compatible With the option 48 BASIC one could use the Spectrum 128 as a regular Spectrum/Spectrum+. Thus the enormous amount of games and other software for these early Spectrums could still be used on the Spectrum 128. In Basic-128 mode the new Spectrum was not compatible with its predecessors.

First in Spain
Remarkably enough, the Spectrum+ 128 was not launched in the United Kingdom, but in Spain. Sinclair decided not to start in the UK with this new computer because of the enormous amounts of unsold previous models of the Spectrum in his homeland. Sales started in Spain in the second half of 1985, followed about half a year later by the UK.
The timing was bad, far away from the Christmas season that was, and is, a very important opportunity for companies to make profit. Partly because of this, the Sinclair 128 was not as successful as could have been expected. 

The last real Sinclair
The 128 was the last real Sinclair. The rights would be bought by Armstrad, which manufactured the successors: the Spectrum 2 and the Spectrum 3.

Specifications of the Sinclair ZX Spectrum+ 128