30 years ago today, Clive Sinclair and the good old folks at Sinclair Research launched a home computer, the ZX Spectrum. The Spectrum went on to become one of the most iconic computers of all time, and really pushed the drive for home computers. Although home computers were around in the early 80′s, they were mostly a niche market due to their high price, however, the Spectrum launched at a price of £125 for 16kB RAM, or £175 for 48kB RAM. At around the same time, the BBC were recognising the fledgling computer market, and decided to get on board, launching the BBC Micro in conjunction with Acorn Computers. The Beeb, Spectrum, and the Commodore 64, which also turns 30 this year, were the first computers which really inspired a generation of programmers, many of whom are still around in the industry somewhere, and still doing great things.

Personally, the ZX Spectrum has a very special place in my heart, having played the games created for as long as I can remember. Some of the stand-out games include, but are not limited to; Manic Miner, Head Over Heels, Jetpac, The Hobbit, Skool Daze, and Atic Atac.

I’m trying to keep this short, but ultimately, this computer did amazing things, and some great games were written for it, a lot of which are still extremely playable today (infact, here’s a lovely browser emulator: http://www.zxspectrum.net/)