ZX Spectrum Facts for Kids

The

The 48k ZX Spectrum

The ZX Spectrum was a popular home computer from the 1980s. It was made by a British company called Sinclair Research Ltd, owned by inventor Sir Clive Sinclair. The first ZX Spectrum came out in April 1982. It was designed to be a computer that families could afford.

The ZX Spectrum became very popular in Britain and Spain. It was known for being small and not too expensive. The first models had a rubber keyboard and a plastic case. Sinclair's company made seven different ZX Spectrum computers over time. Other companies also made their own versions of the ZX Spectrum.

One big company that worked with Sinclair was Timex from America. Timex made three different computers based on the ZX Spectrum. They sold many of them each month. However, some of Timex's computers had problems, so they stopped selling them in 1983. Timex also made many of the Sinclair ZX Spectrums for Europe, and those worked well. Sinclair Research kept making the ZX Spectrum until 1990. After that, other companies around the world continued to make copies. When Sinclair stopped, there were over 10,000 different games and many extra devices for the ZX Spectrum. Some companies even sell new games for it today!