Sinclair and the 'Sunrise' Technology: The Deconstruction of a Myth (38 page)
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Authors: Ian Adamson,Richard Kennedy
Tags: #Technology & Engineering, #Business, #Economics, #General, #Biography & Autobiography, #Electronics, #Business & Economics
May: First reported delivery of a QL to mail order customer - returned within a week
ASA upholds complaints on QL advertising delivery claims, and Spectrum Chess program advertising
Sinclair Vehicles moves to University of Warwick Science Park. Barry Wills is MD
June: Sinclair announce Interface 1 ROM to be changed
July: QL production reported to be ‘2000 a week’.
Corrected versions of User Guide due in August. Expects 250,000 QLs to be sold by end 1985
Improved Psion software promised for ‘later in the year’
AB Electronics (South Wales) and Samsung Electronics (Korea) appointed as Spectrum assemblers.
Projected 200,000 a month production of Spectrums by end 1984, 50,000 a month for QL, 20,000 a month for pocket TV
August: Spectrum LOGO language launched by Sinclair at £39.00 September: QL and flat-screen TV go into retail outlets. QL ‘now in large volume production’
October: Spectrum+ (48K Spectrum with new keyboard/box) released at £179.95
November: ICL’s ‘One-Per-Desk’ workstation launched, using Sinclair Microdrives and SuperBASIC
Sinclair predicts record sales of 400,000 Spectrums in fourth quarter. 175,000 Spectrums to be shipped in December
Spectrum shipments reach 2m units £4m ad campaign starts
1985
10 January: C5 electric tricycle launched at £399
16 January: Sinclair shows FM wristwatch radio at Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show in US
20 January: Spectrum+ price dropped to £129.95, 48K Spectrum discontinued. Upgrade of Spectrum to Spectrum+ offered for £30 (kit £20)
30 January: Microdrive cartridge price dropped to £1.99 as cartridge sales reach 750,000. Free duplication and bulk carriage purchase offered to software houses to boost QL software February: QL production suspended
ICL launch ‘One-Per-Desk’ workstation with microdrives, version of Superb ASIC, Psion packages
6 February: Acorn shares suspended
7 February: Sinclair aborts stock market flotation
9 February: Sinclair Vehicles reports 5,000 orders for C5 20 February.
Sinclair Research restructures into TV and Communications Division (headed by Bill Jeffrey, brought in from Mars Electronics) and Computer Division (headed by Davis Chatten, ex-Sinclair Production Director). Hugo Davenport appointed Engineering Director (ex-Solatron-Schlumberger) Nigel Searle transfers to head U S operation for QL, FM wristwatch radio and pocket TV mail order
Sinclair holds overseas distributors conference, displaying thirty- three software packages and seventeen peripherals available or projected for the QL
22 February: Improved Version 2.0 Psion software for the QL announced, to be shipped with new QLs. Free upgrades provided to QLUB members
March: Production faults on C5 halt production for three weeks
Unemployed teenagers hired to drive C5s around London, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds
12 March: Plans to form and seek funding for separate company for wafer-scale chips under Robb Wilmot are announced by Clive. Wilmot appointed a director of Sinclair Research Institutions holding 10 per cent shares told profits to December £7.9m on £89m turnover, stocks held £34m
25 March: Intensive TV and press marketing campaign for QL starts.
Sinclair states it ‘intends’ to sell 200,000 QLs this year
April: Figures (not released until November) show pre-tax loss of £18m on turnover of £102m. £22m written off for decrease in stock value and bad debts
14 April: Dutch ban C5
16 April: Spanish language QL launched
25 April: ASA upholds complaints on unsubstantiated claims in C5 adverts in draft report
Hoover cut C5 workforce from 100 to 12 and production from 1000 a week to 100
May: Several London retailers discount QL prices in stores
Amstrad launch CPC664 with disc drive and monitor. Monochrome £339, colour £449 Hoover make C5 production controller redundant 2 May: Tandata buys QCOM modem from bankrupt OEL
14 May: French language QL launched
28 May: Sinclair confirms it is seeking £10m-15m to ‘fund long-term growth and restructuring’ and a new chief executive to replace Clive in this role, denies Clive intends to relinquish his position as chairman, and counters reports of weak computer market by stating they shipped 300,000 Spectrums in pre-Xmas period
2 June: Sinclair Vehicles confirms it is looking to sell company. ‘About 9000’ C5s sold
6 June: Timex sell Spectrums directly to Zeta Services to reduce debts owed by Sinclair Research
17 June: Maxwell announces rescue bid for Sinclair Research, which has £15m debts. Deal to leave Clive with 8 per cent, chairmanship and consultancy
Sinclair announces wafer-scale integration process proven viable for commercial production, to be used in 500K memory add-on for QL
22 June: Amstrad launch CPC6128 machine with CP/M, disc, monitor, 128K RAM at £299 monochrome, £399 colour
July: Timex lay off 400 workers from Spectrum assembly line, but continue flat-screen production
Boots say Spectrum+ returns running at 20-30 per cent
13 July: Hoover issue writ against Clive for £1.5m due for work done on C5, but it is not served
17 July: ASA uphold four out of five complaints on misleading C5 adverts
9 August: Maxwell aborts Sinclair Research takeover
Dixons take 160,000 computers and flat-screen TVs for £10m
13 August: Hoover stops C5 production
24 August: QL price cut from £399 to £199.95
September: Sinclair Vehicles renamed as TPD Ltd
Comet cuts C5 price to £189, including accessories
Amstrad launch PCW8256 machine with CP/M, disc drive, monitor, printer and 256K RAM for £459
19 September: Digital Research confirms talks taking place with Sinclair over GEM operating system for QL
23 September: Spectrum 128K version unveiled at Barcelona Computer Fair, result of joint venture with Investronica and Sinclair Research
14 October: Receivers called in to TPD Ltd (ex-Sinclair Vehicles Ltd). Only 4500 C5s sold in total
17 October: ‘Pandora’ ‘68000-based’ portable scheduled for April 1986, at £300
25 October: ‘Enigma’ leaked to Your Computer, May 1986, 3.5-inch discs, mouse, monitor, printer and Psion packages for ‘£500- 1000’. ‘Pandora’ will be Spectrum (Z80 chip) based ‘Personal Communicator’ £99 portable cell net phone leaked to press
6 November: TPD Ltd (ex-Sinclair Vehicles) goes into voluntary liquidation with debts of £6.4m.
Sinclair Vehicles (Sales) Ltd to continue electric car projects
1986
6 February: Timex take over worldwide marketing and distribution of flat-screen pocket TV, with price cut to £79.95
13 February: Spectrum 128K launched in UK. New sound chip, video output, improved BASIC editor, full keyboard input, nonstandard RS232 port, keypad interface and no ‘dot crawl’, with 128K memory for £179.95. Numeric keypad available separately for £19.95. Disc drive promised. Clive says ‘ “Pandora” could just be a CP/M machine’
13 March: Amstrad announce PCW8512 machine, with twin disc drives, 512K memory, monitor, printer, for £573.85
April: C5s go on sale in the USA, at $595 complete, $395 kit
6 April: Amstrad pays £5m for all rights to existing Sinclair computer products, and commits £1lm for outstanding orders and work in progress. Sinclair Research becomes research and consultancy, two separate subsidiaries to be formed, one with Timex holding 75 per cent for portable phone project, one with Barclays Bank funding for wafer-scale development
7 July: Anamartic Ltd launched. Seeks to raise £6m to produce wafer-scale memory device for production early 1987
Ian Adamson was born in Yorkshire in 1950 and gained some education at Salford and Middle East technical universities and at Salford Technical College. He then worked as labourer, machinist, roadie, salesman and house painter - interspersed with periods in Europe, Asia and Africa - before becoming a book importer and distributor. The design of laboratories, libraries and educational facilities for the Third World led to collaboration on his first computer book. He is now a freelance author and literary agent. His hobbies are metaphysics, music and magick indoors; sailing outside when he gets the chance. His previous books include The Century Computer Programming Course (co-author), the Oric Atmos Manual and the Oric Companion.
Richard Kennedy has had a varied and chequered career. Shop assistant, rock musician, amateur chemist, investigative journalist and writer, Mr Kennedy was bitten by the computer bug over seven years ago and has been writing about the consequences ever since. Previous publications include major contributions to The Century Computer Course, the Oric Atmos Manual, the Complete Commodore 64 and the Electron Companion. He currently resides in the radioactive shadow of London’s Telecom Tower. He has no hobbies.
Table of Contents
[4] SCAMPS AND SCAMS: THE BALLAD OF THE MK14
[5] THE ZX80: A NEW MEANS TO AN OLD END
[6] THE ZX81: BEGINNING OF THE BOOM