ZX Spectrum Next - The Bear and Badger

Diluted Dante

Do you want a ZX Spectrum, but with a keyboard that doesn't lose half the keys if you turn it upside down, HDMI output and the ability to attach a Raspberry Pi to it? Well then the ZX Spectrum Next is for you!

b17b47934a22efdd975234e91c1a04d4_original.JPG?w=680&fit=max&v=1491334374&auto=format&q=92&s=e7c6f410a38d3938a848c9ec8acc2a89

b17b47934a22efdd975234e91c1a04d4_original.JPG?w=680&fit=max&v=1491334374&auto=format&q=92&s=e7c6f410a38d3938a848c9ec8acc2a89

You can buy it as just a board if you want to hack up your existing Speccy to fit it inside the case

bd16d6df29b985b7abedbca917c65e95_original.JPG?w=700&fit=max&v=1490546574&auto=format&q=92&s=b95d6b5c9fbfe5b85c497ddef8347804

bd16d6df29b985b7abedbca917c65e95_original.JPG?w=700&fit=max&v=1490546574&auto=format&q=92&s=b95d6b5c9fbfe5b85c497ddef8347804

Specs:

Processor: Z80 3.5Mhz and 7Mhz modes
Memory: 512Kb RAM (expandable to 1.5Mb internally and 2.5Mb externally)
Video: Hardware sprites, 256 colours mode, Timex 8x1 mode etc.
Video Output: RGB, VGA, HDMI
Storage: SD Card slot, with DivMMC-compatible protocol
Audio: 3x AY-3-8912 audio chips with stereo output + FM sound
Joystick: DB9 compatible with Cursor, Kempston and Interface 2 protocols (selectable)
PS/2 port: Mouse with Kempston mode emulation and an external keyboard
Special: Multiface functionality for memory access, savegames, cheats etc.
Tape support: Mic and Ear ports for tape loading and saving
Expansion: Original external bus expansion port and accelerator expansion port
Accelerator board (optional): GPU / 1Ghz CPU / 512Mb RAM
Network (optional): Wi Fi module
Extras: Real Time Clock (optional), internal speaker (optional)

So how do I get one of these I hear you all cry? Kickstarter obviously, where the fuck else would it be?

How much? £99 for the board, £175 for it with the sexy new case designed by Rick Dickinson, designer of the original Spectrum plus a bunch of other Sinclair products.

Who's day one?

Kow

No thanks.

Roujin

I'm sorry what?

It sounded like you said the board was £99 and the version in the case was £175.

Instead of attaching a Pi, why don't I just buy one of those and emulate the fuck out of the Speccy like this thing does but for way less money?

Kow

Or not emulate it at all and let your memory tell you it was probably good.

Diluted Dante

Roujin wrote:

I'm sorry what? It sounded like you said the board was £99 and the version in the case was £175. Instead of attaching a Pi, why don't I just buy one of those and emulate the fuck out of the Speccy like this thing does but for way less money?

There is an actual reason for this, which they go into in the pitch:

Decades have come and gone and the Speccy is still alive and kicking. New games are being launched all the time, the demoscene carries on pushing the hardware limits to the unimaginable, artists keep on creating great 8-bit eyecandy and music with it. Alongside this there are thousands of awesome games in the back catalogue to play.

Meanwhile hardware hackers around the world have expanded the ZX Spectrum to support SD card storage, feature new and better video modes, pack more memory, faster processor... Problem is, these expansions can be difficult to get hold of, and without a standardised Spectrum, no one knows what to support or develop for.

Here is our answer: The Spectrum Next - an updated and enhanced version of the ZX Spectrum totally compatible with the original, featuring the major hardware developments of the past many years packed inside a simple (and beautiful) design by the original designer, Rick Dickinson, inspired by his seminal work at Sinclair Research.

Basically it's more aimed at people who are still making/playing new Spectrum games.

[Deleted User]

The onscreen pic on the monitor is the least interesting thing about that first photo.

Blocks100

Retro can rot.

[Deleted User]

Blocks100 wrote:

Retro can rot.

I don't agree with everything he says but I think that's a bit harsh.

WorKid

Is this the one where they've fixed/removed the colour clash?

Escape

The original was notorious for being horrible to code on, and they're staying true to that by the looks.

COMMIE CORBYN

cockbeard

Ridiculous price, I think Edge ran a feature on them last month, something about actually emulating the hardware and it's nuances rather than just emulating it's capability. I thought it looked pretty so I checked out the website, tyhen saw the price and fucked off agina

Kow

Fucked a vagina?

Diluted Dante

cockbeard wrote:

Ridiculous price, I think Edge ran a feature on them last month, something about actually emulating the hardware and it's nuances rather than just emulating it's capability. I thought it looked pretty so I checked out the website, tyhen saw the price and fucked off agina

I'm not sure what you mean, there is no emulation involved, they have built a new Spectrum hardware.

WorKid wrote:

Is this the one where they've fixed/removed the colour clash?

Yes.

Kow

I can think of literally no Spectrum game I would ever want to play again. And certainly nothing that couldn't be appeased by 2 minutes on any emulator.

LtPidgeon

£175??? My memories will remain warm and fuzzy at that price.

I think the whole thing with emulating machines from our youth is not just about the games and the hardware. It's the times in our lives with the sights and sounds and smells that we cannot recapture, and why "retro" games only really get a few minutes of play time in the cold light of now.

Kow

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

JonB

I can happily play old games for hours, but can only go so far back. Some MD and SNES games are still great, arcade games from about 1987 onwards, even a handful of Master System and NES ones, but that's the cutoff point.

Blue Swirl

Kow wrote:

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

You can use an SD card, to be fair.

WorKid

Blue Swirl wrote:

Kow wrote:

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

You can use an SD card, to be fair.

Games are much better on analogue though. Richer gameplay and graphics. Digital games are so... sterile.

LtPidgeon

Kow wrote:

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

It was even worse once they changed the loading tone at around the release of Brian Bloodaxe, to that really high pitched tone. It was a nightmare to copy

mistercrayon

WorKid wrote:

Blue Swirl wrote:

Kow wrote:

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

You can use an SD card, to be fair.

Games are much better on analogue though. Richer gameplay and graphics. Digital games are so... sterile.

Board games are often better.

Skondo

LtPidgeon wrote:

Kow wrote:

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

It was even worse once they changed the loading tone at around the release of Brian Bloodaxe, to that really high pitched tone. It was a nightmare to copy

I think it was called Hyperload.

bogard

Never owned/played a speccy. Did I miss much? With all those retro machines coming out, I really want Sega to do a Saturn one.

Yossarian

bogard wrote:

Never owned/played a speccy. Did I miss much?

No. Pretty much anything decent was rereleased on more powerful systems.

Kow

Spectrum was the best and longest lasting of all the home computers of the 80s. It's probably aged the worst though.

Olimite

At the time it was fabulous. Now, not so much.

poprock

Historically the most important machine, by a country mile.

Escape

LtPidgeon wrote:

It's the times in our lives with the sights and sounds and smells that we cannot recapture, and why "retro" games only really get a few minutes of play time in the cold light of now.

Skerret's kept his curtains for authenticity.

RedDave2

WorKid wrote:

Blue Swirl wrote:

Kow wrote:

The thought of connecting a tape recorder, crossing my fingers and waiting through five minutes of screeching noise does nothing but fill me with horror.

You can use an SD card, to be fair.

Games are much better on analogue though. Richer gameplay and graphics. Digital games are so... sterile.

Yeah, and get to play the games how they were meant to be played. The experience the developer wanted you to have all those years ago. Like waiting ages for the game to load. Or the last level not loading properly so you cant complete the game. Lovely times

RamSteelwood

Yeah...i hope they've included the random crashes just as the game finishes loading so you have to rewind the tape and start again, otherwise it just won't be as fun!

Escape

Inlays without load commands, so you have to spend hours typing-in as many variants as you can think of.

I remember you, Berks.

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories