Last incarnation of ZX Spectrum+ was Delta computer (?)
Stanley
It's well know fact that probably hundreads of Speccy clones spreaded
the world through past 20 years. I've got one clone just yesterday -
it's name is Delta and it's very special clone, because it's not clone
in fact. To be honest it's original ZX Spectrum + with some minor
differences:
- Delta has the same keyboard and features as original ZX Spectrum +,
internal board is (C)1983 Sinclair ZX Spectrum Issue 3B
- Sinclair ZX Spectrum + logo is relabeled with small silver coloured
plastic plate and renamed to Delta. When silver plate is removed
you'll see original Sinclair logo and ZX Spectrum + but just in black
colour - not red one as on original ZXS+.
- Small rainbow on the right side of Delta's keyboard as usuall on
ZXS+ is missing and you'll see just black relief pointing where
rainbow should be put.
- ROM is unchanged - it's standard (c) 1982 Sinclair...Ltd. ROM.
- There is big paper label on the back side of Delta with simple text:
Made in UK. When this paper label is removed embossed writing is
visible - Sinclair ZX Spectrum etc. (I have not yet removed label on
my Delta now, but I remember explorations of other Delta from 1987)
As I remember Delta apperaed in 1987 in Czechoslovakia for quite cheap
price equivalent to 630 DM,- that time and was sold for about 6 months
till stock was sold (comptetitive domestic Didaktik Gama clone apeared
the same time and costed 620,- DM and dropped to 530DM later down to
300DM, Sharp MZ 800 with embedded tape recorder costed about 730,-DM
and Atari 800XL/XE about 810 DM,-). Most popular computers were
Speccy, Atari XL, Sharp MZ 800 and C64 placed 4th. Delta was
bestseller because we knew it's just relabeled Speccy+ and price was
quite good. Some of us knew already that 128k and +2 version is
available in western Europe and we smuggled :-) a lot of 128k/+2/+3
and +2A unofficialy later on. (Estimated number of czechoslovak
Speccy/clones users was close to 300 000s).
So that's short story about Delta. What I would like to know is the
fact whether Delta was sold also in UK (remember Made in UK label on
the back) or not? For some reason somebody relabeled and exported
unsold ZX Spectrums+ to Deltas probably because (IMHO):
- Clive lost rights to use Sinclair logo and trademark and somebody
owned couple of 1/10 thousands of not sold pluses even after Amstrad's
takeover of Sinclair Research Ltd.
- according to SU/YS information sources from 1985/86 Maxwell (medial
magnat which came as emigrant from Czechoslovakia to UK) planned to
help Clive with export of unsold Speccy pluses to communist countries
like CSSR and Delta was probably child of such business idea.
Could it be so, or it's just another rumour about Delta?
Somebody told me that pluses were exported to former Yugoslavia first
where Delta Iskra Computers company was active that time and they
relabeled pluses to Deltas. But why Made in UK label was put to back
of Delta computer? And why should they reexport Deltas from Yugoslavia
to Czechoslovakia? Take into account that yugoslavian currency was
convertible to USD/GBP then and czechoslovak currency not (just to
soviet rubel :-) as opposite today :-)
So I'm investigating where Deltas came from and what was the reason
for such mysterius relabeling of original Sinclair ZX Spectrum pluses?
If you have any clues and fragments to complete mosaic about fate and
origin of Deltas let me know please...
Stanley
Andrew Owen
stan...@yahoo.com (Stanley) wrote:
> So that's short story about Delta. What I would like to know is the
> fact whether Delta was sold also in UK (remember Made in UK label on
> the back) or not? For some reason somebody relabeled and exported
> unsold ZX Spectrums+ to Deltas probably because (IMHO):
> - Clive lost rights to use Sinclair logo and trademark and somebody
> owned couple of 1/10 thousands of not sold pluses even after Amstrad's
> takeover of Sinclair Research Ltd.
> - according to SU/YS information sources from 1985/86 Maxwell (medial
> magnat which came as emigrant from Czechoslovakia to UK) planned to
> help Clive with export of unsold Speccy pluses to communist countries
> like CSSR and Delta was probably child of such business idea.
>
> Could it be so, or it's just another rumour about Delta?
Maxwell was in line to buy Sinclair out at one point but that deal fell
through. Amstrad certainly would have had a warehouse of unsold Spectrum+
machines when it bought Sinclair in 1986. The 'Delta' was never offered
for sale in the UK that I'm aware of. It is conceivable that Amstrad
itself sold off its stock, but I'm not aware of any hard facts about what
became of them.
> Somebody told me that pluses were exported to former Yugoslavia first
> where Delta Iskra Computers company was active that time and they
> relabeled pluses to Deltas. But why Made in UK label was put to back
> of Delta computer?
Possibly because the UK was seen as producing high quality goods?
> And why should they reexport Deltas from Yugoslavia
> to Czechoslovakia?
> Take into account that yugoslavian currency was
> convertible to USD/GBP then and czechoslovak currency not (just to
> soviet rubel :-) as opposite today :-)
If the company had a Czech partner it could have done some kind of deal to
get around the currency issue.
> So I'm investigating where Deltas came from and what was the reason
> for such mysterius relabeling of original Sinclair ZX Spectrum pluses?
>
> If you have any clues and fragments to complete mosaic about fate and
> origin of Deltas let me know please...
If I were you I'd start with trying to get hold of former employees of
Delta Iskra. I can tell you that none of the Sinclair employees I've been
in touch with over the years have any idea what happened to the warehouse
of +s.
--
The ZX Spectrum SE is really here. You're not imagining it.
Bethany Carlton
news:df105ff2.02110...@posting.google.com...
> Hi Specchums,
>
> It's well know fact that probably hundreads of Speccy clones spreaded
> the world through past 20 years. I've got one clone just yesterday -
> it's name is Delta and it's very special clone, because it's not clone
> in fact. To be honest it's original ZX Spectrum + with some minor
> differences:
[snip differences, etc.]
>
> So I'm investigating where Deltas came from and what was the reason
> for such mysterius relabeling of original Sinclair ZX Spectrum pluses?
>
> If you have any clues and fragments to complete mosaic about fate and
> origin of Deltas let me know please...
>
Hello,
I'm sorry, but I don't. It sounds very interesting though - I had a quick
look at Planet Sinclair
http://www.nvg.ntnu.no/sinclair/computers/clones/russian.htm and found some
information that might be useful to you. The machine you have may be the
same as one of the ones mentioned there, but the photo looks a little
different to how I'm visualizing your description. If yours is different to
the one shown, perhaps you could contact Chris Owen and provide him with a
photo?
You may also be able to find out some information from the 'Old Computers'
website (which I don't have the URL for immediately to hand, but I think
it's http://www.old-computers.com/ or something very similar) There's also
the 'Home Computer Museum' site, which I can't even begin to think of the
address for, but hopefully someone will be along with it shortly. I believe
it's based in Germany and owned by a gentleman called Stefan. I'll try to
post the correct URL if someone else doesn't beat me to it!
Bethany
Stanley
>
> Hello,
>
> I'm sorry, but I don't. It sounds very interesting though - I had a quick
> look at Planet Sinclair
> http://www.nvg.ntnu.no/sinclair/computers/clones/russian.htm and found some
> information that might be useful to you. The machine you have may be the
> same as one of the ones mentioned there, but the photo looks a little
> different to how I'm visualizing your description. If yours is different to
> the one shown, perhaps you could contact Chris Owen and provide him with a
> photo?
>
> You may also be able to find out some information from the 'Old Computers'
> website (which I don't have the URL for immediately to hand, but I think
> it's http://www.old-computers.com/ or something very similar) There's also
> the 'Home Computer Museum' site, which I can't even begin to think of the
> address for, but hopefully someone will be along with it shortly. I believe
> it's based in Germany and owned by a gentleman called Stefan. I'll try to
> post the correct URL if someone else doesn't beat me to it!
>
> Bethany
Hello Bethany,
thank you for your informations. I'm sure that my Delta or Delta from
czechoslovak market in 1987 is definitly not russian clone. It's just
relabeled Speccy+. It could origin as unsold stock of pluses, because
internal board is original ZX Spectrum Issue 3B, with Ferranti ULA. I
think russian clones have mainly some replacements for Ferranti ULAs.
As Didaktik Gama as example (czechoslovak clone, but with russian ULA)
Anyway I'm preparing new web site dedicated to retrocomputing and I'll
put Delta pictures there. I'll give you URL on comp.sys.sinclair then
and you'll see this Delta-Spectrum+ computer :-) There will be some
interesting/background informations regarding Didaktik Gama (history,
internal info from former Didaktik emplyees) too. And lot of
interesting informations about our former local demo scene
(Busysoft/Slavo Labsky, Prisoner/Digisynth, Rumatisoft, etc.). Or
computing in Middle Europe in 80s.
Anyway thank you very much for investigation and additional
informations.
Kind regards
Stanley
Constantine Aygi
stan...@yahoo.com (Stanley) wrote in message news:<df105ff2.02110...@posting.google.com>...
> Hello Bethany,
>
> thank you for your informations. I'm sure that my Delta or Delta from
> czechoslovak market in 1987 is definitly not russian clone.
I bet it is not a Russian Delta clone. I saw several DIFFERENT Spectrum
clones in Russia named Delta.
My first spectrum was Delta-S 48K. It is something absolutely unique :)
Russian Delta 48K had no ULA chip at all – only some TTL logic.
I also saw Delta-S 128K. This version had a Russian-made ULA chip.
Planet Sinclair represents only a few versions of Russian ZX-clones
ever made. I saw a lot more versions. And I own some not listed at
that site.
Regards,
Constantine
Frodo Morris
> "Stanley" <stan...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:df105ff2.02110...@posting.google.com...
>
>>Hi Specchums,
>>
>>It's well know fact that probably hundreads of Speccy clones spreaded
>>the world through past 20 years. I've got one clone just yesterday -
>>it's name is Delta and it's very special clone, because it's not clone
>>in fact. To be honest it's original ZX Spectrum + with some minor
>>differences:
>
>
> [snip differences, etc.]
>
>
>>So I'm investigating where Deltas came from and what was the reason
>>for such mysterius relabeling of original Sinclair ZX Spectrum pluses?
>>
>>If you have any clues and fragments to complete mosaic about fate and
>>origin of Deltas let me know please...
>>
>
>
> Hello,
>
> I'm sorry, but I don't. It sounds very interesting though - I had a quick
> look at Planet Sinclair
> http://www.nvg.ntnu.no/sinclair/computers/clones/russian.htm and found some
> information that might be useful to you. The machine you have may be the
> same as one of the ones mentioned there, but the photo looks a little
> different to how I'm visualizing your description. If yours is different to
> the one shown, perhaps you could contact Chris Owen and provide him with a
> photo?
64Mb RAM, albeit erroneously. However, if you're looking for a towered
computer for under $200, try these 21MHz Z80 beauties:
http://www.petersplus.com/products/
And they have Speccy mode too :-)
--
FM