So far as I can tell, there are only praise and enthusiasm coming from the owners of the Sinclair Z88. Frankly, I dont like the term “lap top”, as it seems to have a connotation of “tinker toy” which demeans the extraordinary capabilities of the Z88. Lap tops come in many varities of both size and price. Last week I looked at a Mitchubitchi lap top which comes in at a measly $4999.99 unit price. Then there are earlier lap tops which didn’t sell like hot cakes and are now priced below $500.00. (Read “not designed to user needs”).
We have several subscribers to UPDATE who already have the Z88, and I suspect that there will be many more on December 26. Why not, the Z88 will fit into a Christmas stocking! Mike Fink, a subscriber and a Z88 Dealer, has just about finished a new “Z88 Instructional Manual” which will become a best seller to the Z88 group. Now Mike has built up a real head of steam (enthusiasm) for this little and powerful computer. I’ll Quote some of his sentences: “You will never need to load any software, even though you can if you wish to”. “All of the programs that you’ll ever need for normal business or home is already in the computer and available by the touch of a few keys”. “It is not possible to design or build a better word processor than is built into the Z88. “It will print to any printer. Just pull the cable out of your pocket and plug into the nearest printer”. “The spread sheet capabilities are fantastic and easy to use.” “The memory add ons can reach 3 mega bytes, plus any number of insertable memory cards”. “It has a built in EPROM Programmer which operates automatically”. “It holds data in memory forever, whether the computer is on or off”. “It operates on inexpensive pen light batteries which can be changed without the computer memory losing any data”. “The Z88 is truly the most versatile combination of computer design, function, and portability, in the World at this time”.
As I said, Mike Fink is an enthusiastic Z88 Dealer, so we cannot exactly call him un-biased. UPDATE welcomes and will publish a detailed review of the Sinclair Z88 FROM AN OWNER ONLY. We need to know from the horse’s mouth more about this new Sinclair product, whether it is worth its price, and an evaluation of its operation. Only an owner who has operated the Z88 for several months can provide such a comprehensive review. How about you Z88 owners telling us about this new computer?
(Mike Fink, 355 W. 39th St., NY, NY 10018-1401 )