The printer is out. Three new machines are about to hit the market. Another price reduction is made. These are among the recent developments in the Timex Sinclair computer field.
Timex Sinclair 1000 for $49.95
In our last issue we reported that Timex Computer Corporation had reduced the suggested retail price for the TS1000 to $69.95. On April 28, 1983, Timex announced a further reduction to $49.95. Remember the breakthrough of the original ZX80 for $199.95?
Timex Sinclair 1500 for $79.95
On May 17 Timex announced the introduction of the Timex Sinclair 1500, an enhanced version of the TS1000. Shipment is expected to begin in July.
The most obvious enhancement is a new styled case supporting a full movement keyboard instead of the familiar membrane keyboard. The 40 keys have the same layout, commands, functions, graphics, and characters as the TS1000. The second major enhancement is that the on-board RAM has been increased to 16K and can be expanded to 32K by the TS1016 16K RAM pack.
The TS1500 is compatible with all TS1000 peripherals and software. Standard cassette recorders are used for saving and loading, but the new instant-load software cartridges being developed by Timex will plug directly into the computer. These palm-sized cartridges are expected to cost from $12.95 to $29.95 and to be available in August.
Timex Sinclair 2000 Series
Timex also announced on May 17 that two computers in the 2000 series would be available to retailers in August. One with 72K RAM is priced at $199.95; the other with 40K RAM at $149.95. The video display can be output to most color and black-and-white TV sets as well as to a monitor.
The keyboard has 40 moveable keys arranged in typewriter format with upper and lower case letters, repeat key option for all keys, 16 built-in graphics characters, and 21 user-programmable graphics characters. Each key performs up to six functions. Most of the functions, commands, characters of the TS1000 are retained and in the same places, but a few have been moved, e.g., the number keys have the same character placement as the standard typewriter keyboards. New functions have been added to handle the increased capabilities of the computer. The Basic has also been expanded, most notably with READ, DATA, and RESTORE.
Probably the chief difference from the 1000 that users have been anticipating is the high resolution color capability. The features include eight colors; control of the foreground, background, and border areas; a flash command; and a brightness control. The display area consists of 24 lines with up to 64 characters each. The high resolution display has 256 dots horizontally and 192 vertically which can be individually addressed.
A fully programmable sound capability is provided by a built-in speaker with a range of 10 octaves and 130 semitones. The BEEP command allows setting the pitch and duration of sounds. Users who want to compose music will be able to do so on the computer.
Although the 2000 series continues to use cassette saving and loading, an extensive software line will also be available on the new mini-cartridges that plug directly into the computer. Another feature is a built-in real time clock. This will allow the user to run real time programs and coordinate with appliances.