THE SPECTRUM

IT’S ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC HOME COMPUTERS EVER MADE, AND IT’S BACK IN PLUG-AND-PLAY FORM. WE SPEAK TO THE PEOPLE BEHIND IT TO FIND OUT WHY IT’S TAKEN SO LONG, AND GET A CHANCE TO GIVE OUR FIRST IMPRESSIONS AHEAD OF LAUNCH

- nick thогре

If all the things the Retro Gamer team could be surprised by, you wouldn’t think the device you’re seeing on these pages should rank very highly on the list. We didn’t think so either, but the more we thought about The Spectrum, the more it has surprised us. What initially seemed like something simple and obvious has given rise to a whole load of questions, which ultimately left us dumbfounded as to how the machine could even exist.

What is The Spectrum? It’s a full-sized recreation of the classic Sinclair computer in its original form, complete with working rubber keys. It comes with 48 built-in games ranging from Eighties icons to modern homebrew hits, and the ability to load your own games via USB memory stick. If you want to forego the slick menu and jump straight into a familiar grey prompt screen, that’s possible too. Naturally, it also has USB controller support and outputs video via HDMI at 720p. It’s going to be out on 22 November 2024 for £89.99, but we’ve already had our hands on a prototype version of the machine.