Click for larger images.

NAME  

MicroAce

MANUFACTURER  

MicroAce

TYPE  

Home Computer

ORIGIN  

USA

YEAR  

1980

BUILT IN LANGUAGE 

Sinclair Basic

KEYBOARD  

Touch-sensitive keyboard, 40 keys

CPU  

Zilog Z80

SPEED  

3.25 MHz

RAM  

1 kb (901 bytes available, up to 2 KB on board)

ROM  

4 kb

TEXT MODES 

32 lines x 24 characters

GRAPHIC MODES 

64 x 44

COLORS  

Monochrome

SOUND  

None

SIZE / WEIGHT 

232 x 188 x 41 mm / 350gr

I/O PORTS 

Z80 Bus, tape, TV/RF video

POWER SUPPLY 

External PSU: 9V DC, 600 mA

PRICE  

Sold as a kit for $149 including shipping.

 

MicroAce

A few months after Sinclair released its ZX-80, MicroAce of Santa Ana, California launched a clone of this computer.

It was exactly the same machine, but a minor modification made that it could be expanded to 2 KB of RAM. The internal ROM was also a pure copy of the Sinclair's original. Sinclair thus sued Microace but met with large difficulties because the judge couldn't seee the ROM content! Sinclair eventually won because the Microace keyboard was also identical to the ZX-80's and the judge could see it...

Microace then ceased the production of the 4 KB ROM machine but made later an agreement with Sinclair for a licenced version of the ZX-81 to be put on sale only in kit form and only in the USA. Microace also made a 'flicker-free board' for the ZX-80.


Custom Search