ZX Spectrum Vega+

The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega+ is a currently unreleased handheld games console based on the ZX Spectrum and designed by Rick Dickinson as a follow-up to the ZX Spectrum Vega handheld TV game which was released in 2015.

Funding

As with the original Vega, the development was funded through the crowdfunding website, Indiegogo.com and surpassed its target of £100,000 in the first two days of campaigning in March 2016.[1]

Controversy

The original Vega was produced by Retro Computers Limited, which consisted of managing director Paul Andrews, Chris Smith (author of “The ZX Spectrum ULA: How to design a microcomputer”), David Levy and Sinclair Research.[2] However, soon after funding was completed, both Andrews and Smith resigned from the company[3] due to "irreconcilable differences" and since then the project has been mired in controversy.[4][5]

Despite claims from Retro Computers Ltd that product development was complete with a prototype ready for production in February 2016[6][7][8] and a statement from SMS Electronics Ltd, the UK based manufacturers, that production had started in April,[9] Indiegogo backers have become increasingly worried by the lack of substantial updates and have taken to asking for proof on the campaign comments page.[10]

Current Status

In order to counter the growing concerns, Retro Computers Ltd released photos of a "life-size model" of the Vega+ on 25 August 2016[11][12] and confirmed that the console was still on target for release in September 2016. On 26 September, they announced that the product would be launched on 20 October 2016 and, according to campaign updates for backers on Indiegogo, production of the ZX Spectrum Vega+ had commenced although no shipment date was given.[13]

In an review of a "production model" published by The Inquirer on 4 November 2016, Retro Computers Ltd assured backers that they would receive their units in time for Christmas.[14] However, three weeks later on 25 November, they announced that they had identified a problem with their units during testing and that delivery to backers would be delayed.[15] In a follow-up article from The Inquirer, it was revealed that the "production model" previously reviewed was in fact from a limited run produced for testing purposes and that Retro Computers could no longer guarantee Christmas delivery.[16]

References

  1. ↑ Merriman, Chris. "ZX Spectrum Vega+ raises three times its Indigogo target in three weeks". The Inquirer. Incisive Business Media Limited. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  2. ↑ McFerran, Damien. "ZX Spectrum Vega - The Story Behind The Speccy's Second Coming". Trusted Reviews. Time Inc Ltd. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  3. ↑ Villordsutch. "All change for the ZX Spectrum Vega+ management due to a surprise double resignation". Flickering Myth. Flickering Myth Ltd. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  4. ↑ Villordsutch. "A war of words breaks out over the ZX Spectrum Vega+". Flickering Myth. Flickering Myth Ltd. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  5. ↑ Williams, Rhiannon. "Retro computer project directors row". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  6. ↑ "The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega Plus Console - Story". Indiegogo.com. Indiegogo. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  7. ↑ "The Sinclair Spectrum Vega+ - Details emerge today". Juicy Game Reviews. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  8. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley. "Now there's a Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega handheld". Eurogamer.net. Gamer Network. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  9. ↑ "Four Weeks after Mammoth Crowdfunding Campaign Sir Clive Sinclair's Second Crowdfunded Project The Vega+ Pushes the Button on UK Production.". smselectronics.co.uk. SMS Electronics Ltd. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  10. ↑ "The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega Plus Console - Comments". Indiegogo. Indiegogo Inc. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  11. ↑ "The Sinclair ZX Spectrum Vega Plus Console - Updates : Rick Dickinson Designed Vega+ Model Images Revealed For The First Time". Indiegogo.com. Indiegogo Inc. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  12. ↑ Villordsutch. "Retro Computers releases images of the ZX Vega+ model". Flickering Myth. Flickering Myth Ltd. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
  13. ↑ "Only Six Months After record-breaking crowd-funding campaign Sir Clive Sinclair backed ZX Vega+ announces Launch Date". Retro Computers Limited. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  14. ↑ Merriman, Chris. "ZX Spectrum Vega+ hands-on review". The Inquirer. Incisive business Media Ltd. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  15. ↑ Fogarty, Lee. "Update 25/11/2016". Retro Computers Ltd. Retro Computers Ltd. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
  16. ↑ Merriman, Chris. "ZX Spectrum Vega+ production is delayed but RCL 'hopes' for pre-Christmas rollout". The Inquirer. Incisive Business Media Ltd. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 12/1/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.