Grundy ยท 1981
NewBrain
A compact Z80A computer with several competing origin stories.
- Released
- 1981
- CPU
- Z80A at 4 MHz
- RAM
- 32K
- ROM
- 28K
- Text
- 40 or 80 columns by 25 or 30 lines, black and white
- Integral display
- AD model: one-line, 16-character vacuum fluorescent display
- Graphics
- 256, 320, 512 or 640 pixels by 250
- Storage
- Two tape ports and floppy disk
- Interfaces
- Two serial ports and a parallel printer port
Three models were available. The A had only a television or monitor output; the AD had a one-line, 16-character vacuum fluorescent display; and the M had the display and a battery pack.
There are several stories about its origin. One says that it was offered to Sinclair, who turned it down; another says that Sinclair sold it after failing to get the BBC contract.
A third account appears in The Sinclair Story by Rodney Dale. He says that the first Sinclair microcomputer contained some innovative design concepts, but the National Enterprise Board, a major shareholder, sold the design to Newbury Electronics to raise cash for Sinclair Radionics. After two years, the machine was rescued by the British Technology Group, which placed its design and production in the hands of the Grundy Group.