Sinclair QL Design issues

[1024MAK]

I remember IBM started selling PCs in the early 80's, and anyone going up against them would be at a serious disadvantage, their machines weren't great, but you knew they would be supported for years. Why invest in Sinclair business machines that might disappear from the market next year ? Save a few 100 pounds on machines, but spend a month on developing your application, then maybe start all over again a year or 2 later - too risky.

At the time (1982 to 1983), IBM PCs were very expensive in the U.K. and only available in low numbers. So much so that, Sirius Systems Technology were able to sell their Victor 9000 / ACT Sirius 1 PCs (that ran MS-DOS, but were not compatible with IBM PCs). Indeed, they became the most popular 16-bit business computer in Europe, especially in Britain and Germany. These were most definitely business computers, the display was good on its 12” monitor, but it was monochrome. And they were considerably more expensive than a QL, at £2754 (1983 price).

IBM started selling their PC range in the U.K. from 1983. So, if Sinclair had actually produced a good quality and useable machine for a good price (significantly cheaper than IBM etc.), and without all the problems that the QL actually had, it is possible that they could have had far better success.

The key points for me are these:

• It had to be available to sell immediately when launched, and be reasonably bug free.
• It had to look like an item of office equipment, and have a normal keyboard that you could touch type on.
• It had to use standard floppy disks, not odd, completely bespoke microdrives.
• The video output needed to be standard video, so that any standard (at the time, 15625Hz/50Hz 625 line) monitors could be used.
• A standard parallel (Centronics) printer port would have helped.

Mark

[Wall_Axe]

at £200 i might have considered buying one back then, except the amiga had so much hype and game support behind it.

If it was £200 before the amiga dropped in price I may have gotten one.

[Matt_B]

The QL had its price cut to £200 in September 1985, I believe. This was well before the Amiga had seen much of a price cut.

I suspect this was mostly a combination of dumping slow-selling stock and Sinclair Research panicking when the C5 also bombed hard.

[Jbizzel]

The outcome of this thread, and @1024MAK s brilliant insight is that I bought a QL.

Changed the MDv regulators and they sprang into life.

Built a ql-vga-pico for about £10 and have a standard output on my moden monitor.

Here's a photo...



The QL in pretty misunderstood if you ask me. So many YouTubers who don't actually know anything about it, regurgitating the same 5 remarks about how it's a failed system, rushed to market, pissed on by Amiga, ST etc, more limited than a spectrum graphically, sh*t MDvs. Some of this is arguably true, but misses something very wonderful.

Come on.

Above is standard*low* res graphics. This can be scrolled or panned in single pixel rows in the *amazing* super basic without any form of attribute clash.

Imagine if more of us had QLs and were making games for it. Modern SD solutions are cheaper and get round the MDv obsolescence. It's worth looking at, not for it's failures, but for it's triumphs. And at the time, an IBM was 1000% more expensive.

life is a series of defeats. So what. Drunk on fire, we assend!

[dfzx]

If the QL had looked like Rick Dickinson's redefinition, it could have had the mechanism from a clockwork mouse inside it and it still would have flown off the shelves.

[Jbizzel]

Some great stuff on that link thanks for sharing