GIVE YOUR MACHINE THE POSITIVE TOUCH
John Lambert flexes his fingers over five professional keyboards for the Spectrum.
One of the first add-ons for most Spectrum users is a full-size keyboard. While the original keyboard was a vast improvement on the ZX81, it is still very limiting if you use your Spectrum a great deal. For professional use it is almost a necessity.
In the last few months six new keyboards have either been announced or appeared on the market. Of those, we managed to obtain four for review, one was seen in its prototype stage and we are still waiting for the other.
In each case we fitted a Spectrum and Interface One to the keyboards to see how difficult it was and also tried to fit a power supply inside, where there was either room or it was suggested in the instructions. We also tried to connect a Kempston printer interface, which is a fairly standard interface and did not fit on some of the older keyboards. Whether or not it fits can therefore be taken as a measure of how other add-ons will fit.
The feel and size of a keyboard are important; after all, they are the reasons for buying a new one. The sizes are given in the table but the feel is more difficult to measure, as it will differ from person to person. If possible, visit either a local computer shop or one of the Microfairs and try them yourself; if you cannot do that any of the keyboards should be satisfactory.
The Maplin keyboard, marketed under the name Mapsoft, is for the home hobbyist, in that it is supplied in kit form. It is also the only one which connects to the user port of the Spectrum. There is an extender PCB which fits on to the Spectrum and a ribbon cable to the keyboard.
It has 47 keys, the normal 40 plus Delete, Graphs lock, Shift lock, Caps Lock, single key E Mode and two space keys. There is also one extra key which you can wire up to your own requirements.
Making up the kit is straightforward, provided that you are wed to soldering; if not, it might be an idea to practise first. None of the chips is socketed and special care has to be taken with them.
The made-up board is fitted into a thin plastic moulded case, the top of which is held in place by pieces of Velcro and has the colour legends for keys 1 to 7 and 0. The legends on the keys are three colour cards which fit under a clear plastic top.
Unfortunately the keyboard was received late for review and we did not have time to test it fully. First impressions, however, were favourable, although the case appears to be fairly flexible. If you prefer making your own keyboard, this is perhaps the best, if not the only one available. The kit costs £44.95 inc. and can be obtained from Maplin Electronic Supplies, PO Box 3, Rayleigh, Essex SS6 8LR, or from its many shops.
The dK'Tronics model for the Spectrum is largely the same as the old, with the same stick-on legends. The case is made of plastic and there are extra holes in the back to allow connection to Interface One when fitted.
To fit the Spectrum in the keyboard it must be taken out of its case and screwed to the new base. If you have an Interface One, that is fitted first and the Spectrum PCB is slotted into it and then screwed down. As the PCB is fitted in the back right-hand corner, there is an extender PCB for the Microdrive lead which connects to Interface One by the solid connector supplied with the Microdrive. The lead is taken out of the case through a small slot in the left-hand side.
Also on the left-hand side are three pillars on which you can mount the power supply. To do that the power supply must be taken out of its case and should therefore be fitted only by people who have some electrical knowledge. There are a number of problems fitting this power supply - the Sinclair power supply has gone through a number of design changes. If it is marked Made in UK on the base it will probably fit on the pillars.
When fitting Interface One it may make the back of the case bulge slightly. It is possible, however, to trim the case but that should not be necessary and is poor design. The Kempston interface will not fit unless you are using Interface One; again, it is possible to trim the case.
Despite those difficulties and the lack of a full-size space bar, the keyboard has been very popular in the past. The reviewer has used the old version for the last nine months and it has proved reliable. It is a pity that dK'Tronics did not put a little more thought into the new version, as it could have made a good keyboard even better. Overall, however, it is a good keyboard; it has a pleasant feel to it and can be recommended. It is available, price £45 plus £1.25 p&p, from dK'Tronics, Unit 6, Shire Hill Industrial Estate, Saffron Walden, Essex CRB11 3AQ, Tel: 0799 26350, or through the Spectrum chain of shops.
The keyboard which probably started the sudden interest is the Fuller FDS. It has been a long time arriving and has had more written about it than any other keyboard - not all of it good.
As well as the usual 40 keys, it has an extra 11, including a full-size space bar. The extra keys are four direction keys - they are shifted 5, 6, 7 and 8, very useful when editing or using a word processor; two function keys which put the Spectrum into extended mode - f1 gives the red functions and f2 the green; extra Caps Shift and Symbol Shift; and single-key entry for Delete, Comma and Full Stop. All the keys have their legends printed on them, the main functions in white on the top and Extended mode functions on the front in red.
Fitting the Spectrum inside proved somewhat difficult, as the screw positions did not line up exactly with those on the Spectrum PCB; with a little effort it can be made to fit if one of the screws is omitted. When trying to fit Interface One more problems arose. In this case the Spectrum is fitted at the front and Interface One at the back, with a flexible connector between them.
Fuller does not supply that as standard. As the Spectrum is so far forward the power, cassette and aerial sockets are inaccessable when the keyboard is put back together and would therefore either have to be fitted permanently or additional leads made up and brought out to the back, where holes would have to be drilled in the case to take them. Neither is there a slot for the Microdrive lead and that would have to be cut out if required.
The Spectrum power supply is connected directly to the keyboard; a lead which goes to the Spectrum is only just long enough - if you have the Fuller Master Unit you may have to extend it. That also means that if you want to move your Spectrum, you have either to open the case to unplug it or take the power supply with you. It should be possible to fit it inside the case and Fuller has put four pillars in the back right corner for it. Unfortunately they do not line up with any of the holes on the power supply PCB on either version and would need a great deal of ingenuity to fit.
In use, the keyboard was reasonably good, the extra keys being a boon when using a word processor, particularly the arrow keys. Unfortunately it was impossible to get shifted Z, X, C and V. That would appear to be a design fault, as we had two keyboards for review and the fault was common to both. Other than that, the keys were a little stiff but that is only to be expected with a new keyboard.
All-in-all, the keyboard could have been very good but it has too many little faults and a few major ones. If you can obtain one where the keys work correctly and are prepared to spend a little time customising, it would be worthwhile buying, otherwise do not bother. It is available, mail order only, costing £49.95 plus £2.50 p&p from Fuller Micro System, 71 Dale Street, Liverpool 2. Tel: 051-236 6109. The emergency enquiry number is 051-709 9280.
The new Saga keyboard, the Emperor, is still in the prototype stage but was expected to be readily available by the latter part of April. We were able to have an exclusive preview of the new model which looks as if it will provide the first real competition to dK'Tronics.
There are 67 keys, the normal 40 in white, plus 27 beige function ones, including full-size space bar. They are four shifted arrow keys, 5, 6, 7 and 8; two unshifted ones, 6 and 7, plus 0, to be used in games; two extra Caps Shift and Symbol Shift; and single-key entry for Edit, Delete, Caps Lock and Graphics. In addition a number of keys which normally need symbol shift are now single-key entry; for mathematicians, plus, minus, divide, times and equals; for word processors, comma, full stop, colon, semi-colon and quote; and for programmers, greater than, less than, string and hash.
Fitting is very straightforward. Only the top of the Spectrum case is removed and the base, containing the PCB, is bolted to the bottom of the keyboard. In that way Interface One will not have to be taken out of its case and will fit directly to a Spectrum base. The Kempston interface will also fit if the strain relief bar is removed. On the top of the keyboard is a groove to hold pens.
Saga could well have a winner if the production modeL is anywhere near as good as the prototype. It will cost £54.45 plus £1.15 p&p and is obtainable, by mail order, from Saga Systems Ltd, Woodham Road Woking, Surrey GU21 4DL or in person at The Woking Computer Centre, 32 Chertsey Road, Woking, Surrey. Tel: 048-62 23845.
The Transform keyboard is aimed squarely at professional users. It is the only keyboard reviewed which had a metal case and also the only one with three-colour printed key caps.
There are 60 keys, including a numeric pad which has an extra Caps Shift and full stop, plus a full-size space bar. The other extra keys are Symbol Shift, Edit, Delete, E Mode, Colon, Semi Colon, Comma and another Full Stop.
Fitting is very straightforward. The base of the Spectrum is retained as an insulator and bolted through to the base of the keyboard. If Interface One is being used, the two long mounting screws have to be removed and the bolts then go through it and the Spectrum. There is provision to put the power supply inside the case and special connectors are used to wire up an on/off switch and a LED. That is also relatively easy. You need not worry about the leads shorting out as everything is well insulated; in any event the switch is on the 9V side and could not cause damage. The keyboard has a solid feel to it and it certainly the best-looking of the keyboards reviewed. The only problem which may be experienced is that some Issue 3 Spectrums are temperamental when used with it. Its price of £69.95 reflects the kind of use to which it will be put but it is certainly the top keyboard at the moment. Transform is at 41 Keats House, Porchester Mead, Beckenham, Kent. Tel: 01-658 6350.
HARDWARE WORLD
With ever-increasing amounts of peripherals available for Sinclair computers, users are finding it more and more difficult to know what to buy. We present a buyer's guide to joysticks, keyboard and printers and review the best of the rest from the 1984 add-on market.
A common complaint levelled at the Spectrum is the dead flesh feel of the keyboard. That has encouraged a large number of companies to produce full-sized add-on keyboards for it. We look at seven of the most popular keyboards on the market ranging from a simple replacement board to models of a professional standard.
In each case we fitted a Spectrum and Interface One to the keyboard to see how difficult that operation was and also attempted to fit the power supply according to the instructions or inside if there was room. The ease of fitting other add-ons was also considered and a Kempston printer interface was used to test that. Generally, any full-sized keyboard is a vast improvement over the original and of the seven all but the first can be recommended.
Two of the keyboards connect to the user port; the other five require you to open the Spectrum to fit them, and that will invalidate your warranty. It is possible that Sinclair will not notice that the case has been tampered with. We have yet to hear of anyone who has been refused a warranty claim.
Once the top of the keyboard has been removed the two ribbon cables connecting the old keyboard to the Spectrum are removed from their sockets and those from the new keyboard inserted. It is impossible to damage the Spectrum by fitting those the wrong way round, but care should be taken not to touch the circuit board unnecessarily. As with any piece of electrical equipment the power should not be connected while you are working on it.
The feel and size of a keyboard are important - after all, they are the reasons for buying a new one. The sizes are given in the table but the feel is more difficult to measure. The Saga and Lo>>Profile keyboards use keys which press down onto a membrane and have a small plastic dome to provide the spring, all the others use traditional switches. We suggest you try a keyboard before buying to make sure that it feels right for you.
K-BOARD
The first keyboard we looked at was the K-Board from Kelwood Computer Cases. That fits into the existing Spectrum case in place of the membrane keyboard. Fitting it requires major surgery to the Spectrum. Once the two halves of the Spectrum have been separated the metal cover, which has the E-mode legends on it, has to be removed. The difficulty of that will depend on your Spectrum. After early complaints from Spectrum owners of the glue holding the cover in place melting due to the heat, Sinclair Research used a more powerful glue from issue 3 onwards.
Next the old rubber mat and matrix are slipped out and the new PCB containing 40 moving key switches is put in its place. Onto that is placed a plastic housing, and over the top of everything goes the metal cover.
For each of the keys you are supplied with a new key cap, and each is hot foil printed in two colours, gold and red. Unfortunately, as the original keys were different in size there is a small gap at the side of all keys and the caps also overhang and shadow the legends on the metal cover. The method of printing the caps does not seem too durable as the legends could be removed by heavy scratching which tends to suggest that they would not wear well.
At £28.50 the K-Board is the cheapest replacement keyboard for the Spectrum on the market and as such is worth considering if you can not afford anything else. However, for your money you will get a keyboard that will probably invalidate your warranty as it would be difficult to restore the Spectrum to its original state, and which retains the same, cramped, layout and does not include a full-sized space-bar. Its only advantage is that as it retains the original case there is no problem fitting add-ans.
MAPSOFT
The Maplin keyboard, marketed under the name Mapsoft, is supplied in either kit form or assembled. It has an extender PCB that fits to the Spectrum and ribbon cable to the keyboard. The Spectrum remains outside the keyboard and so add-ons can be fitted with ease.
In all there are 47 keys, the normal 40 plus Delete, Graphs Lock, Shift Lock, Caps Lock, single key E Mode and two space keys. There is also one extra key that you can wire up to your own requirements.
Assembling the kit is straightforward provided you are experienced at soldering. None of the chips is socketed and special care has to be taken with them.
Once assembled the board is then fitted into the thin plastic moulded case, the top of which is held in place by pieces of Velcro. That top has the colour legends for keys 1 to 7 and 0 printed on it. The legends for the keys are three-colour cards that fit under clear plastic tops.
The keyboard offers a number of useful facilities at a reasonable price but it will always look like a DIY kit rather than a professional keyboard. The kit is priced at £44.95 inc.
DK'TRONICS
One of the best-known names for add-on keyboards is dk'tronics. Although its keyboard design has remained largely unchanged the company has made improvements to it. Those are the inclusion of a full-sized space bar, the addition of single key entry Delete and Full Stop and extra holes in the back of the case to allow the fitting of an Interface One.
The company estimates that 10 percent of all Spectrum users own one of its keyboards, a very sizable share of the market and to celebrate that dk'tronics has been offering four software tapes, worth £25.00, free to purchasers, during the last quarter of 1984.
The keyboard has the usual forty keys plus a separate numeric pad, which also incorporates the Delete and Full Stop keys. The three-colour legends on the keys have to be stuck on by the user but provided care is taken they will last a long time.
To fit the Spectrum into the keyboard it must be taken completely out of its case and screwed to the new base; if you have an Interface One then that is fitted first and the Spectrum PCB is slotted into it and then screwed down. As the PCB is fitted in the back right-hand corner there is an extender PCB for the microdrive lead which connects to Interface One by the solid connector supplied with the microdrive. The lead is taken out of the case through a small slot in the left hand side. An extra long lead can be supplied if required.
On the left-hand side are three pillars on which you can mount the power supply. To do that the power supply must be taken out of its case and should therefore only be fitted by people who have some electrical knowledge. There are a number of problems concerning the fitting of the power supply; the Sinclair power supply has gone through a number of design changes, and if it is marked 'Made in Portugal' then it will probably not fit onto the pillars.
The design of the pillars is such that they will either need cutting to size and the power supply screwed down using oversized washers or it will have to be wedged in by use of a piece of foam, both methods slightly unsatisfactory. The mains side of the power supply is lead out of the case under, and very close to, the extender PCB. It would have been far simpler to put the Spectrum PCB on the left hand side in the first place and so avoid having leads crossing inside.
The Kempston interface will not fit unless you are using Interface One or are prepared to remove the cable's strain relief bar. It is possible to trim the case.
Despite those problems the keyboard is very popular. It has a nice feel to it and on the whole can be recommended. It costs £45.00 plus £1.25 p&p.
LO>>PROFILE
The Lo>>Profile keyboard from Advanced Memory Systems Ltd is one of the newer keyboards on the market and looks very attractive. It is also very large, the largest of the keyboards reviewed, and that could be a problem if you are short of space.
As well as the standard Spectrum keys it has a separate numeric keypad, with extra Caps Shift and Full Stop keys, and there is an extra Caps Lock key included with the main keys, but those last two are not single key entry. It has a full-sized space bar. All the keys are sculptured and printed in three colours.
The Spectrum PCB has to be removed from its case and there are four bolts sticking up from the base of the keyboard on which it fits. In the review model they did not line up correctly and had to be moved by enlarging the mounting holes slightly. There are plastic washers on those bolts to protect the PCB.
While the base seems flimsy, when everything is bolted together it is held securely. Metal inserts in the top where the base is bolted through add to the solidity.
When fitting Interface 1 the two long screws are removed and the interface then sits underneath the keyboard. That raises the keyboard to a better working angle. The bolts which secure the Spectrum PCB to the base are also passed through the interface. On the review model the size of the case meant that the normal microdrive lead was not long enough to clear it and so the drive had to be angled out backwards from the case.
As with most full-sized keyboards the Kempston interface was a problem to fit due to the increased height of the keyboard at the back. The best remedy for that would be to purchase a flexible connector which fits the user port.
Priced at £49.95 plus £2.50 p&p, the keyboards good looks and positive feel will attract many users; its lack of any single key functions may, however, prove a drawback.
EMPEROR
The Emperor keyboard from Saga Systems is similar to the Lo>>Profile keyboard in that the keys use the same method of operation and it looks very good. What sets it apart is its remarkable 67 separate keys.
As well as the usual 40 keys there are 21 of the most commonly used functions on separate keys plus an extra three Symbol Shift and one Caps Shift keys. Those are arranged so that the functions are adjacent to a shift key. In that way just one finger can be used to hit both keys, a system that works remarkably well. Those extra functions are the mathematical - plus, minus, multiply, divide and equals, punctuation - full stop, comma, semi-colon and colon; plus hash and dollar - all operated by a symbol shift. Delete, Edit, Graphics, Caps Lock and the four cursor keys are Operated by a Caps Shift. Two of the Shift keys are together for Extended mode. For good measure there are also two adjacent Enter keys, extra Run, Save and 0 keys and a full size Space Bar with a levelling device.
To fit the keyboard you remove the top half of the Spectrum and the bottom half, containing the PCB, is bolted under the base of the keyboard. The board with the actual keys is screwed to that and the top then screws to the base.
The whole process only takes about five minutes, as claimed in the advertisements, though you then have to stick the three-colour labels onto the keys which takes considerably longer. Provided care is taken, fitting the labels is not a problem and they stand up well to some heavy use. As the original Spectrum base is now the base of the new keyboard, add-ons such as Interface 1 connect without difficulty but the usual problems with the Kempston interface will be encountered.
The price of £54.45, plus £1.15 p&p, is slightly above average but the multitude of keys ensures value for money.
STONECHIP
The Stonechip Electronics keyboard is one of the few keyboards where the Spectrum does not have to be opened to be fitted. For good measure it also incorporates a beep amplifier, Load/ Save switch and a reset facility.
Fitting the keyboard is simple; the top half, which houses the keys and amplifier, is connected by a ribbon cable to a long, thin PCB. That has the aerial, MIC and EAR plugs on one side and sockets on the other. That is plugged into the back of the Spectrum and the keyboard screwed together, with the Spectrum inside.
The keyboard has 44 keys printed in three colours, the usual 40 including a full-sized 145mm, space bar plus a single key entry Delete and E mode. In addition there are two Reset keys which when pressed at the same time will reset the computer - particularly useful when with many games the only way to do that is to pull the plug which eventually leads to it becoming loose. You have to be careful as resetting will clear out the memory and as one reset key is placed next to the Caps Shift and the other next to the 0 you must get into the habit of using the Delete key rather than the normal method of using those keys, otherwise you may delete more than you intend.
At the top of the keyboard is the Load/Save switch which in its middle position acts as the beep amplifier. There are both tone and volume controls and a good clear sound can be obtained. If you are not using the amplifier then it is best to put the switch to one of the other positions as otherwise it picks up hum from the computer. Also on top there is an LED to show you that the power is on.
For some reason best known to Stonechip the company has re-positioned the MIC and power sockets. The MIC socket is 5mm nearer the user port and the power socket placed between the two. That small change means that a number of add-ons will not fit. Interface 1, however, will fit with a slight struggle as will the Kempston interface.
Priced at £59.95 the keyboard is one of the more expensive ones available but the ease of fitting and the facilities it offers make it a good buy.
TRANSFORM
The last of the keyboards reviewed is that from Transform. It is aimed at professional users as it is the only keyboard reviewed with a metal case and also one of the few with three-colour printed key caps.
There are 60 keys, including a numeric pad that has an extra Caps Shift and single key entry Full Stop plus a full size space bar. The other extra keys are Symbol Shift, Edit, Delete, E Mode, Colon, Semi Colon, Comma and another Full Stop - all single key entry.
Fitting is straightforward; the base of the Spectrum is retained as an insulator and bolted through to the base of the keyboard. If Interface 1 is used the two long mounting screws have to be removed and the bolts then go through it and the Spectrum. There is provision to put the power supply inside the case and special connectors are used to wire an on/off switch and a LED. That is relatively easy and you need not worry about the leads shorting out as everything is well insulated, although Transform do recommend fitting an extra earth wire for safety.
The keyboard has a solid feel to it and is certainly the best of the keyboards reviewed. The only problem that may be experienced is that with some issue 3 Spectrums the ULA chip, if not marked with the word Ferranti, is working to the limits of its specification which may make the computer rather temperamental when used with the keyboard. Transform sell a buffer, at £6.95 inc, which cures that problem.
The price of £69.95 reflects the sort of use to which this keyboard will be put but it is certainly the best keyboard of the moment.
Kelwood Computer Cases, Downs Row, Moorgate, Rotherham S60 2HD.
Maplin Electronic Supplies, PO Box 3, Rayleigh, Essex SS6 8LR.
dk'tronics, Unit 6, Shire Hill Industrial Estate, Saffron Walden, Essex CB11 2AQ. Tel: (0799) 26350.
Advanced Memory Systems Ltd, Green Lane, Appleton, Warrington WA4 5NG.
Saga Systems Ltd, Woodham Road, Woking, Surrey.
Stonechip Electronics, Brook Trading Estate, Deadbrook Lane, Aldershot, Hampshire GU12 4XB. Tel: (0252) 333361.
Transform, 41 Keats House, Porchester Mead, Beckenham, Kent. Tel: 01-658 6350.
All information in this page is provided by ZXSR instead of ZXDB