The ZX Spectrum Vega+ was supposed to be the perfect way to experience classic ZX Spectrum games on the go, but after a botched crowdfunding campaign, ropey hardware and the collapse of the company behind it, Retro Computers Ltd, it has gone down as something of a disaster.
The bad taste left by the Vega+ hasn't deterred another firm, Elmar Electronic, from having a stab at the concept, though. The ZX Touch is a portable take on Sir Clive Sinclair's classic home computer which boasts a 7-inch touch display, WiFi, SD card support and a six-hour battery life.
Elmar Electronic is "a small company with more than 40 years of history and twenty dedicated employees" which specializes in "the development and manufacturing of industrial and telecommunication equipment". One of its co-owners, Goran Radan, has a deep affection for the Spectrum, which led him to create the ZX-VGA-JOY project. The ZX Touch is his next Sinclair-flavoured venture.
22 games come built-in, all of which are included with the permission of the original developer or rights holder, but you can load up other titles via an SD card.
Both the hardware and software are entirely bespoke; there's no OS included, as the software inside is "pure c/c++ code running on embedded high-performance ARM Cortex-M7 480Mhz MCU" according to the manufacturer.
The ZX Touch specs are as follows:
- 7″ touchscreen display (1024×600 resolution)
- 8 tactile buttons
- Analog joystick
- 48k/128k ZX Spectrum emulation
- Built-in games
- Full virtual ZX Spectrum keyboard
- Saving/loading game positions
- SD card slot for external game storage
- WiFi ready
- AY/Beeper sound mixer
- ULAplus colors
- 3000mAh battery
- Up to 6 hours of gaming on a single charge
The ZX Touch is available to purchase from Sintech's United Kingdom, Germany and Czech Republic stores. It costs £220 in the UK, but is currently out of stock in that region.