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Computers by brand Amstrad

Brand: Amstrad
Founded: 1968
By: Alan Sugar
In: Brentwood GB United Kingdom
Defunct: 2008

Amstrad (a contraction of Alan Michael Sugar Trading) was one of the major microcomputer brands of the late 1980s, reaching a 25% share of the European computer market.
In the 1970s, the company began selling consumer electronics in the low-cost Hi-Fi, TV, and radio cassette players segment.
In the 1980s, already a publicly listed company, it decided to launch a personal computer to rival Commodore and Sinclair. In 1984, the CPC 464 model was launched in the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Germany, and Spain, where it was a best-seller.
Later, the CPC 664 models would arrive, with a 3" disk drive, and the CPC 6128, which was equipped with a whopping 128 KB of RAM.
On April 7, 1986, Amstrad announced the acquisition of its rival Sinclair Research (also British) and launched three new Spectrum variants: the ZX Spectrum 128 +2, based on the ZX Spectrum + 128K, with an integrated tape drive (like the CPC 464); the ZX Spectrum 128 +3, with an integrated disk drive (similar to the CPC 664 and 6128), using the same 3" disks as other Amstrad machines and a completely new motherboard; and the ZX Spectrum +2A/+2B, which used the +3 board in a +2 case with a tape drive.
Later, it would move on to the Intel 8086 microprocessor and create computers based on MS-DOS and later on Microsoft Windows, the first of which was the PC1512 for £399 in 1986. It was a success, capturing more than 25% of the European market. A year later, in 1987, it launched the PCW 8512 as a dedicated word-processing computer, priced at £499.

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Some outstanding models of the brand Amstrad


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1984
CPU: Zilog Z80 @ 4MHz
Memory: 64 KB
Support: Cassette
Hard drive: None
Operative System: AMSDOS


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1985
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Zilog Z80A @ 4MHz
Memory: 64 KB
Support: Diskette 3"
Hard drive: None
Operative System: CP/M
Innovations: It replaced the tape media with a 3" floppy disk drive.

This was the logical evolution of the CPC 464 model.
But it had a short life, being replaced after six months by the CPC 6128, which had twice the RAM, allowing it to run programs that couldn't be run with the CPC 464's limited memory.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1985
CPU: Zilog Z80 @ 4MHz
Memory: 256 KB ~ 512 KB
Support: Diskette 3"
Hard drive: None
Operative System: CP/M 3.1

Model of the first generation of the Amstrad PCW series of office-oriented computers, which came to replace the typewriter and the expensive proprietary word processors on the market, along with the 8512. Both were launched in 1985, and have no more differences than the RAM memory chips fixed in sockets and a second disk drive as standard in the 8512.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1985
CPU: Zilog Z80 @ 4MHz
Memory: 512 KB
Support A: Diskette 3"
Support B: Diskette 3"
Hard drive: None
Operative System: CP/M 3.1

This Amstrad PCW model was the superior version of the PCW 8256, both launched in 1985, and has no differences other than the RAM memory chips fixed in sockets and a second disk drive as standard on the 8512.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1985
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Zilog Z80A @ 4MHz
Memory: 72 KB
Support: Cassette
Hard drive: None
Operative System: BASIC 1.1 ver. sin Ñ or BASIC 1.0 ver. con Ñ

An Amstrad distributed by Indescomp (the brand's distributor in Spain, which would later become the subsidiary Amstrad Spain) exclusively for the Spanish market. It was identical to the CPC 464, but had a printed circuit board in the ROM socket that included an 8KB RAM chip, increasing the original CPC 464's memory from 64KB to 74KB, theoretically to accommodate the new commands and routines of the new BASIC 1.1 it incorporated.
But this was only a ruse to avoid the 15,000-peseta tariff that all microcomputers imported into Spain with 64KB or less of RAM had to pay starting in August 1985.
Subsequently, all computer keyboards sold in Spain were required to be adapted to Spanish, so the Ñ key had to be added to the computer, and the translated ROM version of BASIC 1.0 was used.
A few months later, Spain joined the European Economic Community, so the import tax had to be eliminated.
Amstrad then incorporated the Ñ key into the original CPC 464 model and stopped selling the CPC 472 model.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1985
CPU: Z80A @ 4MHz
Memory: 128 KB ~ 574 KB
Support: Diskette 3"
Hard drive: None
Operative System: CP/M 3.0
Innovations: It replaced the typical tape media found on computers of the time with a single-sided 3" floppy disk drive, a format that no other major manufacturer would use.
The software on floppy disks usually had a version running in CP/M 2 on one side and a version for CP/M 3 on the other.

The model was initially launched in the United States (June 13, 1985) imported and distributed by Indescomp, Inc. of Chicago, and was the first Amstrad sold in North America, a hostile region for European computers.
Two months later (August 15, 1985), it entered the European market, replacing the CPC 664.
In Spain, it was distributed by Indescomp (later renamed Amstrad España, after its acquisition by the British manufacturer Amstrad Consumer PLC), with a keyboard that included the letter Ñ.
Aside from the British market, this same model was distributed by Awa (in Australia) and Schneider (in Germany).
Amstrad's split with Schneider led Schneider España to distribute the Schneider CPC 6126 in the Spanish market, with the keyboard and manuals in Spanish.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1986
CPU: Intel 8086 @ 8MHz
Memory: 512 KB ~ 640 KB
Support A: Diskette 5¼" DD
Support B: Diskette 5¼" DD
Hard drive: None
Operative System: MS-DOS 3.2

It could be purchased with a color (CM) or monochrome (MM) monitor.
And with floppy disk drives for low-density (PC1512SD) or double-density (PC1512DD) disks.
This computer initially didn't have a hard drive, but one could be included. Its floppy disk drives could also be replaced with high-density ones.

The keyboard:

When Amstrad manufactured the PC1512 in 1986, it was careful to avoid any conflict with IBM and made sure not to infringe any of IBM's patents on the IBM PC. In fact, there were very few patents registered other than the keyboard interface.

Therefore, Amstrad designed a new keyboard interface that was quite different (and therefore incompatible) with the IBM interface. The connector and protocols were different, so an Amstrad keyboard cannot be used (even with an adapter) with an IBM PC, or vice versa.

The proprietary keyboard interface was used on all machines in the 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 series. Later (from the 5000 series onwards), Amstrad followed what had become common practice and switched to the IBM PS/2 keyboard interface.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1986
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Intel 8086 @ 8MHz
Memory: 640 KB
Support: Diskette 5¼"
Hard drive: None
Operative System: MS-DOS 3.2

This was an update to the previous model, the PC1512, which increased the RAM to 640 KB and incorporated EGA graphics.

There was a version with a dual 5.5-inch floppy disk drive or a hard drive (PC1640HD20).


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1988
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Intel 8086
Memory: None
Hard drive:
Operative System: MS-DOS 3.30 or Windows 2.03


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1989
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Intel 80386 @ 20MHz
Memory: 4 MB
Hard drive:
Operative System: MS-DOS 4.02 or Windows


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1989
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Intel 80286 @ 12.5MHz
Memory: 1 MB ~ 4 MB
Hard drive:
Operative System: MS-DOS 4.01 or Windows 2.1


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1989
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Intel 80286
Memory: 1 MB
Hard drive:
Operative System: MS-DOS

Version of the PC2286 intended for the large business market.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1989
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Intel 80386
Memory: 1 MB
Hard drive:
Operative System: MS-DOS


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1990
Made in: United Kingdom
CPU: Zilog Z80 @ 4MHz
Memory: 128 KB
Support: Diskette 3"
Hard drive: None
Operative System: AMSDOS
Innovations: It improved upon the Amstrad 6128 in terms of graphics, increasing the palette to 4,096 colors, of which 31 could be displayed simultaneously on screen, and adding support for managing sprites.
It also incorporated DMA in the audio department.

The upgrade to the Amstrad 6128 model, which was only on the market for three months.
Compared to its competitors in the 1990 market (the Atari ST and the Commodore Amiga), its 8-bit processor was already outdated.


Manufacturer: Amstrad
Launches: 1991
CPU: Intel 8086 @ 8MHz
Memory: 640 KB
Hard drive: 40 MB
Operative System: MS-DOS 3.3

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