The ''Sinclair User'' was a

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

dedicated to the

Sinclair Research Sinclair Research Ltd is a British consumer electronics company founded by Clive Sinclair in Cambridge in the 1970s. In 1980, the company entered the home computer market with the ZX80 at £99.95, at that time the cheapest personal computer ...

range of

home computer Home computers were a class of microcomputers that entered the market in 1977 and became common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a s ...

s, most specifically the

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer developed and marketed by Sinclair Research. One of the most influential computers ever made and one of the all-time bestselling British computers, over five million units were sold. ...

(while also occasionally covering

arcade game An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily game of skill, games of skill and in ...

s). Initially published by ECC Publications, and later

EMAP Ascential (formerly EMAP) was a British-headquartered global company, specialising in events, intelligence and advisory services for the marketing and financial technology industries. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was ac ...

, it was published in the UK between 1982 and 1993, and was the longest running Sinclair-based magazine. The magazine contained news, game reviews, previews, tips, help guides, columns, readers' letters, and cover-mounted

game demo A game demo is a trial version of a video game that is limited to a certain time period or a point in progress. A game demo comes in forms such as shareware, demo discs, downloadable software, and tech demos. Distribution In the early 1990s, ...

History

In earlier years, the magazine built up personality cults around some of its "hilariously" monikered staff, including Bill "Incorruptible" Scolding, John "Disgusting" Gilbert, Chris "Lunchbreaks" Bourne, Claire "Ligger" Edgely, Richard Price (writer of the "Gordo Greatbelly" adventure tips section), and columnist Andrew Hewson (founder of

Hewson Consultants Hewson Consultants were one of the smaller software companies which produced video games for home computers in the mid-1980s. They had a reputation for high-quality games which continually pushed the boundaries of what the computers were capable ...

software). Under David Kelly's editorial tenure, the magazine began to focus more on the gaming scene, and featured more colour graphics under designer Gareth "the Mad Celt". By the time of editor Graham Taylor, the magazine included the cartoon character Kamikaze Bear, and the tone of the publication changed from a semi-serious magazine to something aimed more at children. High-quality games were indicated in reviews via the "Sinclair User Classic" award, the logo was used as a selling point for games, big and small. In May 1992 the former rival publication '' CRASH'' was notionally subsumed into ''Sinclair User'' but in practice this meant little more than the addition of the ''Crash!'' logo to the magazine's cover page.

''Timex Sinclair User''

A short-lived spin-off known as the ''Timex Sinclair User'' was also published for the American market, where versions of Sinclair computers were marketed under the Timex Sinclair name.

References

External links

* Archived Sinclair User magazines on the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

Sinclair User Magazine Online
unofficial archive __NOTOC__ {{Authority control Video game magazines published in the United Kingdom Defunct computer magazines published in the United Kingdom ZX Spectrum magazines Magazines established in 1982 Magazines disestablished in 1993 Monthly magazines published in the United Kingdom 1983 establishments in the United Kingdom 1993 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Magazines published in London

History

''Timex Sinclair User''

See also

References

External links