About the ZX Spectrum Next
The ZX Spectrum Next is a modern 8-bit home computer, first launched in 2017. It’s fully compatible with both the software and hardware of the original 1982 ZX Spectrum, while offering a host of upgraded features.
Designed with retrocomputing fans in mind, it also aims to, in the worlds of project contributor Jim Bagley, “inspire a new generation of bedroom coders.”
Despite its name, the ZX Spectrum Next is not officially affiliated with Sinclair Research Ltd., Sir Clive Sinclair, or the current trademark holder, Sky Group.
History
The ZX Spectrum Next project traces its roots back to Brazil in 2010, where it began as a variant of the TK95 Spectrum clone. By 2016, creators Victor Trucco and Fabio Belavenuto introduced the “TBBlue” firmware — named for their initials and the blue solder mask of its motherboard — as a bare-bones circuit board tailored for advanced hobbyists.
With support from Henrique Olifiers, the team aimed to bring TBBlue to the UK, the birthplace of the original ZX Spectrum, having already seen modest success in Brazil.
Later in 2016, the vision evolved into a fully-fledged product after securing the involvement of Rick Dickinson, the iconic industrial designer behind the original Spectrum. A Kickstarter campaign launched in January 2017 set a funding target of £250,000 — but far exceeded expectations, raising £723,390 from 3,113 backers.
While the campaign successfully established a vibrant community around the Next, it wasn’t a commercial success.
Although originally conceived to use the classic Z80 chip from the original ZX Spectrum, the design of the ZX Spectrum Next was later upgraded to incorporate a Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA. This shift enabled advanced features such as hardware sprites, hardware scrolling, and more — all integrated directly into the machine’s core architecture.
The board-only version of the computer was shipped to early backers in December 2017. Following several design and production delays, the first full units were finally delivered in March 2020.
Momentum continued with a second Kickstarter campaign, launched on 11 August 2020 at 21:00 BST. It hit its £250,000 goal within minutes and went on to raise a remarkable £1,847,106 by 10 September 2020 — a funding success of over 738%.
Fast forward to 19 July 2025, a third Kickstarter — featuring a new translucent magenta edition — launched at 08:00 and smashed expectations. It reached full funding in just 7 minutes, hit 200% within 42 minutes, and surpassed the original 2017 campaign’s total in under 3 hours.
Hardware Specification
Revisions to the ZX Spectrum Next motherboard are known as “Issues”, a naming tradition carried over from the original ZX Spectrum. Each new Issue reflects design improvements or adjustments made to address component supply challenges. Crucially, every revision preserves the core functionality, compatibility, and technical specifications across all models — ensuring consistency for developers and users alike.
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| CPU | Z80N (Zilog Z80 compatible with additional instructions) implemented in FPGA. |
| Speed | 3.5, 7, 14 or 28 MHz. |
| RAM | 1024 KB base (768 KB free), 2048 KB maximum (1792 KB free), in 8 KB banks paged in and out of Z80’s 64 KB address space; 256 KB is reserved for ROMs. |
| Graphics | From 128 × 96 to 640 × 256 pixels. |
| Colour | Depending on mode and layer, 16 or 256 colours on-screen with no colour clash in certain modes, from a palette of 512 colours. |
| Sprites | Up to 128 hardware sprites of 16 × 16 pixels |
| Sound | Traditional “Beeper”, 3 × General Instrument AY-3-8910 programmable sound generators (each with 3 channels for a total of 9 channels), and 4 × 8-bit DACs implemented in FPGA. |
| Software | NextZXOS Operating System + NextBASIC; prior versions of Sinclair BASIC and optionally CP/M |
| Connectivity | Tape in/out, Audio out, HDMI,VGA/RGB, 2 x Cursor/Kempston/Sinclair joystick connectors, PS/2 mouse port (Kempston mouse emulation), ZX Spectrum compatible expansion bus, WiFi on selected models. |
| Storage | Built-in DV-MMC-compatible SD-card slot; optionally cassette tape, Sinclair ZX Microdrive (with Sinclair ZX Interface 1) or any other storage system compatible with original ZX Spectrum series. |
Information taken from the ZX Spectrum Next wikipedia page.
STOS Coders Thoughts
Neil already has a Kickstarter 2 accelerated Next and has been playing with it for a while now. It is a superb little machine and it’s only going to get better over time.
Both Mike and Neil have backed the Kickstarter 3 campaign, both opting for the Magenta model.
We are very much looking forward to seeing what we can create with this new little machine.