The MicroAce was a 1980

Sinclair ZX80 The Sinclair ZX80 is a home computer launched on 29 January 1980 by Science of Cambridge Ltd. (later to be better known as Sinclair Research). It is notable for being one of the first computers available in the United Kingdom for less than a h ...

home computer clone, designed and manufactured by ''CompShop'' and distributed in the USA by ''MicroAce'' of

Santa Ana, California Santa Ana () is the second most populous city and the county seat of Orange County, California. Located in the Greater Los Angeles region of Southern California, the city's population was 310,227 at the 2020 census, making Santa Ana the List of ...

. It was also sold in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and was distributed by ''Dick Smith Electronics''.

Description

Advertised as "a microcomputer for everyone at a micro price ... a complete computer for $149.00 for 1K AMkit" with optional 2K RAM, it was an unlicensed clone of the

and had an identical, yet obfuscated copy of the

ROM Rom, or ROM may refer to: Biomechanics and medicine * Risk of mortality, a medical classification to estimate the likelihood of death for a patient * Rupture of membranes, a term used during pregnancy to describe a rupture of the amniotic sac * R ...

by means of a byteswap. Some time later, between 1980 and 1981, MicroAce settled with

Sinclair Sinclair may refer to: Places * Lake Sinclair, near Milledgeville, Georgia * Sinclair, Iowa * Sinclair, West Virginia * Sinclair, Wyoming * Sinclair Mills, British Columbia * Sinclair Township, Minnesota * Sinclair, Manitoba People * ...

and licensed the ROM of the ZX81.

Reception

BYTE The byte is a unit of digital information that most commonly consists of eight bits. Historically, the byte was the number of bits used to encode a single character of text in a computer and for this reason it is the smallest addressable unit ...

'' stated that the

assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

instructions were insufficient for those inexperienced in kit assembly, and suggested that beginners learn how to solder first. It found some fit and finish issues with the completed computer, and criticized MicroAce for being unresponsive to questions. The review stated that "if you recognize the limitations of the machine and don't expect too much, then I think you can buy the MicroAce kit with confidence", albeit strongly recommending the 2K RAM option.

References

{{Authority control Computer-related introductions in 1980 1980 establishments in California 1981 disestablishments in California Products and services discontinued in 1981 Sinclair ZX80 clones