Clive Sinclair

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Sir Clive Marles Sinclair (born 30 July 1940) is an English entrepreneur and entrepreneur best known for his contributions to consumer electronics in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Sinclair Radionics, where he created the first slim-line electronic pocket calculator in 1972 after several years as assistant editor of Instrument Practice.

Sinclair Research later expanded into home computers and produced the Sinclair ZX80, the UK's first mass-market home computer, with a cathode ray tube, and the Sinclair ZX80, a flat-screen portable mini television utilizing a cathode ray tube, later became a hit among consumers and programmers; the latter, however, was a commercial flop, with just 15,000 units being manufactured. Sinclair Vehicles was established in 1983 and introduced the Sinclair C5, a battery electric vehicle that was also a commercial failure.

Since then Sinclair has concentrated on personal transportation, including the A-bike, a folding bicycle for commuters that weighs 5.5 kilograms (12 lb) and folds down small enough to be carried on public transport.

Early life, family and education

Engineers Sinclair's father and grandfather were engineers; both were apprentices at the shipbuilders Vickers. George Sinclair, his grandfather, was a naval architect who adapted the nese, a mine sweeping device, to function. George William "Bill" Sinclair, George Sinclair's uncle, wanted to take religious orders or become a journalist. Bill started training as an engineer first, but his father insisted that he work as an engineer; Bill became a mechanical engineer and remained in the field. He was running his own machine tools business in London at the time of World War II in 1939 and later served for the Ministry of Supply.

In 1940, Clive Sinclair and Thora Edith Ella Marles were born in Ealing, then in Middlesex (now in west London). He and his mother left London for safety to remain with an aunt in Devon, where they later moved to Teignmouth. A telegram arrived shortly after, announcing that their home in Ealing had been bombed. In Bracknell, Berkshire, Sinclair's father discovered a house. Iain was born in 1943 and his sister Fiona in 1947.

Sinclair attended Boxgrove Preparatory School, excelling in mathematics. Sinclair had no interest in sports and found himself out of place at school. By the time he was ten years old, his father had financial difficulties. He had grown out of machine tools and intended to import miniature tractors from the United States; he had to give up the company. Sinclair had to re-register several times due to his father's illness. Sinclair began his O-levels at Highgate School in London in 1955 and earned his A-levels and S-levels in physics, pure maths, and applied maths at St. George's College in Weybridge, Somerset.

Sinclair's early years as a waiter, mowing lawns and washing dishes in a restaurant, grossing 6d (212p) more than the permanent staff. Later, he began working in electronics as a holiday maker. He wondered about the possibility of electrically propelled personal vehicles at Solartron. Sinclair applied for a holiday job in Mullard and acquired one of his circuit plans; he was refused due to precociousness. He wrote his first article for Practical Wireless while at university.

He began teaching at the age of 18, and he began selling miniature electronic kits by mail order to the hobby market.

Personal life

Sinclair, a poker player, appeared in the first three series of the Late Night Poker on Channel 4. He was named in the inaugural series of the Celebrity Poker Club spin-off. Sinclair was an atheist. He had a IQ of 159 and served as both a member of British Mensa and chairman from 1980 to 1997. He has also competed in marathons, including several New York City marathons.

Despite his involvement in computation, Sinclair did not use the internet, saying that he does not like to have "scientific or mechanical things around me" because it distracts from the process of inventing. He stated in 2010 that he did not use computers himself and preferred calling the phone rather than email. "Once you start to make machines that are rivalling and surpassing humans in terms of intelligence, it's going to be extremely difficult for us to survive," he said in 2014. It's just an inevitable result."

Ann of 20 years married Ann of 1986 due to the pressures from the ongoing financial challenges he faced with his businesses. He had three children, Crispin, Bartholomew, and Belinda from Ann's marriage. Angie Bowness, a former dancer at a Stringfellows nightclub and who competed for England in Miss Europe 1995, was married in 2010. This second marriage lasted for seven years before finally ending in divorce.

Sinclair died in London on September 16th, 2021, after suffering from an illness linked to cancer that he had suffered for more than a decade. He was 81 years old. Many individuals, including Elon Musk, Satya Nadella, the Oliver Twins, Debbie Bestwick, Charles Cecil, and David Braben, were remembered on his death for his contributions to computing and video games. Following Sinclair's death, a Times leader characterized his life as a tenacious entrepreneur whose career was a tribute to many of Britain's greatest innovators, including Sir James Dyson and Alexander Graham Bell, 'who are a reminder that failure is a necessary precursor to success.'

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Career

In an exercise book published 19 June 1958, three weeks before his A-levels, Sinclair's Micro Kit was formalized. Model Mark I was sold as a result of a component list by Sinclair, which included more coloured wire and solder, nuts and bolts, and a larger celluloid chassis (drilled) for nine shillings (45p). The advertisement rates for Radio Constructor at the time (9d (33p)/word, minimum 6/30p)/per line, as well as Practical Wireless (5/6 (271%) per line or part line) are also included in the book. Sinclair estimated that 1,000 units would be produced per month, placing orders with suppliers for 10,000 of each component, which would be delivered.

Practical transistor receivers Book 1, which appeared in January 1959, Sinclair wrote a book for Bernard's Publishing Company. It was re-printed late in the year and nine times afterward. His practical stereo handbook was first published in June 1959 and reprinted seven times in over 14 years. Sinclair's last book, Modern Transistor Circuits for Beginners, was published in May 1962. Bernard Babani wrote 13 constructor books.

Sinclair Electronics Ltd, his first choice, had been rejected, but Sinclair Radionics Ltd was not available; Sinclair Electronics was available but did not seem correct. Sinclair Radionics was established on July 25, 1961. Sinclair's two attempts to raise startup funds to promote his inventions and purchase parts. He developed PCB kits and licensed some technologies. Then he drafted his idea for a miniature transistor pocket radio and asked for a backer for its kit production. He eventually found someone who agreed to buy 55% of his company for £3,000, but the contract didn't get completed.

Sinclair, unable to find funds, joined United Trade Press (UTP) as the technical editor of Instrument Practice. In March 1962, Sinclair first appeared in the paper as an assistant editor. Sinclair talked about the manufacture of silicon planar transistors, their properties, and applications, and that they should be available by the end of 1962. Instrument Practice, a Sinclair company, conducteds a study of semiconductor products, which appeared in four sections from September 1962 to January 1963.

In April 1969, he made his last appearance as assistant editor. Sinclair had access to thousands of products from 36 vendors via UTP. He called Semiconductor Ltd (who at the time sold semiconductors made by Plessey) and ordered rejects to be repaired, which prompted him to call Semiconductor Ltd (who at that time sold semiconductors made by Plessey) and ordered rejects to be repaired. He created a model for a miniature radio controlled by a couple of hearing aid cells and signed a sponsorship with Semiconductor to buy its micro-alloy transistors at 6d (212p) per box of 10,000 transistors. He then carried out his own quality control checks and launched his renamed MAT 100 and 120 at 7: 9d (383), 4220-02p).

Sinclair Radionics was manufacturing handheld electronic calculators, miniature televisions, and the first digital Black Watch wristwatch by the late 1960s and early 1970s. Sinclair's last attempt, which was launched in 1975, was a big disappointment: the watch itself was discovered to be ineffective and difficult to use, and its battery life was too short. Sinclair Radionics suffered its first financial loss in 1975-1976, and Sinclair sought prospective investors to help recover the lost funds. He spent time with the National Enterprise Board (NEB), which acquired a 43% interest in the company in 1976, but this injection of funds was too late, as other companies began to produce similar products at lower prices on the market by this time. The NEB streamlined Sinclair Radionics' product line, including television and television advertisements, as well as adding Norman Hewitt as a managing director to assist Sinclair. Although Sinclair made attempts to collaborate with Hewitt and the NEB, his friendship with these organizations worsened as the NEB had no confidence in Sinclair's vision. The NEB decided to abandon Sinclair Radionics in 1979, retaining its instruments division as Sinclair Electronics, and selling its television division to Binatone and its calculator division to ESL Bristol. Sinclair himself left the company at this point. Effectively, NEB wrote off its estimated £7 million investment into Sinclair Radionics as a loss. Sinclair's dissolution of his firm received a golden handshake and an estimated £10,000 bounty.

Though Sinclair was dealing with the NEB and had seen development, Christopher Curry, a retired engineer, found Science of Cambridge Ltd in July 1977, planning for Curry to develop technology from concepts from the university. A wrist calculator kit from Science of Cambridge was an early model that helped keep the company afloat financially.

Cheap microprocessors were on the market by the time Sinclair left Radionics and joined Curry at Science of Cambridge. Sinclair came up with the idea of selling a microprocessor teaching kit, and Science of Cambridge released the MK14 kit in June 1978, based on the National SC/MP chip. Curry, who was in talks with Hermann Hauser as MK14's replacement, was in discussions with her brother, Stephen Curry, and he moved from Science of Cambridge to co-found Acorn Computers with Hauser in 1978. With the Acorn System 75 as its response to Sinclair's MK14, Acorn became a direct competitor to Sinclair's MK14, which is effectively an MK14 chip with a keyboard.

Sinclair was looking to build a personal computer to follow up on the MK14. Pre-built packages such as the Commodore PET cost about £700, and Sinclair hoped to get the price of a system to less than £100. As had happened to several Sinclair Radionics items, keeping the cost low was also important for Sinclair to prevent his items from becoming outpriced by American or Japanese equivalents. Jim Westwood, a former Sinclair Radionics employee, was hired for this new venture in May 1979; it was launched in February 1980 in kit form and £99.95 ready-built. The ZX80 was immediately popular, and Sinclair also attempted to introduce the computer to the United States, rather than concentrating on UK sales. Scient Computing Ltd was subsequently renamed Sinclair Computers Ltd and then again to Sinclair Research Ltd, with the Science of Cambridge being renamed again.

Both Sinclair and Curry pleaded for the BBC to choose computers from their respective companies to use as the primary device after being told that it was planned to air a television show to viewers about computing and programming. This set the Sinclair ZX81 ahead of Sinclair's BBC-standard. By mail order, the ZX81 was available in kit form and ready-built. Ultimately, the BBC selected Acorn and standardized on a successor to the Acorn Atom, but the BBC Micro was eventually branded as the BBC Micro. Despite losing out on the BBC, Sinclair's bid had established the ZX80 and ZX81 as one of the most popular computers in the United Kingdom and the United States, as well as establishing a joint venture with Mitsui in Japan. Both personal, magazines, and third party accessories for both computers have appeared.

Timex Sinclair, a timex Sinclair company, obtained a license to manufacture and sell Sinclair's computers in the United States in February 1982. The ZX Spectrum was priced at £125 for the 16 kB RAM version and £175 for the 48 kB version in April. It was the first computer in the ZX series to have colour output. During a period of unemployment and high unemployment in the United Kingdom, Sinclair positioned the ZX Spectrum as a low-cost home computer for productivity applications. However, it was also a popular gift for teenagers and young adults this year. As a result, a number of these young people learned to program on the ZX Spectrum, many of whom had recently acquired color assistance, were able to produce amusing video games influenced by British humour, which they sold by word of mouth and mail order. The ZX Spectrum, which was used by so-called "bedroom coders," sparked the interest in the UK's video game industry. Over 3,500 games had been released for the ZX Spectrum by 1984.

The ZX Spectrum's success has swept to Western Europe. Although Sinclair could not import into Eastern European countries that were still in the Soviet bloc at the time, many low-cost ZX Spectrum clones sprung up within these countries, contributing to the beginning of video game development by similar bedroom coders. The ZX Spectrum went on to become the United Kingdom's most popular computer, shipments of more than 5 million units before being discontinued in 1992. In 1984, Sinclair Research computers accounted for 55% of the British market, including those from British and American firms.

Sinclair Research's revenue continued to rise as a result of the computer market's continuing success. The company made a pre-tax loss of £9.2 million on a turnover of £27.6 million in 1982. In 1983, Sinclair's net worth was estimated at more than £100 million, two years after launching the first of the ZX computers. Sinclair converted the Barker & Wadsworth mineral water bottling factory into the company's headquarters in 1982, with the additional funds.

Sinclair Research continued to be profitable, Sinclair Vehicles Ltd., a Sinclair Research spin-off, began to produce electric vehicles in March 1983, utilizing 10% of the funds earned by Sinclair Research and selling some of his own shares to finance the new venture. Sinclair Radionics' founder Tony Wood Rogers had been involved in electric vehicles since the 1970s, and the company had been designing prototypes for a new vehicle, starting with Tony Wood Rogers, a former Radionics employee. The Sinclair C5 was the company's only product, and it was released in January 1985. The Sinclair C5 was regarded as a significant failure since it was not produced without any market study. It was widely criticized and largely mocked for its high price, its toy-like appearance, the lack of safety equipment, and exposure to the elements, as well as the user's ability to pedal the vehicle up steeper hills. Although Sinclair had hoped that 100,000 C5's would be available in the first year, only 14,000 units were produced and 4,500 were sold before the C5 line was discontinued in August of the same year.

The Sinclair Research TV80, a flat-screen portable mini television that uses a cathode ray tube, was another Sinclair misfire, and by the time the TV80 was ready to ship in 1983, the Sony Watchman had been released in Japan in 1982. In addition, LCD television technology was still in the early stages of development in order to overcome CRT's limitations. The TV80 was a commercial flop, with just 15,000 units being produced. Despite these commercial setbacks, both the C5 and TV80 were considered as commodities long before their time, with the C5 being the precursor to the modern day electric car and the TV80 similar to watching movies on smartphones.

Sinclair Research continued to direct Sinclair Research as they continued the ZX Spectrum line of computers from 1983 to 1984, as well as the introduction of the Sinclair QL (short for Quantum Leap) brand in 1984, which was supposed to compete with IBM and Apple's business lines but at a much cheaper price. However, the UK personal computer industry had become more conservative toward the end of 1984; with Acorn Computers, Sinclair Research had entered a small price war. Consumers saw these computers as more toys rather than productivity applications, which was disappointing, and Sinclair Research missed its target sales milestones for the 1984 holiday season. Acorn fell victim to solvency issues throughout the entire industry, including Sinclair Research. Through Perseveron's Hollis Brothers division, Robert Maxwell, the owner of The Daily Mirror and Perpeton Press, planned to assist Sinclair Research in its £12 million acquisition. However, the agreement was suspended in August 1985 after Sinclair found an agreement with the Dixons Group worth only £10 million.

Sinclair's financial difficulties were exacerbated by a lack of funds for Sinclair Research and the C5's failure. By October 1985, Sinclair Research was placed into receivership, and Sinclair sold the majority of Sinclair Research to Amstrad for £5 million. Sinclair Research Ltd. was reduced to a R&D company and holding company, with stakeholdings in several spin-off companies, and was able to use the company's latest innovations. Anamartic Ltd. (wafer-scale integration) and Cambridge Computer Ltd. (Z88 portable computer and satellite television receivers) were among them).

Sinclair Research descended on Sinclair and two other workers from 130 workers at its high point in 1985, and the Zike electric bicycle concentrated on personal transportation. Sinclair Research was collaborating with Hong Kong-based company Daka by 2003. For Daka near Croydon, a laboratory was established to produce products on a royalty basis. Both companies collaborated on a Sea Scooter and a wheelchair mount. He created the Sinclair XI in 1997, which was the same as a 10p coin.

Following the Sinclair C5's failure, Sinclair Research intends to sell the Sinclair X-1, the company's second attempt at a personal electric vehicle. The X-1 was first released in 2010 and featured engineering features that the C5 had panned, including an open egg-like shell for the rider, a more flexible motor, and greater battery storage, as well as a lower cost accounting for inflation than the C5. Despite this, the X-1 failed to reach the market.

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