An article on the ZX-81 kits still being sold in the US

In a message dated 10/07/2000 3:06:26 PM Eastern Daylight Time, vcf(a)siconic.com writes: Talk about shoddy journalism! The Z80A included in these kits is certainly *not* a "1 MHz" processor, and the kits -- like all ZX81s -- have only 1 KB RAM onboard, not 2 KB as stated in the article. Also, this piece claims that the kits were obtained from Timex when in fact they were not. They were sold to Zebra by Sinclair Research USA when Sinclair discontinued sales in the USA. Zebra raised the price incrementally, from $29.95 to $39.95 to $49.95, then a big jump to $99.95. The *big* increase occurred when Zebra sold a substantial portion of their inventory to Chris Cowley, head of Grok Developments (mentioned in the above article). Cowley has to sell the kits for over $100 US in order to cover the cost of the kits plus freight and import duties, plus his profit. So, Zebra just jacked up the US price to match. Price fixing, anyone? BTW, back in March I was on the phone with Stewart Newfeld, head of Zebra, and he mentioned some unusual high-res graphics boards that he had. We settled on quantity and price, and I sent my payment. Everything arrived except the HRG boards, but a note in the box stated that they would forward them "as soon as possible." To date they haven't delivered, won't return my e-mails or phone calls, and still owe me $60 worth of merchandise. Especially since the kits sold by Zebra do not include the original Sinclair BASIC manual or original assembly instructions (instructions are included -- they're just not the original issue). Additionally, Zebra themselves sell these kits on Ebay for $50 - $70 all the time. Clowns, indeed. Glen 0/0