An image of the 8-bit SAM Coupe home computer has been posted on X by ZX Spectrum Next manufacturers SpecNext Ltd., along with the phrase “Welcome home!”
The mysterious post offers no further indication of how the SAM Coupe might fit into Spec Next Ltd.’s future plans, but we assume that the most likely scenarios are that the ZX Spectrum Next will be receiving an update offering SAM Coupe compatibility, or that a SAM Coupe Next machine is in the works.
Quite an obscure home computer, first released in December 1989, towards the very end of the 8-bit era, the SAM Coupe was a ZX Spectrum-compatible 8-bit machine released by Miles Gordon Technology (MGT). In addition to compatibility with the ZX Spectrum, the SAM Coupe also ran its own bespoke operating system and software, and came with significantly increased RAM compared to the ZX Spectrum, offering a whopping 256K of memory!
Despite being seen as a spiritual successor to the hugely popular ZX Spectrum, the SAM Coupe was not a commercial success, as 16-bit home computers were becoming more popular and affordable at this point, resulting in the closure of Miles Gordon Technology in 1992.
Despite its lack of commercial success, the SAM Coupe remains beloved by ZX Spectrum enthusiasts, so we imagine there will be great interest in what SpecNext Ltd.’s plans for the format will be. SpecNext Ltd. Have certainly been rather busy recently, and we previously reported on the launch of a Kickstarter campaign to fund the next run of their ZX Spectrum Next machines, which is rumored to be the final run they will produce, so could the SAM Coupe Next be taking its place? Time will tell…
