Clive Sinclair, creator of the pocket calculator and the ZX Spectrum personal computer, has passed away at age 81.
Sinclair’s daughter, Belinda Sinclair, announced the news earlier today, saying that Sinclair’s passing came after a long battle with illness.
The ZX Spectrum was home to games like Lords of Midnight, Knight Lore, and Dizzy, whose developer Codemasters is still around today. Many game developers in the U.K grew up playing games on the Spectrum, and still have fond memories of games like the adventure titles produced by developers like Rochdale Balrog (AKA John Wilson, who passed away last year).
In the explosion of personal computing that followed, Sinclair would receive a knighthood for his contributions to British industry.
Sinclair himself was apparently not personally interested in the very market he gave birth to. Brenda Sinclair told The Guardian that her father didn’t use a personal computer or e-mail.
Sinclair is survived by Brenda, his sons Bartholomew and Crispin Sinclair, as well as five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.