sinclair zx81 turned into pc [retro casemod] (flag)

technabob.com — Remember the old Sinclair ZX81 computer? You know, the tiny, little 8-bit machine with a huge following, and a horrible flat keyboard? Thanks to miracles of modern miniaturization, you can now fit a fully-functional Windows or Linux PC inside of one of these. It’s pretty amazing when ...

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Spectrum ZX81 case-modded into Ubuntu PC
Boing Boing Gadgets — ... an entire Ubuntu PC into the chassis beneath the membrane keyboard of an old Spectrum ZX81, thanks to a wonderfully diminuitive VIA EPIA Pico-ITX motherboard. There's even four USB ports, video out and audio connectors. It makes me realize, though, that what I really want is for someone to take a ZX81, a Pico motherboard and add a screen, transforming the Spectrum in actuality into what it always has appeared to me to be: the world's first UMPC. Ubuntu ZX81 [Flickr via Technabob]

Sinclair ZX81 Gets A Brain Transplant
Retro Thing — I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry; it's now possible to stuff an entire PC into the space formerly occupied by a Sinclair ZX81. And, mercifully, the horrific membrane keyboard is disabled. The secret to this diminutive mod is a VIA EPIA Pico-ITX motherboard mated to a miniature power supply [possibly one of these?] and a suitably skinny hard drive. The system runs Ubuntu Linux at speeds unimaginable in 1982. In fact, this might be the first time in recorded history that a Sinclair ZX81 can actually be classified as a Really Useful Computer. The ZX81 was built around only four integrated circuits (some ...

Sinclair ZX81 casemod
SlashGear — ... inches, which makes for a tight squeeze inside.  Nonetheless, you’re looking at a full motherboard, with separate hard-drive (no CF cop-out here) and multiple ports, capable of running either Windows or Linux. It’s not clear whether the wretched keyboard has been wired up to actually work with the new components.  I’m thinking no, as it’s pictured with a separate keyboard.  [via technabob] ...

A tale of two Pico-ITX mods
Engadget — ... on the other hand we're assuming that he isn't going to be seeding OpenOffice on the thing either. If retro computing's your bag, we've found a Timex Sinclair ZX81 case mod that should bring you considerable joy. Unfortunately the membrane keyboard's been disabled, but if you don't mind using a USB keyboard with a machine that originally sported 1KB RAM (at a whopping 3.25MHz), you might want to hit the read link and see how it's done. Read - Linksys BT320G case mod Read - Sinclair ZX81 turned into PC ...