The Sinclair MTV1 was launched in 1977 and was certainly the gadget to have. Sinclair had a dream of creating a pocket television. He was aiming at a flat screen machine (which he later achieved using a cathode ray tube and not LCD!).

This device, the MTV1, was not a sales success. It was expensive to make and never made a profit for Sinclair. A fair number were made (in the tens of thousands) but they are relatively hard to find nowadays and boxed examples are rare. Sinlcair produced a more streamlined version in the following years. These failed to redeem the fortunes of Sinclair Radionics and it was ultimately the downfall of Sinclair himself.

Sinclair went on to form Science of Cambridge and would go on to produce the mould-breaking ZX80, the first of his computers, and later more spectacular failures like the C5 electric vehicle.

Although I am keener on Sinlcair's ealier marvels (calculators etc.), I have always wanted one of these TVs in my collection. I remember seeing one working when I was in college in the late seventies. It is difficult to convey to today's teenagers what a marvel it was then.

The average colour TV was a huge device, many still had valves. To see a television picture in something palm-sized was amazing. In today's world of palm-sized computers it seems very dated.