MicroCentre introduces... System Zero

Cromemco's System Zero was a small Z80A-based machine primarily intended in process control situations, which was first released in 1980.

It was designed primarily to take ROM-based software, although it did ship with a small Control BASIC and could be expanded, if required, with all the usual S-100 stuff like memory and input/output.

Despite the name, the System Zero was actually one of the newer of Cromemco's various "systems", fitting somewhere in-between 1978's System Two and System Three and 1981's System One.

Cromemco was fairly unusual in that it never established a local UK office, always relying on its various importers and resellers to advertise on its behalf.

In this case, the advert comes from MicroCentre of Edinburgh, which was a fairly consistent reseller between at least 1979 and 1984. 

Pictured in the advert, to the right, is MicroCentre's director Andrew Smith, along with Cromemco's co-founder Roger Melen, who was over in the UK for the launch of the System Zero range.

The entry-level System Zero retailed for only £587, which is about [[587|1981]] in [[now]] terms.

A version of the system which came set up as a development machine - the System Zero/D - retailed for £2,355, or about [[2355|1981]]. 

This however included 64K of RAM, the DDF controller with twin 5½" floppy disk drives, and R-DOS-2, a disk operating system with self-test diagnostics.

It could also run CDOS, Cromemco's CP/M-compatible operating system, and with 128K RAM could even manage Cromemco's version of Unix - Cromix.