★ SALON ★ SALONS ★ AMSTRAD COMPUTER SHOW '85 ★ |
Amstrad Computers Show 1985 (CPC Revue) | Amstrad Computers Show 1985 (Computing with the Amstrad) |
Amstrad show was a winner SO successful was the first ever Amstrad Computer Show, organised by Computing with the Amstrad publishers Database Publications, that arrangements for a follow-up exhibition in January had begun before the cheering died down.
The doors had to be closed several times to control the flow as more than 10,000 people poured into London's Novotel Exhibition Centre on October 5 and 6. They packed the aisles around the stands occupied by 72 leading Amstrad hardware and software suppliers, many of whom were launching exciting new products. "Packed!" was Micronet reporter David Janda's concise summation of the scene which confronted him on the morning of day one. 'This reporter has never attended a show so crowded". "A highly successful event... the show exceeded the wildest speculation, with a queue forming all the way down to the Hammersmith flyover ", reported the Viewfax observer. "Exhibitors we spoke to were clearly delighted with attendances", reported Janda. "Lots of people were buying printers, interfaces, disc drives, ROM boards, RAM extensions, software, printer paper, light pens and all manner of other goodies", said Viewfax. "As for the punters . . . well, all the folk we talked to displayed the frantic, glassy-eyed enthusiasm of true absorbtion - and this reporter felt it to be the best show he's ever attended" , Janda enthused. Previewed The visitors' excitement was fuelled by the fact that more than 30 new products were launched or previewed at the show, including the £29.95 Prestel link modem from Cirkit, Viewfax's Amsnet database, the Picturesque machine code monitor and disassembler. Hi Soft's C Plus Plus, Pocket Wordstar from David Ruben, several printers and dozens of new utilities, business programs and games. Now it's going to happen all over again. At the same place -the Novotel, Hammersmith-on Saturday and Sunday, January 11 and 12. But this time there will be more elbow room - Database Publications has arranged with the Novotel to increase the amount of floor space by 50 per cent. Said the head of Database Publications, Derek Meakin: "The outstanding success of this first-ever Amstrad show has proved without any doubt the pre-eminent role Amstrad now plays in the computer marketplace. "The show has done much more than convince many thousands of users that Amstrad is here to stay - it has also won over many third-party suppliers who have been toying with the idea of moving into the Amstrad market. "What they saw at the Novotel in October opened their eyes. One very positive - and immediate - result is that many new hardware and software products for the entire Amstrad range are now in production. "A good proportion of them should be ready in time for the January show. It's going to be a very exciting occasion". |