The author recommends an A1200 which has an '030 accelerator running at 25Mhz with 32bit Fast RAM. Speculator will take advantage of faster processors. My Amiga has an '040 and on the whole I have no problems with it. More on that later.

Speculator opens up on a separate screen, using normal Intuition operations. It can also be sent to a RTG screen as well as a native AGA screen (assuming I've read the AmigaGuide correctly). Speaking of documentation, the program is supplied with an extensive AmigaGuide which details just about everything you would need to know.

As a Spectrum emulator, it runs .sna and .z80 games. Depending on the individual file, Speculator will load some 128K .z80 files. You'll know if a .z80 file is a 128K game because an alert will appear saying it'll 'attempt to load' the file. Some work, most don't. Unfortunately, I have no idea how to tell in advance which games will or won't. You'll also know if the file doesn't work because you'll get another alert explaining the error.

In addition to loading .sna and .z80 files, Speculator can save them as well. it also can load and save the .zx82 file format. However, as that is Speculator's own custom format, I can't imagine there'll be many programs in that format in the World of Spectrum archive.

In all fairness, the .zx82 format is perfectly acceptable (it contains some extra information that other 48K file formats don't. Read the AmigaGuide for more info) and I am assuming that the author wasn't planning on it becoming the 'new standard'.

Whilst .tap or .tzx files aren't directly loadable through Speculator, there are instructions included in the AmigaGuide advising you how you can load real Spectrum tapes onto your Amiga. However, the author (and I) specifically will not accept any responsibility for any damage caused by for following those instructions.

The only problem I have encountered with Speculator is to do with the music and sound effects. Depending on the game, the music will sound distorted. For example the intro music on Knightmare sounds like a garbled mess although it handles Octagon's intro music fine. In addition, the in-game beeps and other noises that Rygar produces are fine.

I'm not a programmer, and have no idea if this is correct, but I think this may have something to do with the timing of the emulation, crossed with my Amiga's running speed and mixed with the way some games have been programmed. Perhaps someone could correct me on this...

Speculator offers Kempston joystick support, and some other options which you don't always get with a Spectrum emulator. These include an option to add Multiface-style POKEs to a game, being able to grab a screen without using an external grabber and has a built-in Z80 disassemblerperform a screengrab.

Additionally, the package comes with several Spectrum files. Not all of these are games; BetaBasic (a souped up ZX BASIC) is also included. To assist with the keywords, there is a replica Spectrum image available.

As a 48K emulator, Speculator is good. It is a competent 48K. However, for 48K-only emulators I'd choose ZXAM over Speculator first.