Autumn 2014 | P2P Magazine |
35
OFFICE ICONS
The calculator
Still going strong
This year Canon is celebrating the
50th anniversary of its first calculator,
the Canola 130. By today’s standards,
the 10-key electronic calculator
launched in 1964 was expensive and
bulky, but it helped usher in a period
of rapid development for calculator
technology.
Throughout the 1960s and ‘70s,
with the development of transistors,
microchips, new screen technologies and
power sources – Sharp introduced the
first solar-powered calculator in 1980
– calculators became smaller and more
affordable, so that by the ‘80s they had
become an office and classroom staple.
In 1967 Texas Instruments (TI)
invented the world’s first handheld
electronic calculator, code-named
Cal-Tech. The battery-powered device
had 12 bytes of memory, could accept
six digit numbers and perform four
basic functions (addition, subtraction,
multiplication and division). It could print
up to 40,000 characters on 10 feet of
tape or 12 digits on a thermal printer.
The case was made from a solid piece
of aluminium and weighed nearly three
pounds – still a vast improvement on
previous electronic calculators that were
about as large as a typewriter, weighed
around 55 pounds and had to be plugged
into a power source.
TI introduced its first commercial
handheld calculator 40 years
ago in 1974, paving the way
for the consumer electronics
revolution and transforming
the teaching of maths in
the classroom.
Meanwhile, scientists
in HP Labs were
developing the world’s
first pocket scientific
calculator capable of doing
more than the four basic calculator
functions. Born in 1972 and named after
its 35 keys, the HP-35 performed all the
functions of the slide rule to 10-digit
precision, effectively making the latter
obsolete.
Despite its $395 price tag, the HP-35
is widely viewed as HP’s first consumer
device. HP was expecting to sell 10,000
to break even, but in the event sold more
than 100,000 in the first year alone.
The UK played an important role in
the development of personal calculators,
too. In 1961, a British firm, Sumlock
Comptometer, introduced the first
electronic calculator (the Anita); and in
1972 Clive Sinclair launched the 9mm
thick Sinclair Executive, arguably the
world’s first pocket calculator.
Sinclair recognised that calculators
had become highly desirable objects in
their own right. In 1977, it launched
a gold-plated version of the Sinclair
Sovereign, supplied in a luxurious
presentation box, while Aspreys went
one better, producing three models in
solid gold.
Increasingly, calculators were
also used to add lustre and appeal
to other products, from calculator
watches to electronic Casio
keyboards. This trend continues to
this day, notably with the calculator
function on smartphones. However,
for calculator connoisseurs or
professionals who need advanced
functionality, there remains no
substitute for a dedicated desktop or
pocket device.
Canon is marking the 50th anniversary of Canon calculators with the launch
of two new models designed for businesses and accounting professionals.
The 12-digit KS-1220TSG gives business people instant access to commonly
used functions, including Cost-Sell-Margin, Tax, Decimal Switch and Rounding
Up, Grand Total and Memory. The keypad incorporates ergonomic silk print
keys that facilitate a new three-key roll over function for fast and accurate
data input, with the key layout specially designed for touch typing. The
large tilting LCD display can be adjusted to 40° for better viewing.
The 16-digit MP1611-LTSC-es is designed specially for finance
workers. It features a 16-digit backlit LCD display, comprehensive tax,
business and currency conversion functions and a two colour ink ribbon
and print functionality.
The professional choice
The gold-
plated Sinclair
Sovereign
(photography by
AVA Photographic)
The first
handheld
electronic
calculator:
TI’s Cal-Tech
