Accession No
4529.045A
Brief Description
TI-30 electronic pocket calculator, by Texas Instruments, Italian, 1976 (c)
Origin
Italy
Maker
Texas Instruments
Class
calculating; computer technology
Earliest Date
1976
Latest Date
1985
Inscription Date
Material
Plastic
Dimensions
Length 146mm; width 78mm; thickness 34mm
Special Collection
Francis Hookham Collection of Hand Held Electronic Calculators
Provenance
Donated by Francis Hookham in 1987. Donated to Francis Hookham by Texas Instruments on 03/04/1980.
Inscription
[Texas Instruments logo] “Texas Instruments” (front, centre left)
“TI-30” (front, centre right)
Description Notes
Black and bronze Texas Instruments TI-30, with a brushed aluminium bronze coloured key panel and black keys.
8-digit (plus a 9th digit for sign and error indication) red LED display.
Panels on rear give serial and patent numbers.
Casing has hole in side, as if for mains socket, but there is no internal connection.
Keys are medium-travel, quite unstable, heavy to the touch, and give a muffled click on depression (S Davis 19/6/2007).
References
Events
Description
Pocket Electronic Calculator
The pocket electronic calculator is now familiar to us all. However, these everyday objects were still a novelty in the early 1970s and priced out of the reach of most customers. To our modern eyes, the operation of a calculator is quite simple, at least for basic arithmetic. We just push the buttons and the machine does the hard part for us. Since calculators never make mistakes, we need never worry about what goes on inside.
Behind the buttons and screen lies a complex set of miniature circuits. It is the ability of electronics firms to make smaller and smaller components that has led to the success of the calculator. All the electronic circuits that provide the calculating power can now fit onto tiny ‘chips’ of silicon. By also developing the technology for liquid crystal displays (LCD’s), manufacturers were able to shrink calculators even further. When solar power arrived towards the end of the 1970s they could even be made without batteries. Prices fell whilst popularity soared.
Despite all this technology, successful use of the calculator still relies on the knowledge of the operator. The latest machines pack in countless functions and require a large instruction manual. Their increasing power has led to debates about their proper use in schools. The widespread use of calculators – at school, home and in the office – has been blamed for falling standards of arithmetic.
This is in contrast with the early days of calculator use. During the 1970s, a number of textbooks were published to encourage people to use what was still an unfamiliar instrument. These would give examples of how calculators could help with anything, from income tax forms to the weekly shopping list!
FM:41749
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