2015.21.2

Q-Calc Talking Scientific Calculator

Quantum

Putty colored plastic chassis built around a Sharp PC-1246 Pocket Computer; chassis has a speaker grill in top right, an AC-DC power supply adapter on back right, a volume knob and headphone jack on the left, a battery compartment on the bottom, and is screened in blue on top, "Q-CALC talking scientific calculator/quantum"; the Sharp PC-1246 has a brushed aluminum faceplate with a rectangular LCD display in the upper left, power toggle at top right, QWERTY keyboard below the display and a numerical keypad to right of the display along with some function keys; secondary values of all keys are printed above each key on the faceplate; serial number written in battery compartment, "10".

H-2 W-7.75 D-5.5 inches

ca. 1988

Quantum Technology

Australia

APH Collection

According to Tim Connell from Quantum, "This was developed around 1987-1988 by Quantum in conjunction with Professor Ron Aitchison of Macquarie University here in Sydney. Ron was a professor of Physics and became very interested in technology for people who are blind or vision impaired after meeting one of the first blind students at the University (Andrew Downie). It went on sale in late 1988, and was eventually sold in most English speaking countries of the world."
This example was purchased by APH production chief Jack Decker to study Quantum's product. APH had a talking calculator as early as 1978 (the Student Speed+), and included scientific calculator applications in various computer devices, but would not have a stand-alone talking scientific calculator until the Orion TI-84, introduced in 2013.

APH Collection, 2015.21