1971's Smallest Battery-Powered Calculator: Dictaphone 1680
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Date: 2022-06-24
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Comments and reviews: 9
sjm4306
The display tubes are basically panaplex, work exactly like nixies but instead of digit shaped cathodes they are arranged in a 7 segment arrangement. Pretty much that's their only similarity to VFDs as they do have a gas fill (I believe neon and maybe argon) to facilitate plasmic discharge unlike VFDs which operate under a vacuum and light up due to thermionic emission striking phosphors.
As for the missing F and G segments on the tubes, since they are all out this suggests the tubes are driven multiplexed. I'd start by looking for cold solder joints leading up to the tubes but it's most likely the pull down cathode drive high voltage transistors for those segments have died and need to be replaced.
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The display tubes are basically panaplex, work exactly like nixies but instead of digit shaped cathodes they are arranged in a 7 segment arrangement. Pretty much that's their only similarity to VFDs as they do have a gas fill (I believe neon and maybe argon) to facilitate plasmic discharge unlike VFDs which operate under a vacuum and light up due to thermionic emission striking phosphors.
As for the missing F and G segments on the tubes, since they are all out this suggests the tubes are driven multiplexed. I'd start by looking for cold solder joints leading up to the tubes but it's most likely the pull down cathode drive high voltage transistors for those segments have died and need to be replaced.
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Stoner
You are one of these weird people that get off on weird shit. Like adults that have baby fetishes and dress up as adult babies wearing diapers and baby clothes. Except your porn is this old technology. I can just see you looking at old technology magazines in one hand while working over your johnson with the other instead of a Playboy. Because you must have creamed your shorts several times in this video, or so it sounded like. You were acting the way a teenage boy would act describing a naked lady in a porn mag for the first time. Damn. It takes all kinds.
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You are one of these weird people that get off on weird shit. Like adults that have baby fetishes and dress up as adult babies wearing diapers and baby clothes. Except your porn is this old technology. I can just see you looking at old technology magazines in one hand while working over your johnson with the other instead of a Playboy. Because you must have creamed your shorts several times in this video, or so it sounded like. You were acting the way a teenage boy would act describing a naked lady in a porn mag for the first time. Damn. It takes all kinds.
reply
TheSteelRodent
normally don't get excited about calculators, but love those old white ceramic and gold ICs, and the way this thing is built in general. There's just something incredibly impressive about electronics right at the start of the transistor and IC era.
Fun thing about the battery meter: on the portable compact cassette recorders from the same period that component also serves as VU meter for the recording level, just with slightly different colouring
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normally don't get excited about calculators, but love those old white ceramic and gold ICs, and the way this thing is built in general. There's just something incredibly impressive about electronics right at the start of the transistor and IC era.
Fun thing about the battery meter: on the portable compact cassette recorders from the same period that component also serves as VU meter for the recording level, just with slightly different colouring
reply
SwissArmyTin
6: 30 If you think that's bad, take a look at Texas Instruments Exactras. Considering they were super cheap and mass produced to hell and back, they're nearly impossible to find nowadays and go for bonkers money because the bubble strip that goes over the LED displays was used on Luke Skywalker's lightsaber in Episode 4. Balls.
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6: 30 If you think that's bad, take a look at Texas Instruments Exactras. Considering they were super cheap and mass produced to hell and back, they're nearly impossible to find nowadays and go for bonkers money because the bubble strip that goes over the LED displays was used on Luke Skywalker's lightsaber in Episode 4. Balls.
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Marshall
If the display tubes are multiplexed that points to the line going to that segment on every tube not functioning because of a broken wire or trace or could be the switching transistor is dead. Try putting an oscilloscope on the connection for each segment and tracing it back to locate a break or other fault.
reply
If the display tubes are multiplexed that points to the line going to that segment on every tube not functioning because of a broken wire or trace or could be the switching transistor is dead. Try putting an oscilloscope on the connection for each segment and tracing it back to locate a break or other fault.
reply
Cade
Now this is a video style I like! Look at the care and love your putting into this video - not just a throw a box on a table and cut it open to see whats inside and then stubble around for a half hour. This is a labour of love and thank you for sharing your passion for this artifact from the past.
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Now this is a video style I like! Look at the care and love your putting into this video - not just a throw a box on a table and cut it open to see whats inside and then stubble around for a half hour. This is a labour of love and thank you for sharing your passion for this artifact from the past.
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dinitroacetylen
They just don't make things like they used to. You can take an abacus from 3000 years ago, or even a slide rule from 300 years ago, and they would still be operating up to spec. And this overcomplicated gizmo is good for nothing but aesthetics after just 50 years.
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They just don't make things like they used to. You can take an abacus from 3000 years ago, or even a slide rule from 300 years ago, and they would still be operating up to spec. And this overcomplicated gizmo is good for nothing but aesthetics after just 50 years.
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Arcademan09
Virgin Content Creators:
before I review this retro tech I'm gonna buy 3 different ones just to make sure I have 1 working one
The Chad LGR:
>buys calculator from the 70s
>turns on camera
Oh man I hope this one works
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Virgin Content Creators:
before I review this retro tech I'm gonna buy 3 different ones just to make sure I have 1 working one
The Chad LGR:
>buys calculator from the 70s
>turns on camera
Oh man I hope this one works
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BrokeDad
My father worked for Bowmar who made some early calculators. I still have several prototypes he brought home. Because of a TI lawsuit they decided to exit that market and concentrate on government contracts though.
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My father worked for Bowmar who made some early calculators. I still have several prototypes he brought home. Because of a TI lawsuit they decided to exit that market and concentrate on government contracts though.
reply
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