FREE: Working Original 1978 Texas Instruments Speak & Spell VINTAGE TOY

The listing, Working Original 1978 Texas Instruments Speak & Spell VINTAGE TOY has ended.

Takes 4 C batteries. My scanner picture made the digital LED display look fuzzy but you can see the words and letters just fine! The speaker works fine and the voice is clear.

I have not checked all of it's other functions, I have only played the word games. All of the letter buttons seem to work correctly and are not sticky.

For those of you not old enough to immediately understand what exactly a Speak and Spell device is:

Plenty of toys become hits, but only a select few make history. Not only did this toy educate its users, it spoke to them using brand-new computer technology. This toy managed to pack a computer's worth of top-flight technology into a plastic shell that was small enough to fit in a backpack. As a result, it became one of the most successful educational toys of all time.

Texas Instruments, best known at the time for its calculators, introduced Speak & Spell in 1978. This electronic marvel was design to teach its users spelling skills with vocalized lessons. What made this toy impressive was that it pulled this off without using a tape recorder or other conventional recording device. Speak & Spell created convincing speech sounds through a method called digital speech synthesis. It used computerized circuits to create a replica of the human vocal tract that would synthetically "speak" words aloud when prompted. This was the first use of this kind of technology, making Speak & Spell a toy for the history books.

Speak & Spell's unique combination of technology and fun made it an instant hit with kids. Its popularity with its target audience was given a further boost when a certain alien used it to help him "phone home" in E.T. The Extra Terrestrial. Both parents and educators appreciated its value as a teaching tool, and their combined seals of approval made Speak & Spell a common sight in homes and schools alike.