Commodore 202 adding machine

Dublin Core

Title

Commodore 202 adding machine

Subject

hardware: electric calculator

Description

Historical context

Commodore International Ltd. (or Commodore) was one of the world's largest manufacturers of electronic hand-held calculators as well as home, educational, and business microcomputers. It was best known for its popular personal computers including the PET line of personal desktops as well as the VIC-20, Commodore 64, and the Amiga computers. It was founded on October 10, 1958 as Commodore Portable Typewriter Company Limited in Toronto, Ontario. Two years later, the company incorporated its Commodore Business Machines subsidiary in New York. In 1976, Commodore reorganized its corporate structure as Commodore International Ltd. and moved its financial headquarters to the Bahamas and the operations headquarters to Pennsylvania. The restructured company encompassed several entities world-wide including Commodore Business Machines Ltd., Canada.

In 1947, the company's founderJack Tramielemigrated from Poland to the US. During his US army service (1948-51) he gained considerable experience in repairing office equipment which he turned into business in his civilian life, first in Bronx, New York, and later in Toronto, Canada, where he moved in 1955.

His Toronto business was initially focused on repairs and selling licensed typewriters, adding machines, and other office equipment. Initially located at 2 Toronto Street, in the city's downtown core, a short distance from the IBM Toronto Downtown Office, the company relocated several times before establishing its headquarters at 946 Warden Ave, Scarborough, Ont.

During the 1960s the scope of Commodore's business expanded to office furniture as well as to electric and eventually electronic calculators. The first Commodore-branded adding machine was the model C mechanical calculator manufactured by a Czechoslovakian company Nisa and sold by Commodore around 1960. The first exclusive Commodore adding machinethe 202was announced in 1967. The following year, the company began to turn its focus toward electronic desktop and, soon after, hand-held calculators.

Commodore entered the market of hand-held electronic calculators in late 1970s with its CBM 110 device. Within months, the company introduced what would become a popular series of Minuteman calculators. That series, in turn, was followed by the "SR" and "SF" line of scientific and financial hand-held calculators. By the mid-1970s, Commodore was selling a wide range of electronic calculators, becoming one of the largest American manufacturers of these devices.

Commodore's entry into microcomputer market was, to a large degree, the result of fierce price war in the calculator market that started in late 1973, and the decision of Texas Instrumentsone of the main suppliers of calculator chipsto enter the calculator market and to compete with its clients. To stay competitive and independent of third parties for the chips and displays that went into its products, Commodore purchased MOS Technology in 1976. With the acquisition came not only MOS integrated circuits (most notably the 6502 microprocessor) but also Chuck Peddle'sthe 6502's chief designer'sconsiderable technical expertise and impeccable sense of changing trends in electronics market. While at MOS, he built the KIM-1 single-board computer that quickly became popular among computer hobbyists. Peddle urged Commodore not to underestimate the market potential for mass-manufactured microcomputers and his team got permission to go ahead with a project of designing a desktop computer around the 6502 processor. The all-in-one Commodore PET (or Personal Electronic Transactor) was introduced in 1977. It was successfully marked world-wide, which opened the door into the consumer electronics market for the company's next best sellers: the VIC-20 introduced in 1980, and the Commodore 64 unveiled in 1982.

By 1983, in just 25 years, a small downtown Toronto typewriter sales and repair shop was transformed into one of the most revered personal computer companies in the world, shipping more units world-wide than any other computer company. However, the departure of Tramiel from Commodore in 1984 marked the beginning of the company's downfall. Commodore was loosing grounds to the IBM PC and Apple Macintosh platforms. The purchase of Amiga and the sales of its aging fleet of 8-bit computers sustained the company for a while but eventually, in 1994, Commodore began its liquidation.

Commodore 202 description

The Commodore 202 was possibly the first adding machine sold exclusively by the  company. It was announced in 1967 and manufactured by a Japanese company Ricoh which previously built the 201 adding machine for Commodore. The award-winning case design for the adder was created by Thomas McGourty of Commodore. The 202 featured a built-in column indicator (recording the number of digits pressed) and a printer.
  • Operations: addition, subtraction, multiplication, credit balance, automatic total and sub-total, automatic repeat key for repeat addition, subtraction, and multiplication,
  •  column indicator : 10 digit, mechanical,
  • printing mechanism: 10 column list, eleven column total, red and black printing,
  • keyboard: 17 keys including "clear", single, double, and triple "0" keys,
  • power: AC only.
Museum holdings
  • Commodore 202 adder, serial nr. B-152639.

Creator

Ricoh and Commodore International Ltd.

Date

1967

Coverage

North America, Europe, late 1960s -- early 1970s

Files

CBM202.jpg

Citation

Ricoh and Commodore International Ltd., “Commodore 202 adding machine,” York University Computer Museum Canada, accessed October 14, 2024, https://museum.eecs.yorku.ca/items/show/306.

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