“HELLO. PRESS A BLUE KEY.”
This is a Tech Tuesday flashback! Do any of you remember Texas Instruments electronic handheld educational toys? My husband recently spent some time going through his parent’s basement and he came across the Texas Instruments Speak & Music toy. He thinks it’s about 25 years old and it still works! This version of the famous Speak and Spell line of toys features a speech synthesizer and a piano keyboard rather than a typing keyboard. The “robot” voice really cracks me up as it used to be seen as so cutting edge! The Speak and Music features musical audio games allowing free-form and memory-based game play (echo, rhythm, musical words). It also plays 12 pre-programmed songs. One of Teagan’s favorite rides at Disneyland is It’s A Small World. The theme song from the ride is one of the first songs on the toy. What a small world! 😉 This toy also has the ability to record music that you create. Very cool features for such simple technology. Wow! Electronic toys have come a long way since then! These days toys are so much more sophisticated than their ancestors but are not built with the same quality. I could not believe the Speak & Music still works! He also found a Speak and Math but that did not work. These devices are actually quite popular with electronic music and musicians. People are able to “hack” into the circuitry of the systems and do “Circuit Bending”. The process of circuit-bending involves taking cheaply available electronic sound making toys and adding extra wires, knobs and switches to make new connections between parts of the internal circuitry and chips. Check out some music created with these “hacked” toys (http://www.datamath.org/Story/CircuitBending.htm). Teagan actually loves the Speak & Music and has no idea that’s it so old. It’s educational and still fun to play with!
What about you? Do you have any ancient/retro electronic toys or gaming systems that are still functional and are in use by your family?
“GOODBYE.”
— Tee & Sean
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiCA2em879E&hl=en&fs=1]
6 comments
Gee, I have NO idea whose toy that was. 😉 Glad she likes it!
I loved my Speak and Spell! It was great and of course ET made it famous! oh and by the way I love your ring 🙂
LOL! Thanks! I get many compliments on that ring.
I had the Speak & Spell–they definitely need to bring that back!
I had Simon. I think my Mom finally threw it out a few years ago.
Hello yes I do remember speak and music. My daughter is 28 and I still have hers and will not part with it. I just got it out today, added batteries and it works great! The only thing I cannot remember how to do it or it is broken is the tempo key. 3yr old grandson comes today and he will love this. As a teacher and mom I think this is one of the best things ever made. I am, as I digress in writing you, writing a letter to them and telling them they need to put this back on the market!