Anita desktop calculator

The Anita was the first all-electronic, tube-based desktop calculator.
Not only was it completely silent, but it operated much faster than mechanical machines, and was maintenance-free too.
However, tubes were not an optimum technical solution for desktop calculators as they used a lot of electricity, were relatively susceptible to breakage and were expensive to produce. For this reason, this technology remained unique to the Anita.
Mass production of such devices only became an option once transistors started to be used from around 1964 onwards. Photo: Jan Braun, HNF