Electronic Calculators from the Past

When I first looked at these gadgets, I really think that was an antique calculator.

It is actually fantastic anachronistic adding machines designed by Andy Aaron. An adding machine is a type of calculator, usually specialized for bookkeeping calculations. Conceptual residing between the abacus and supercomputer, these machines are the products of Aaron’s ‘Back to the future’ type of obsession, a marriage of 70’s era calculator technology, LED display, and old, odd switches in still older wooden boxes. Some have a nautical vibe, some agricultural, others look like they might be magic contraptions - all are unique and ingenious.

At the time when lighting-fast calculation is taken for granted, Aaron’s machine offer deliberate purposefulness to everyday calculation.

“They work!” says Aaron, “You can put them on your desk and use them to add up your billion dollar fund. They’re not just a joke.”