1972 Calculator – an article in the newspaper on August 16, 1972 by columnist Sylvia Porter was devoted to the joy she was experiencing because she had just purchased a new calculator in 1970 (battery operated and from Japan) that could do all her calculations and be carried in her purse. It was about 5 inches by 9 inches. The price at that time was $390.00. In the fall of 1972 an American company was producing a similar calculator for about $100.00. Sylvia also went on to explain how to use the calculator and also gave a number of calculations to try in the new machine to make sure it was accurate. On a side note – in 1972 at Christmas when I was working for Kmart one of the hottest gifts was a similar portable calculator on sale for $89.99 (each). We could not keep them in stock. Another item at the same time was an LED watch that only told the time for the same price, $89.99.