Few people have heard of it, yet many consider John Blankenbaker's KENBAK-1 to be the first commercial personal computer.
USSR Marks Time With Digital Style
By bohus
If you were going to measure out the steady beat of living under Soviet rule, you're probably going to need a watch. Back then, Elektronika was responsible for consumer electronics (frequently reverse engineered from other existing products), but these LCD watches were more homegrown. Thanks to the micro electronics revolution, no longer did you have to save your rubles for months to get a mechanical watch. LCD & digital technology made for cheap & plentiful timepieces, so just about anyone could finally have a quality watch on their wrist. Denizens of the USSR could finally know just how long they'd been in line waiting for toilet paper.
As you can see from the collection of Sergei Frolov, Elektronika did manage some variety to their offerings. Some are surprisingly stylish too. I don't know whether my favorite is cheap LCD display mounted inside a pocket watch style case, or the Buran space shuttle (which never left the ground on a manned mission) emblazoned plastic model that might have inspired young cosmonauts.
See more of Sergei Frolov's collection
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