TALKING TIME ELECTRONIC CLOCK (Digital clock)
1979-1980s
MMM.1993.48.8
ID: A small silver, rectangular alarm clock with a small black panel on the front that reads 'Talking Time' and holds a small, digital screen. It has a small yellow button at the top, and speaker holes on the top of the case.This Talking Time alarm clock belonged to Caroline France, who studied and taught...
Rights information: Copyright: Pete Carr
Description
ID: A small silver, rectangular alarm clock with a small black panel on the front that reads 'Talking Time' and holds a small, digital screen. It has a small yellow button at the top, and speaker holes on the top of the case.
This Talking Time alarm clock belonged to Caroline France, who studied and taught at the Royal School for the Blind, Hardman Street, Liverpool for many years. It was made by Sharp Corporation and is battery operated.
When you press the button, it speaks the time to you and displays it on the small screen on the front. The Talking Time clock was first released in 1979, and it was classed as the world's "first ever" clock to synthesize a human voice, which was ground-breaking for the time.
Talking clocks are still used today. They form part of a huge range of electronic assistive technology used by blind and partially sighted people, alongside things like screen readers and virtual assistants like Amazon Echo, Google Home, and much more.
