This modern world of ours has an impressive array of bits and bobs and gadgets and gizmos. You kind of wander through life forgetting how impressive some of our toys are. These photos show early manifestations of things we now take for granted. Humans are pretty clever, it’s a shame they’re so evil or else we might actually get a lot done…

1) Roller Skates

Edward Petrini designed these bad boys around 1910. They actually kind of look like they could be modern. A sort of Segway for your feet.

2) Life Jacket

The life jacket has certainly come on since that photo was taken. They look like they’re wearing a massive nappy/mattress hybrid. It doesn’t look very buoyant? I guess it must have been though as that really is their sole purpose.

3) Calculator

This Marchant XLA (1913) was an early calculator. According to Marchant Math-Mechanics, a publication for the sales staff of Marchant, the model XLA was introduced in 1928 as a relatively inexpensive calculating machine that could be placed “on every desk”. It cost $125 which in today’s money is about £8 billion (I made that up). It never took off and the line was discontinued a few years later. The manual was a quick read of just 130 pages.

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