typetels

Typetels were a type of early telecommunication device that combined features of a typewriter and a telephone. These machines allowed users to send and receive typed messages over a telephone line, offering an alternative to voice communication. The concept emerged in the mid-20th century as a way to address the limitations of traditional voice calls, such as the need for both parties to be available simultaneously and the difficulty of recording conversations accurately.

The functionality of a typetel typically involved a keyboard for typing messages and a display screen, often a cathode ray tube or a simpler dot-matrix display, to show incoming and outgoing text. Messages were encoded and transmitted digitally over existing telephone networks. This enabled asynchronous communication, meaning users could send messages without the recipient needing to be present or actively engaged at the same time. Typetels found applications in business settings for sending memos, orders, and other forms of written communication that required a permanent record.

While typetels represented a significant step towards digital messaging, their widespread adoption was limited. They were relatively expensive, and the transmission speeds were slow compared to modern standards. The development of fax machines and later, personal computers with modems, offered more versatile and cost-effective solutions for transmitting written information. Consequently, typetels remained a niche technology and were eventually superseded by more advanced communication technologies.