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SCM Cogito 414 Desktop Calculator
Updated 1/25/2022
The SCM (Smith Corona Marchant) Cogito
414 is virtually identical to the Cogito 412 with
the sole difference being in the number of digits of capacity -- 14 on the
414, and, 12 on the 412. In terms of function and operation, the machines
are indentical. The same main circuit board is used in both machines, though
different IC's are used in the 414 versus the 412 due to the extra two digits
of capacity on the 414. An article in the New York Times dated April 24, 1969,
announces the Cogito 414,
touting its use of Large Scale IC technology as
enabling it to be the smallest machine on the market
with full calculator functionality.
SCM Cogito 414 Internal View This particular Cogito 414 I'm guessing was
built in the mid-to-late 1972 timeframe, with date codes on IC's ranging from
late-1969 through mid-1972. The IC with the '72 date code may be a
replacement, in which case, the machine may have been built in mid to late-1970.
In cases where there is a skew in the date codes like this (with all but
one of the IC's dated in the '69 to '70 timeframe), it is hard to
peg the date of manufacture very closely. The IC's on the main board
are plugged into Molex-style sockets, so the chips are easily replaced without
any evidence left (such as signs of manual soldering).
The machine uses a 14-digit, genuine Burroughs, Nixie display, with each
tube containing zero through nine and a decimal point.
Cogito 412/414 Keyboard Detail Internally, the 414 differs a bit from
the 412. The 412 uses two daughter boards, each with two LSI IC's soldered
onto them which plug into edge card connectors on the main board. The 414
combines the two boards into one, with 4 LSI's on it, but the IC's on the
414's daughter board are different than those on the 412.
Back View with Display Driver Detail The 414 is only barely detectably slower
than the 412, likely due to the extra two digits of calculating that has to
occur on each calculation. 9999999999999.9 divided by 1 takes just a shade
over 1/2 second to complete.
For more details about the Cogito 414, please refer to the page on the
SCM Cogito 412. To see an original ad (scanned
black and white to save on image download time), click
HERE.
