Texas Instruments Speak & Spell (1978)

 A whole generation of kids learned to spell on this cheery orange device with alphabet keys and a hardy handle. Speak & Spell contained a single-chip speech synthesizer--novel for the time--and a robotic voice that encouraged children to spell more than 200 common words. The $50 Speak & Spell effectively cut the cord on that era's pull-string and tape-recorder speaking toys. The game of Hangman was a boon for kids during long car trips--and the bane of at least some parents forced to listen to it.