Sharp makes and has made throughout its history various different consumer electronic products, including kitchen appliances such as microwave ovens , cookers, washing machines and refrigerators ; home appliances such as solar cells , vacuum cleaners , air purifiers and lighting; home and office devices such as printers , computer displays , TV sets , camcorders , VCRs , as well as calculators and various audio products such as radios , audio systems and wireless speakers.
Sharp's net sales reached 2. This represents a slight increase from the previous year's figure of 2. In , Tokuji Hayakawa founded a metal workshop in Honjo, Tokyo. The first of his many inventions was a snap buckle named 'Tokubijo'. Another of his inventions was the Ever-Ready Sharp mechanical pencil in The product became one of the first internationally available mechanical pencils while concurrent US design replaced it soon and became a modern type , and due to this big success the Sharp Corporation derived its name from it.
These went on sale in In , the name was changed to "Hayakawa Electric Industry Company". It took Sharp several years to develop the product as they had no experience in making computing devices at the time. Its first LSI calculator was introduced in The company was renamed Sharp Corporation in Sharp produced the first LCD calculator in All of these units are considered collectors items on the secondary market.
Sharp introduced low-cost microwave ovens affordable for residential use in the late s. Sharp was known as a mass marketed electronics manufacturer, known for quality, durability and affordability, however Sharp ventured into the high end stereo market in with the introduction of high end receivers, amplifiers, speakers, turntables and cassette recorders. The Optonica line as it was called, consisted of high quality and technically advanced components, that was expanded in , to cover a broader selection of high end equipment.
During this run, Sharp introduced digital technology to some of the Optonica products, along with the traditional analogue products, and offered a complete selection of models ranging from low power high end receivers to very powerful models. The line was again changed, in , and moved mainly into digital high end, complete stereo systems with advanced technological features setting the trend towards the digital age.
