First word processor, bigger not better

The author trying out the first word processor.
That bulge in his pocket is not excitement,
but the cellphone that has since replaced the antique.  

As you slide your fingers across the screen or keys to read this, be grateful for the main advantage of going digital: tiny sizes.
For during the late 1920s and early 1930s, this was the "word processeor" of choice among printers.

Based on the Hammond typewriter, this huge machine had a tiny electric motor to drive the metal cylinder to which printers could easily - and more importantly - quickly affix a different typeface.

From this in 1920s...

...to this in the 2010s: a notebook with a foldable keyboard. 

The hammer and anvil approach used by Hammond typewriters remained with us until the 1970s, while another innovation - a keyboard that folds up to save space - briefly re-appeared with the advent of  pocket organisers and are still touted as a good add-on to a tablet.