Elektor Teletext Decoder (1981)

Teletext, an information service based on text and simple graphics all carried via analogue TV broadcasts, did take a few years to develop out and mature into a standard (with lots of ifs, buts and hiccups in different countries). It started in 1970 when creative BBC and IBA engineers agreed that the 25 picture lines in the field blanking period of a TV signal were suitable for conveying ‘information’ instead of just being invisible to viewers at home, as well as mainly black on the oscilloscope!