The 1971 555 timer: 23 transistors, designed entirely by hand
cneuralnetwork · x · 2026-11-05
A nostalgic engineering post: the legendary 555 timer IC, designed in 1971, used just 23 transistors, 16 resistors, and 2 diodes in its original circuit — all hand-designed by Hans Camenzind without a computer.
Over 50 years later, versions of this chip are still in wide use. The poster muses how many of today's IC designs will still matter in 50 years.
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