Manual typewriter to world: 'I am not dead yet!'

I'm having flashbacks to high school typing class, caged in a room full of incessantly clacking keys. I was likely one of the last students to ever have to hunt and peck my way through "The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy hen" on a typewriter.

If you stick around long enough, what's old becomes new again. Hammacher Schlemmer came up with a most-excellent press release headline: "Hammacher Schlemmer Introduces The Classic Manual Typewriter." It's as if the classic manual typewriter had never existed before. What crazy alternate universe is this?

Let's welcome this new-fangled invention with a look at its impressive tech specs. This sleek machine from Royal is made with a lightweight plastic housing that brings it to a svelte 9 pounds of portable typing fury.

There are 44 keys that crank out 88 symbols in 10-characters-per-inch Pica 87 font. It is colored in Death Star black. Replacement black/red fabric spool ribbon costs $4.95. Better stock up.

The $200 Classic Manual Typewriter is not some musty old refurb. This baby is brand new and ready to crank out your five-volume sci-fi epic series of novels. Just be sure to back up your data -- with a copy machine.