Headquartered in Japan, Sharp Corporation is a Japanese multinational company that manufactures a variety of consumer and business electronic products. Founded in September 1912, Tokuji Hayakawa started out as a small metal workshop in Osaka. One of the company’s first products is a mechanical pencil called ‘Ever-Sharp’ that had a retractable graphite led in a metal rod. The pencil gained the interest of the public and launched the company. In 1923, the Great Kanto earthquake destroyed the factory. The company then moved to Osaka after a year and started resumed production. Aside from this, Hayakawa started to manufacture radios and started to sell these in 1925. The company renamed to Hayawaka Electric Industry in 1942. The company continued to expand its product range and started to produce the first Japan-made TV sets in 1953. Through the 60s, they developed the first transistor calculator and continued to innovate and produce more calculators such as the IC calculator in 1966 and the LSI calculator in 1969. By the late 60s, the brand is already established and known in North America. The company changed its name again in 1970 to what it’s currently known as – Sharp Corporation. During the 70s, the company also ventured into other products and introduced low-cost microwave ovens for household use, high-end stereos, the first LCD calculator in 1973, amplifiers, speakers and cassette players. Through the 2000s to 2010s, despite financial losses with regard to sales, Sharp launched more diverse products such as LCD TVs, mobile phones and smartphones. Foxconn, a Taiwan-based electronics company, acquired a large share of Sharp in 2012 to help with its financial crisis. Sharp is currently listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange since 1956.
With such a rich history, it’s no wonder the company has so many products out there, from new to used. Finding the right documentation can be difficult, especially in the English language. This is the reason why we opened up a section dedicated to Sharp User Manuals, where you can view or download each PDF.