Not so long ago, hopping onto the internet required more than just opening a browser. In the dial up days you’d have to wait for your modem to screech and squawk as it connected. Looking back through years of nostalgia, those sounds were strangely satisfying and often times melodic, which explains why someone has created a tiny electronic keyboard that lets you turn a dialup modem’s sounds into your own symphony.
The $US30 Music Modem is packed full of samples and sound effects from the days when the internet tied up your home’s phone line, accessible via eight buttons and a couple of toggle switches that cycle through its various modes. You can either recreate a random mish-mash of connecting sounds — just like the old days — or plunk out a simple tune. Either way, it will make you nostalgic for your old Pentium computer and overjoyed for your modern high-speed internet. [ThinkGeek]