The Royal Futura 800 is a portable, manual typewriter that was produced in 1959, by the Royal Typewriter Company division of Royal McBee Corporation (serial no. 2A4095431) and designed by Laird F. Covey. In appearance, features, and design, the introduction of the Futura marked a new direction in the production of Royal portable typewriters.

This is an iconic typewriter: famous users of the Royal Futura include U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Belgian novelist Marguerite Yourcenar, including the 2011 period-appropriate film, 'The Help'.

The most obvious feature is its curved and aerodynamic shape. The Futura has aluminum grey body panels -- reducing the carrying weight to 22 pounds -- and provides rust protection. In addition to the aluminum body panels, the Futura has a corrugated steel front panel and welded steel internals and frame. The keys are plastic and designed in the popular 'tombstone' style. Two red 'Magic Margin' buttons are located on top of the carriage and, on this 800 model, 'tab set' and 'tab clear' keys can be found on the front panel. A plastic red 'Royal' logo also on the front panel doubles as the push-button latch control to open the top of the machine and allow access to the ribbon and internal controls. The Futura has four rubber feet to hold the typewriter in place, an acrylic paper table, and a steel carriage-return lever.

The standard typeface on all Royal Futura models is 'Merit' typeface (10 characters per inch). The keyboard is in the English character set. Other important design features include a 'Carriage Lock Lever' to protect the typewriter during travel by centering and immobilizing the carriage; a 'Ribbon Color Selector' that can be switched from black ribbon to red ribbon to stencil; 'Segment Shift', which allows for the character basket rather than the carriage to move when the shift key is pressed; and a 'Clear Writing Line' that permits an unobstructed character view while typing.

This Royal Futura 800 is a high-end model, the other two models available being 400 and 600, which differs in both appearance and functionality. The 800 is the most popular, most feature-full of all the models. It has a 44-key (48 characters) keyboard. It is considered to be a full-keyboard and was more likely to be found on large office typewriters than on portable ones.

The Futura 800 carrying case is bound in custom-fitted faux leather and includes a Royal-branded luggage tag, with an internal felt lining to mute typing noise. Please note that this unite is missing the original leather handle. Behind the paper table, it features a retractable V-shaped paper guide that allows for easy viewing of work in progress. The 800 comes in a two-tone 'Mist Gray' color. This machine has durable hard-rubber feet to allow for safe, upright storage.

This typewriter is in excellent shape both cosmetically and mechanically, and fully functional down to the bell. A smooth typer all around! The touch is light and snappy just like other Royals of the era, and it would be a joy to type with for long periods of writing. This typewriter also has a propriety font which makes it unique. The owner's manual for this typewriter can be found here. Universal ribbons fit the Futura 800 (a huge plus).

If you're looking for a space-age looking typewriter that's easy to use and maintain and that can be used heavily/frequently, then this is an excellent option.