Who had a big birthday last week?
NAB’s Radio TechCheck newsletter points out that while the transistor was invented in 1947 at Bell Labs, the first transistorized product hit the consumer market on Oct. 18, 1954.
The Regency TR-1 cost $49.95, using four germanium transistors operating on a 22 volt battery that provided 20 hours of operation.
NAB points readers to several sites about transistors and their history including www.regencytr1.com and http://people.msoe.edu/~reyer/regency/.
By comparison, the association also points readers to small radios of today including models at www.sinclair-research.co.uk and www.lobeman.com. The latter site details the LobeMan FM Radio.
“It’s likely to be a while before the first LobeMan IBOC radio is available,” NAB’s tech folks note.
Transistor Radio Turns 50
Transistor Radio Turns 50
