The Transistor Radio Turns 70

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mediatechnology
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The Transistor Radio Turns 70

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The Transistor Portable Radio

From Radio World: https://www.radioworld.com/tech-and-gea ... able-radio
Bell licensed transistor technology to other companies; one of these was Texas Instruments, which made the transition from prototype to product, offering workable transistors to the electronic industry. TI wanted to sell these “solid-state” devices but needed not only to create circuits and consumable products that used them, but also to capture the imagination of engineers to get it done.

The outshoot was a prototype portable radio. A thrilling breakthrough idea, but only one small manufacturer took up the product coming to mass market. It was Regency, with its model TR-1, introduced on Oct. 18, 1954, at a price of $49.95, roughly equivalent to $400 today.
Regency_TR-1_Patent_Drawing.jpg

When I visited TI in Richardson during the mid-to-late 1970s to pickup some early samples of the TL084 for MicMix there was a Regency TR-1 on display in the lobby. Fun days. My Aunt Mildred "Pauline" was TI employee #161. I still have her badge.
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