TOP 10: We couldn't do without WALKMAN - Brief Article

Electronics Times, June 26, 2000

1947 - the year of the invention of the transistor, enabling the introduction of portable radios in 1954.

And 1979 - the birth date of what has become one of the biggest selling consumer products ever produced: the Sony Walkman, with 150 million units sold to date.

The Walkman (introduced to the Oxford English Dictionary in 1986) brought to the world headphone culture - the term is now generic for all forms of personal audio, and the brand secured Sony's place in the minds of everyone.

The Walkman has since spawned a host of lookalikes as well as encouraging the development and take-up of subsequent generations of personal audio - the personal CD player (Sony's Discman was recently rebranded Walkman), minidisc and now MP3.

It also arguably fuelled the explosion of other miniaturised appliances, such as camcorders and mobile phones.

Twenty years on and 300 models down the line, Sony is still shipping 10 million units a year, taking 40% of the market.

The 20th anniversary of its creation was celebrated by limited-edition chrome-finished versions, with remote controls and digital displays, barely bigger than the cassettes it plays. Still, it's not too far a cry from the original - probably worth a fair few bob these days.