PICYURE OF OLD TRANSISTOR RADIO PORTABLE

Unlike later radios, these accessories were extra cost options, with the case retailing for $3.95 and the earphone for an astounding $7.50! The correct way to open the TR-1 is to gently squeeze each side of the case and remove the back.Īvailable accessories included a leather case and an earphone. Early TR-1s had no coin slot to open them with.Īs a result, many TR-1s were damaged inadvertently when collectors attempted to open them the way they would any other radio, potentially cracking the case. Unlike later radios, the TR-1 did not have a coin slot for opening the case at the bottom (see Figure 2).įIGURE 2. These pearlescent colors are extremely rare today and are sought after by collectors. Apparently, consumers didn’t think spending an extra $5.00 to get a special color was worth it. From left to right, top to bottom: black, white, cloud gray, mottled mahogany, mandarin red, and jade green.Ī special run of so-called “pearlescent” colors was introduced at a $5.00 premium and was quickly dropped. The Regency TR-1 was originally available in six standard colors. The radio came in six standard colors: black, white, cloud gray, mandarin red, mottled mahogany, and jade green (see Figure 1).įIGURE 1. It utilized a 22.5 V battery, which - to my knowledge - was the only fully transistorized radio to ever use this battery. The TR-1 cost $49.95 - a princely sum back then. After considering various speaker grille options, the decision was made to simply drill holes in the case. The radio’s sleek design was due more to expediency and the desire to reduce cost rather than styling concerns. The result was the Regency TR-1 and it was introduced the week of October 18, 1954, to much fanfare and press. An exception was a setscrew on the variable capacitor used for tuning - it stuck out far enough that a dimple had to be machined into the case to allow the back of the radio to close fully. One transistor was removed from the circuit and - after much effort - engineers succeeded in getting all parts to fit the case. Attempts were made to refine the five-transistor circuit designed by TI to reduce cost and ensure that the parts would all fit in the case. As this was only weeks away, manufacturing the Regency-branded radio had to be a true rush job to meet the deadline.Įngineers decided upon a case size for the new radio. The target was to have the new radio on the market in time for the 1954 Christmas shopping season. jumped at the chance to produce a transistor radio. Its main product up to that time had been a line of vacuum tube-operated television signal boosters marketed under the Regency brand name. TI finally found a partner in a company called I.D.E.A., Inc., of Indianapolis, IN. TI decided that a portable, handheld radio offered the most mainstream application of the new technology and approached several large corporations about producing the radio they had designed using TI transistors, but companies - such as RCA and Motorola - did not believe the transistor’s time had yet arrived and passed on the offer.

The First Transistor Radioīy early 1954, Texas Instruments (TI) had perfected production to the point that transistors became cheap enough for use in consumer items.

Efforts were underway to refine transistor production so that individual devices would become inexpensive enough for use in consumer items.

Transistors offered many improvements over the vacuum tube: They were smaller, used much less power, and were more reliable. The transistor - a revolutionary solid-state device capable of amplification - had been invented back in 1947, but its actual application to mass-produced consumer items had been limited, as production of transistors had yet to be perfected, so their cost remained high.

PICYURE OF OLD TRANSISTOR RADIO PORTABLE

As a result, few portable radios saw much use. Portable, battery powered radios had been around since the 1920s, but were limited by the requirement for several battery voltages, very short life of the batteries, expense of battery operation, and size of the vacuum tubes required. The combination of high power use and large size meant that few practical, portable devices utilizing vacuum tubes were created. In addition, most standard vacuum tubes were large in comparison to other electronic devices. As vacuum tubes required heating by filaments to function, the current use was high. Vacuum tubes were the only way of performing many electronic functions - such as amplification and rectification (although the solid-state diode had appeared on the scene by this time) - but were generally limited to devices that could be plugged in. Almost anything electronic required vacuum tubes - an invention dating back to the beginning of the 20th century that had yet to be improved on. In 1954, the world was a far different place than it is now.

Picyure of old transistor radio