Transistor Radios

The transistor, forerunner of today’s microprocessor, was invented in the early 1950s by Texas Instruments. After Emerson, Philco, and RCA rejected the idea, TI got Regency Electronics to manufacture the first pocket-sized transistor radio in 1954. Generally, the most collectible transistor radios are those made in Japan from 1956 to 1963 and in America from 1955 to 1960. By the early '60s, many American companies had opted to have their radios made in Japan.

Regency (an American company) was the first to introduce a solid-state transistor radio, the Regency TR-1, in 1954. Other collectible American brands include Zenith, RCA, G.E., Admiral, Motorola, Magnavox, Philco, Raytheon, Arvin, Sylvania, and Emerson. Sony stunned the electronics world with its TR-63 in 1957, the world’s first truly pocket-sized radio utilizing all miniature components. Other collectible Japanese brands include Toshiba, Hitachi, Sharp, Standard, Sanyo, Matsushita (Panasonic), Mitsubishi, Aiwa, Realtone, Global, and Zephyr...