Happy Birthday! The Walkman Turns 30

Sony introduced its Walkman portable cassette player thirty years ago this week, kicking off a revolution in the consumer electronics industry by changing the way people enjoy music.

Until its introduction, the only way people could enjoy their own choice of music while on the go was to lug around a larger, heavier cassette player, but the Walkman brought music to the belt-clip, purse or pocket.

The first Walkman, the TPS-L2, cost ¥33,000 in Japan and US$200 in the U.S., but despite the relatively high price tag the reception was enthusiastic. In 1980 The Wall Street Journal called the Walkman "one of the hottest new status symbols around" and noted that prospective U.S. owners faced a month-long wait because of a backlog in orders.

The player had several features that were innovative for the time including dual headphone sockets, independent volume control for the left and right audio channels and the distinctive orange "hotline" button on the top that faded the tape output and engaged a microphone so the listener could talk ...

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Martyn Williams, IDG News Service