Like Boomers, transistor radios refuse to retire - The Sony ICF-P26 & P27

[@Max16032]

There's also a reason why keeping a battery-powered radio at hand is a good idea: Radio is usually the first medium that goes live after a major disaster, so imagine if TV and Internet are cutoff completely and you're disconnected from the outside world with no electricity. A radio could be your only means to have any news from the outside.

[@johndododoe1411]

On 9/11, many New York broadcast stations went offline because their transmitter was on top of the tallest building. I have no specifics as I wasn't there, but I'm guessing that out of town AM stations still worked and reported on the attack.

[@vwestlife]

Those were TV stations on the WTC. The NYC FM radio stations mostly broadcast from the Empire State Building and the AM stations have their towers across the river in the NJ Meadowlands, so they were fine and stayed on the air.

[@AI_Image_Master]

After Super Storm Sandy I was without power for almost 2 weeks. Without my little 20 year old portable radio I think I would have gone made at night with nothing to do as it got dark very early.

[@christo930]

The real benefit to AM is that at night it can travel very long distances. Say the grid goes down in your area. Nothing is going to work. No AM, no FM and no TV (after the backup power is lost), no internet and no cell phone.. But AM signals can travel from hundreds of miles away at night. I'm 40 miles from the Atlantic ocean and can listen to Chicago AM radio at night, every night at sundown. It's near 100% reliable. 700 plus miles. If the power went out in my area, anyone with an AM radio can tune in to these other stations for information.

[@christo930]

@@AB0BA_69 Because the sun heats a layer of the atmosphere during the day, but not at night. This allows the signal to propagate much further. Most AM radio stations in America are even required by the fcc to lower their power output after sunset as to not interfere with radio signals in other markets. I can pick up Chicago every night, but under the right atmospheric conditions, I can pick up stuff from even farther away. Here's a little blurb from the FCC website: Because of the way in which the relatively long wavelengths (see Footnote 1) of AM radio signals interact with the ionized layers of the ionosphere miles above the earth's surface, the propagation of AM radio waves changes drastically from daytime to nighttime. This change in AM radio propagation occurs at sunset due to radical shifts in the ionospheric layers, which persist throughout the night. During daytime hours when ionospheric reflection does not occur to any great degree, AM signals travel principally by conduction over the surface of the earth. This is known as "groundwave" propagation. Useful daytime AM service is generally limited to a radius of no more than about 100 miles (162 km), even for the most powerful stations.

[@fishabit]

Back in the mid 60’s on my 8th birthday my grandma gifted me a white am transistor radio. It quickly became my prized possession. In the mountains of North Carolina I would lay my head directly on the speaker at night and tune in WLS Chicago on the lowest possible volume and listen to what I considered another planet music wise. I will never forget that little radio and the joy it brought me.

[@vision-gc4hy]

Sweet memory.

[@williambaldwin4563]

I remember my first 6 transistor AM Radio. As a child forced to spend months away from home at a time this was such a comfort. Listening to clear channel stations from my home area could be almost as satisfying as a phonecall from family. AM-Live forever!

[@clixbits]

Snap! Except the station I listened to was a pirate radio station based on a ship off the coast of England (UK). Joyous times..

[@diegogonzalez7279]

Beautiful memories , hometown WS here cheers!

[@gabrielgingras814]

Can't imagine going from this to an AI serving you music catering to your taste in a personal DJ format. Crazy!

[@namakaleisure4916]

hearing that transistor radios are still being made makes my heart smile a little. ☺️

[@johnmccormick8159]

They aren't. These radios have ICs that feature DSP. It is true they are solid state though.

[@pauli2951]

I love it. Not everything in the world is broken.

[@johnmccormick8159]

@@pauli2951 You should check out C. Crane radios. They're made for people for whom radio is still very important.

[@Allan_aka_RocKITEman]

@@johnmccormick8159 >>> The ICs contain transistors...😉

[@Robert-un3cf]

@@Allan_aka_RocKITEman I bet there is someone in china or indonesia still making a radio with a handful of 1 cent discrete transistors

[@yellowstokerr8555]

I'm really glad things like this exist. I'm 23, I moved to Portugal for a summer to do an internship at an university. I moved into an apartment with no internet nor TV (but you know, I thought I wouldn't be really needing it that summer because I was going to be very busy) so I decided to pick up a radio like this one and it made my summer. In such a small, cheap box you get the news, sports, many cool podcasts, I was living by myself and it kept me company. I know a radio sounds boring in today's standard but you really get a lot from it specially if you use it for a while, it gets better once you know the schedule of the stations, once you know what your favourite stations are...

[@AngryNegativeHistoryProject]

At a university with no internet? Are they that far behind in the times?

[@bubbledoubletrouble]

@@AngryNegativeHistoryProject The _apartment_ has no internet. Completely plausible if it’s an older building.

[@AngryNegativeHistoryProject]

@@bubbledoubletrouble I'm in an old building too

[@AngryNegativeHistoryProject]

@@bubbledoubletrouble hopefully they have you indoor plumbing haha

[@yellowstokerr8555]

@@AngryNegativeHistoryProject Well, of course they had internet at the university although it wasn't very good at downloading big stuff such us films. I'm talking abut my specific apartment, I wasn't at an university accommodation or anything just a thing on my own and paying for the installation of the internet + singing up a contract was not worth it for the few months I was staying there.

[@JRatLSE]

I bought this exact Sony radio a few years ago. I got it so I could listen to radio commentary while I watched cricket matches at the stadium. If I listened on my smartphone, the commentary would be up to a minute delayed, but over radio it was perfectly in sync with the live action!

[@Rfk1966]

I have this same radio. Take it along camping in the desert and it works quite well.

[@Pyjamarama11]

I often see older gents with one sticking out of their chest pocket, earphone-in, at the sports

[@jman22009]

Did the same thing a few weeks ago for hockey!

[@dlarge6502]

And then the commentary over the app on the phone repeats itself because you lost connection for a second and it has to catch up, but it doesn't repeat the last few seconds, no, it winds back a couple of mins!

[@Nettlebed7]

Delays are the general problem with digital, for us boomers. Switching on an analog device is the 'Do as I say' experience. Digital devices have to boot, update, upgrade, advertise, deep-menu select, swipe, fingerprint access, i.e., find any means possible to avoid obedient immediate response. Maybe we are too authoritarian.

[@redmed10]

Can't beat technology that simply works and works simply.

[@silverperzon]

Bought this exact model with my first paycheck in 2017. I still remember the check out lady at the electronics section looking at me like I was nuts wanting this radio to be unlocked from the shelf when there were mp3 players in the same isle. No cell signal in the area, so this thing was the only thing keeping me sane while working. The farm animals I worked around seemed to enjoy the jams as well. Cell signal got better 4 yrs later and have since retired the unit. It gets brought out every now and then during storms.

[@jonpeley]

I had to buy mine from Amazon cause the local stores only had very cheap looking chinese models. Others didn't even have any of them and were willing to sell your typical all in one small CD + cassette tape + radio combos.

[@RielMailtaRoman]

​@@jonpeley i had to get mine from Walmart

[@famicomnintendo]

nice little radio for power outages or work for a reasonable price

[@JohnSmith-ki2eq]

They used to play classical music for the cows in the milking shed at the local dairy, the farmer swore that it calmed them (the cows) down and they produced more milk.

[@qwertykeyboard5901]

@@jonpeleyI have mixed feeling on the Chinese Special radios personally.

[@xenotiic8356]

I remember being in middle school and my grandma gifted me her old transistor radio from the 90s, a landscape-oriented one. I think it was a Sony actually, though I forget. I'm 60% sure it broke after a year, probably because I used it a lot while doing chores around the house or sometimes when visiting family, often clipped to my waist. I was so jealous of my classmates who had iPhones, but until I got a cheapo no-name mp3 player, the radio was a great introduction to music for a girl with not a lot of money!

[@famousbowl9926]

Landscape? You meant vertical/ horizontal... ??

[@timothyapplegate2881]

My first personal music player was an AM transistor radio given to me by my grandfather. I lived in an odd FM deadzone as a child, so AM radio was perfect to bring a wide assortment of music into my life. I remember listening to hours of classical music through the radio until I received a cassette player and could choose the music I listened to.

[@kdrum90]

A vivid moment from my childhood in 1990s was listening to AM jazz station on a vintage 1930s tube receiver. It was a shortwave station which surprisingly had a wide band signal that my old receiver picked up just fine. The audio from that station was pretty much high fidelity ranging from 20 Hz up to 18 kHz which was insane to hear on AM in 1990s.

I had these radios as a child because GSM/3G reception was very poor and CDs still were expensive. Got replaced by some AliExpress iPod knock-off later (and after that a iPhone) when the internet got decent enough to download things.

[@drutt1985]

oh man. i remember sleepless sunday nights as a kid in the late 90s tuning around on am and shortwave on my sony icf-sw10 that i had gotten for a birthday. I wasted so many hours listening. ocasionally i would recieve some US stations (wich i considered rare here in Finland). I mostly picked up BBC and some east european stations on Am tho😌

[@johnpettimore5806]

My dad would take an AM radio with him fishing in a boat on big lakes because it would crackle whenever a storm was approaching giving him time to get off of the water. There was no way he could have understood calculus but he had a lot of common sense. Love you dad!!

[@fbksfrank4]

We didn’t get fm in Fairbanks Alaska until the seventies.

[@soobash]

As a teenager in the late 1980's I listened to night-time AM radio a lot. Nowadays I run repair cafés in the Paris region where I repair these transistor radios for free for those retired people who still cling to their old radios. I lost the habit of listening to radio when I moved to other countries. The internet was there and also I simply did not connect to the local radio stations. When I moved to the Netherlands I found that there was an active radio listening community; they are the repairmen who are their own business owners and often work alone. They work to the sound of their local radio stations. So much so that the cylindrical power extension cords are sold with a built-in radio !

[@datassetteuser356]

I liked how you used the endless paper in this video. Also unbelievable that these transistor radios are still made and sold. Almost makes me want to buy one, just because ...

[@cjsebes]

Tractor feed paper! I haven't used that since I was in 8th grade and used it on the printer connected to my Commodore 128.

[@CommodoreFan64]

@@cjsebes I loved tractor feed paper back in the day for printing banners, and I had an Epson printer that worked on my C64, C128, and Apple IIe with a simple cartage change on the back of the printer.

[@cjsebes]

@@CommodoreFan64 Banners in PrintShop Deluxe! Most of the tractor feed printers I used wasted a page because the tractor teeth were above the print head and roller, so you had to advance it an extra page to tear off your last page. But there were a couple of Epsons that had the tractor teeth just below the print head, alleviating that waste. And we had an Epson that was a color printer that used a 4-color ribbon. I can’t remember if it was an EX or FX series. It’s been a long while.

[@christo930]

If you have a Family Dollar near you, they sell one for $5, though it might have gone up recently and the website says it's in stock, but prices may vary and doesn't list a price. By about 18 months ago, they were $5. Both AM and FM. A youtube radio reviewer said it was OK.

[@CommodoreFan64]

@@cjsebes I don't remember the exact model number of my Epson printer, but I do remember itr did not waste that much paper besides having to take off the tractor feed edges. My families first color printer was also a color dot matrix printer, but it was a Panasonic brand my mother had gotten with a small Compaq Windows 95 desktop from her work, so she could work from home when needed, and she did not care how much ink we used, as she would just order several ribbons at a time on the company dime, and they did not care, so I made a lof banners for Church functions, school, etc.. in as many colors as I could using you guessed it Print Shop Deluxe, and an add on clipart pack for all the church stuff, and whatnot.

[@finnmcool2]

You didn't mention how energy efficient that little radio is. It's stunning how much listening you can do on those 2 little batteries.

[@JohnSmith-ki2eq]

I used to keep batteries that were too weak to use on other stuff and run them in my radio, I got weeks, if not months out of them that way.

[@grantlamarche]

...a potential 90+ hrs on a quality set of batteries, best in class!

[@megarollxrgmbroadcasting91]

i had an older model but it was essentially the same radio in a silver case. most reliable piece of electronics i’ve ever owned. the batteries in that thing legit lasted me a good 8 years once with a decent amount of use.

[@Warp2090]

True, but I do not know why they didn't just choose to use 9v batteries

[@lawrencehansen6788]

*Man, this radio brings back memories!* As I was growing up, my dad *ALWAYS* had a little transistor radio like this one. He took it everywhere - out to the garage while he was working on cars, taking it easy on a lawn chair in the back yard on a summer Saturday afternoon, "resting his eyes" (i.e., napping) after dinner, etc. - to listen to ball games or news or call in shows or whatever was on. I can still hear in my head some of the regular sponsors of the Chicago Cubs games! Funny thing was, Dad got tired of the little AA batteries running down quickly, so he rigged up a big battery pack of D cells in an old metal razor case. The radio was lashed to the battery pack with black electrical tape. So it wasn't so compact anymore, but he only had to replace the batteries every year or two! Yes, we have the Internet, but there's something special about driving home of a winter evening and catching the Chicago AM stations loud and clear or, even better, WLW 700 AM in Cincinnati, which is like 600 miles away! *Woot! Shout out to WWFM!* Literally just got done listening to their Sunday Opera when I saw this video had been uploaded. Of course, I'm listening to them via their webstream. BTW, I learned the Metropolitan Opera was on the radio every Saturday afternoon from Dad's little transistor - he was listening to WGN on afternoon, and I heard a promo for the MET broadcast. The station has changed (first to WFMT FM in Chicago, then later to the local MET affiliate wherever I'm living) , but that's still how I spend every Saturday afternoon.

[@Heidegaff]

I'm actually considering picking one of these up. It would be great to pack in a bag for emergencies, if disaster strikes, radio is usually used for communications.

[@nellayema2455]

Born in 1960, it was a thrill to have my very own transistor radio as a kid. I also had a lot of fun with my portable cassette player/recorder.

[@CdEmm50]

Born the same time ,1960. I had a transistor radio tied to my Raliegh Chopper bike here, Southern England. I still remember the smell of the red plastic, nowadays I have a little Sony Walkman radio for walks out with the dog and still build radios, fix old tv sets.

[@RCAvhstape]

I had a radio that was meant to be mounted to bicycle handlebars back in the day the way you mount a headlamp. I think it was AM only and was kind of cheap, but I was the cool kid who had a radio on his bike's "dashboard".

[@nellayema2455]

@@RCAvhstape One of my friends had one of those. His bicycle was pretty tricked out.

[@FoulOwl2112]

The old cassette recorder! The fun we had with those huh? Tapes n tapes n tapes full of the best comedy sketches and fake news reports a 10yr old's imagination could devise!

[@nellayema2455]

@@FoulOwl2112 Exactly!

[@audvidgeek]

I'm quite impressed by the audio quality of this little radio, especially on the AM side, which is better than many much more expensive and sophisticated radios! Several years back, I was servicing a local access TV channel. They had an announcement bulletin board running on the channel, and had a radio tuner tuned into a local AM station. It was a fancy digital tuner from an early 80's rack stereo system. The tuner failed, and they received all sorts of complaints from the town's citizens they wanted the local radio station back on the TV station. I replaced the tuner with a transistorized table radio from the 1960's, and connected the TV modulator up to the headphone plug. It was something just to get them by till they could get a real tuner, but then they started receiving all these complements on how much BETTER the sound quality was! ...who woulda thunk!

[@AMDRADEONRUBY]

I have the same Sony radio still handy when power goes out. Thanks Kevin for making a video about this little radio .

[@williamk9490]

Here in the UK, back in about 1963 I bought, from mail order ad in a newspaper, a crystal radio as my first radio, it was tiny probably only about 3 inches, it had a plug in earphone as there was no speaker but it worked very well and picked up all the stations I wanted to listen to especially radio luxemburg

[@alextirrellRI]

There's just something about FM & AM broadcasts that makes me feel a certain way. Probably the frequency cut and the compression/gain boost, but there's just so much nostalgia baked into it. I have a few small and and handheld radios from my recently departed uncle. I need to check if they're analog or digital!

[@sorrowcat2724]

I have the same exact radio that I carry in my bag every day. It’s a great thing to have. It’s also REALLY efficient on battery power. It’s had the same set of batteries in it for two years.

[@samuelsalgado2279]

😮😮😮😮😮🤣😂🤣😂NO WAY🤔🤔

[@famicomnintendo]

That answers my question

[@EightPieceBox]

Radios take very little power. One of the first things I was told when I got a boombox was that I could extend battery life by not playing tapes so much.

[@catlowe92]

My dad owned one of these for many years, he purchased a second one and I got one for myself.hus are still going strong and mine gets me through long days/nights working in the shed. The thing has survived -5°C winters and 45°C summers in that tin shed, covered in concrete and dust. Only thing is the volume dial always seems to go funny, which has happened to Dad's radios as well. Absolutely love this little gem 👍🏻

[@XenonJohnD]

Probably dust in the volume knob internals, can often easily be fixed by a repair shop if you wanted to resurrect it.

[@madjh8]

Yes, the dial usually catch dirt. There are videos how to fix it or tutorials 👍

[@maha77]

I *LOVED* the way the old transistor radio's smelled, they always had a particular smell, from the hardware, maybe it was the smell of the transistor itself, all that old equipment, I can still smell it in my minds eye. Nostalgic memory

[@uxwbill]

It's nice to see that Sony can still make a product that is a good performer and decent value for the money paid. I thought your use of the continuous feed paper as a conveyor was quite amusing. At first I thought it was individual sheets overlaid with each other, then I saw the feeder holes sneak into the frame...

[@danieldaniels7571]

@notfiveo if you watch the video, you’ll see the newer model has a digital tuner

[@jimdrake-writer]

On Christmas morning 1958, I opened a gift from my grandmother and found inside a brand-new General Electric transistor radio. The circular dial had the two Civil Defense channel markers, as did other early transistor radios. When I put in the three AA batteries and turned on the little radio, the first song I heard was "It's All in the Game" by Tommy Edwards. My GE plays just as well as it did that Christmas morning, and periodically I turn it on , only to find that AM radio bears almost no resemblance to what it was in 1958.

[@douglasallen9428]

I don’t think I have ever been so early for a VWestlife video! On a related note, I still listen to the radio on a regular basis, and the unit I listen with is an early 1990s General Electric “Superadio II” which I bought at a Salvation Army store for only $5… and other than a little bit of cleaning, it still works great!

[@Kylefassbinderful]

I’m glad to see an actual tuning capacitor in that older model. I hate that analog tuners are going away.

[@insainllama]

I love how when he references smartphones of today, he still shows one from almost a decade ago. It kinda puts into perspective how we are do for another major transformation in mainstream communication/tech.

[@pyeltd.5457]

Yea. It will be a newer more advanced smartphone over the one from today 😂

[@Nn-3]

I think the change already happened when we switched from 3.5mm headphone jacks to bluetooth.

[@danieldaniels7571]

@@Nn-3 Bluetooth was added long before most smartphones were deprived of their analog headphone jack. The cost-cutting removal of the jack isn’t a step forward.

[@Nn-3]

@@danieldaniels7571 The change of the past decade I probably should've focused on more is the transition from digital audio storage on personal devices to streaming. As for cost cutting - cassette tapes also weren't a step forward, yet are still considered a major change in audio. I think Bluetooth might be in a similar category (not as an audio format, but just as a common listening device).

[@BocahTuaNakal1]

Radio like this makes me appreciate music more unlike streaming services nowadays. It’s great to see Sony still makes one of these.

[@tev866]

I have both of the Sony models mentioned in this video and I am very happy with them. I often use them to listen to baseball games and music when I'm outside in the summer. They're both great to have when you're in an area that doesn't have good cell reception. Definitely a handy thing to have around and I'm glad Sony still makes them!

[@toddwebb6216]

I like the fact that radio broadcasts don't have the time lag that TV does, I love knowing that a touchdown was just made, while everyone watching the boob tube doesn't.

[@waltervargashuacon7445]

@@toddwebb6216 eso es verdad por ejemplo ej el mundial recuerdo que tenía mi radio y la tele y grité con el gol qué pasó en el radio

[@dosgos]

Do you have a preference regarding sound quality, reception, etc?

[@tev866]

@@dosgos Honestly they're made from mostly the same components so they perform similarly. The ICF-P26 uses an analog tuner so it tunes a little more smoothly but they're mostly the same.

[@jungcooks5115]

Vintage techs invoke so much nostalgia and childhood memories I've almost forgotten like how the floppy disks smelled back then, how pleasant the sound Windows 95 computers were making and how simple life was back then that we're happy and content with just a transistor radio while doing house chores.

[@CosmicKangaroo]

I bought one of these at Walmart a couple of ago to have on hand in case of power outages or emergencies. It's an excellent radio and it actually lives on my desk.

[@jamesslick4790]

It's frankly a great little radio, Especially on AM. I "gets" stations that radios I have that cost many multiples of the price!

[@mufeedco]

To keep the radio 📻 in good condition, remove the batteries when you are going to store it for a long time.

[@jamesslick4790]

@@mufeedco True! If one is keeping battery powered devices stored long term, NEVER leave the batteries in them!

@@mufeedco or for these DAB+/HD Radio receivers, the battery should be kept at around 50% if it‘s Li-Po.

[@hexateron]

You know it's a good day when VWestlife makes a video about the exact radio you own

[@jonglass]

The transistors I had as a kid all ran on at 9volt batteries. Nice that this runs on 2 AA batteries. I may have to buy one for emergencies

[@JohnSmith-ki2eq]

I have fond memories of this type of radio. Back in my 20's I lost all my possessions except for a small bag of clothes, a library card and a little radio like this. I was provided with emergency housing, the radio and reading were my only source of entertainment for months.

[@TheOriginalCollectorA1303]

Awesome to see a brand like Sony still selling these new! I’m sure that even with daily usage, it’ll work for a long time. The quality of the reception is also extremely good considering it’s a small, portable unit. The design might make it look like an older unit, but this is actually much nicer than a cheap “modern” radio!

[@johnpettimore5806]

In 2011 my town was wiped out by multiple tornados. I drove two hours away to a large city looking for transistor radios to take back to my neighbors. I went to three different Radio Shacks asking for them and the staff told me that they didn't carry them even though I could see them on the shelves. The staff had no idea what a transistor was even though there are billions of them in modern electronics. One day when things start breaking due to entropy there will be no one that knows what to do.

[@unocolombia]

I've had the ICF-P26 for a couple of years now; it's an excellent radio, haven't even changed its batteries, and still going strong; reception is great, and if you use it with headphones you can't even tell it's a radio :). Really neat piece, sad it's being discontinued. Thanks for the review.

[@WPPCProductions]

Thank you.. I just picked up an Sony ICF-P27 at Walmart around last Christmas to check out the quality .It works great.It was under $25 bucks..

[@tazcatsdad]

I’m a radio collector, and I own a vast array of new and vintage transistor radios made by a variety of companies: well-known brands like Panasonic, Hitachi, General Electric, Zenith, Magnavox, and RCA as well as lesser-known names like Kaito and Xhdata. In among all of these are the two Sony models featured in this video. I think that both of them are the finest current-production basic radios made. Exceptional sound quality, superb build quality, and outstanding ease of use make them the best in their class. Thanks for posting this excellent video!

[@creaturehaired_gacha9563]

do you think you can post a video about you show your radio collection?

[@tazcatsdad]

@@creaturehaired_gacha9563 I would love to, however I’m no longer producing videos for YT. I simply don’t have the time or interest to set up, shoot, and edit a video any more. Plus, not all of my radios are in my home: some are in off-site storage, which would mean I would have to go to those locations to access and obtain them for filming and then bring them back. Thanks for your interest!

[@jpsned]

4:20 WWFM is heard. I did a jazz show on WWFM from the year they started--1982--through 1985. 😀 I grew up in NJ and have fond memories of lying in bed an night, under the covers, listening to my small AM transistor radio. It was truly amazing that when the weather was good, I could pull in stations from the mid-west. And sometimes I could even pick up Mets games when they were playing on the west coast! I know it's probably not brought up in any SONY board room, but I would love to see the return of a simple AM receiver with earphone jack selling for $9.95.

[@frankowalker4662]

It's really responsive and sounds good. When you opened it up I was instantly surprised it was an analog tuner. When you said it was discontinued and being replaced with the 27, I immediately guessed it would be a digital tuner. :(

[@BroonParker]

Is this an ad? Because, if it is, too late. I have that Sony and it travels with me. Wouldn't be without it.

[@I967]

Sony's golden era quality- and design-wise was from about 1965 to about 1996.

[@bazzle592]

I still find them to be a very solid middle-of-the-road (or upper end) choice for a lot of electronics. The PlayStations are well built, their early 2010s Bravia flat screens can still whoop some modern panels, and I'm happily using an Xperia right now. They're maybe not as innovative as they used to be, but they still make good quality stuff.

[@Cobalt985]

@@bazzle592 Bravia's are still great TVs really. Plus their headphones are great in terms of features and build quality. But the true wireless XM3/XM4 earbuds are really the only good ones for sound quality.

[@pyeltd.5457]

@@bazzle592 Sony is mix of Amazing, Mediocre and Horrible build quality. It's a hit or miss. They make so much for so long like Philips and Panasonic.

[@commscan314]

@@Cobalt985 MDR7506

[@bobair2]

I would and do disagree as the radio designs before 1965 and that is for all brands is much more interesting before sheer from black bodied garbage became the norm.

[@timothypatterson1924]

I'm a young man (27) , but I remember growing up, my father owned a transistor radio. Also in the original Spider-Man comics, Peter Parker owned one to listen out for crimes. So when I saw this exact Sony model at Walmart for $22, of course I bought it. I was pleasantly surprised at the tough build quality of the radio itself, and the sound quality, of course is great. My recommendation is to listen to it using your own headphones, because the earbuds provided are rather cheap. I was pretty happy to discover you can listen to this radio with or without headphones, as most MP3 players and pocket radios nowadays can only be used with earbuds. Cheers!

[@galacticboy2009]

I found one of these at a thrift store for $6 and it has served me well. One thing I noticed is that when you plug in headphones, it switches to using the headphone wire as an antenna instead of the built-in aerial. Which can either improve or damage the reception significantly. I plugged in a 30 foot 3.5mm audio cable and then strung it around the basement ceiling and was able to still get pretty good reception, despite being underground.

[@jeffking4176]

Since the DSP-based P27, and the end of the P26, there are now only 2 Analog AM/FM pocket radios left on the market: Tecsun R-218 Kaito KA-230 That’s it now [ both are good radios, quite sensitive and selective]. Good video. My first radio was a 5 transistor radio from Radio Shack, AM only. But, back then, FM was just beginning to come of age, and there was plenty of music on AM. 📻😁

[@hestheMaster]

I use that Sony P26 radio you showed every Saturday I'm out working because I can listen to a particular college FM station which plays old big band music, jazz and then old time radio shows. I did remove the telescoping antenna and soldered in a insulated wire to replace the antenna and it works great.

[@GordonHudson]

I had one of the Hong Kong made AM only radios in the 70s. The problem was that these old radios used small 9v batteries that were expensive and didn't last long. I moved onto bigger radios that took 1.5v C cells. Still expensive to run, but not quite as bad.

[@RM-fu8yb]

Crystal radio was ancient and sounded just fine as a kid. No batteries needed . I still have my Como AM/FM transistor radio from the 70s still works quite well.

[@AL5J_]

I picked up 3 ICF-P26s on clearance at WalMart in 2021 for $17. Keep them for power/internet outages during hurricanes/winter storms and other SHTF situations. I agree reception is fantastic on AM & FM for a battery operated portable ESPECIALLY at night. Long live the analog tuner.

[@daveschmarder-1950]

When I was in middle school, I had an RCA 4 tube AM radio. A single D cell lit the tubes and an Eveready 467 67.5 volt battery for the high voltage required. I was in high school before I had my first transistor radio.

[@pauliedweasel]

And it probably had all those 1.5 volt tubes used in pre-Transistor portable radios. The pre-transistor Zenith Transoceanic shortwave portable suit case radios were always a marvel to use.

[@daveschmarder-1950]

@@pauliedweasel Yes, it used a 1R5 mixer, 1T4 IF amp, 1U4 detector/first amp, 3V4 audio output. About 40 years ago I bought a Zenith Transoceanic radio. It was the military version for troop entertainment.

[@NickAlpha_]

There are people out there who love radio as a company more than tv.

[@derekgoss]

I got my first little transistor radio in Spring of 1983. It was from K-Mart and cost $7 It picked up the local pop station : 930 CFBC and 550 CFNB from an hour away, and at night wowee! It has long since stopped working and just sits on a windowsill as it brings back so many memories. Another great video VW, Keep them coming!

[@danieldaniels7571]

Hearing you scan the AM dial on that radio brought me back to my childhood in a way that straight up gave me goosebumps.

[@jamesk370]

I actually bought a transistor radio last year. I was working out of a temporary location with poor cell service, and my employer frowns upon using their network for streaming. The little radio was my work around, I got to enjoy some music and news while on the job. I am happy I purchased it.

[@Graybeard_]

In 1969 I was eight years old. My parents got me a Radio Shack crystal, transistor electronic project kit. After the switched light and the beep horn project, I built a transistor radio, AM of course. I wriggled the earbud into my ear and started twisting the receiver dial. I landed on Dr. Donald D. Rose radio hour out of San Francisco. I was mesmerized. A few days later I discovered Wolfman Jack. I couldn't believe I could listen to his show from west of Sacramento. He was in L.A., and before he was on affiliated stations, so my little crystal radio was catching an L.A. radio station 400 miles away. These two experiences catapulted me into life. AM radio! The Bomb!

[@turtle_soda]

I have the silver version of this from the 90’s. I’m surprised the design has changed so little. Got it for 3 bucks at a flea market a few years back. I use it as a backup music device whenever my phone dies

[@owenmeyer1305]

If your model has been discontinued by Sony it might we worth a lot. I've seen older models selling at very high prices on Amazon

[@bradtheviewer]

I used to have a silver one, my grandmother gave it to me, it was very nice

[@inverlock]

In south louisiana battery radios are considered basic safety equipment due to the hurricanes, so I got to grow up listening to music on these things despite being relatively young

[@mgedr]

Hearing that the BBC was preparing scripts for the predicted rolling electricity blackouts of this winter, I realised I had no battery radio to hear the news in such an eventuality. I got a Roberts battery radio. But I could have saved my money: we have had no blackouts. Anyway, I have a nice small portable radio now.

[@EgoChip]

It's better to be prepared.

[@video99couk]

They are firing up the old coal power stations for use tomorrow. We had our own local power outage last week when a slug crawled into a mains plug in the garage and tripped out a house RCD.

[@DanielGlover]

That happening, was mentioned some time ago. Bought a gas bottle for the little camping stove, not a thing on a pipe. Not that posh, really small portable thing, Do tinned food, meat, veg and potatoes in 1 saucepan. Never open the fridge or freezer. They stay cold if left alone. Would think now if doing would have. Threat still there?.

[@fungo6631]

You could've bought some old Nokia C3 or Alcatel OneTouch 2045 dumb phones. They have great FM tuners and the battery will last pretty long too. They also have microSD slots.

[@stepheng8779]

Did you get tin foil?

[@ChrisSmith-gt6lg]

I have always been obsessed with pocket radios, walkmans and headphones. I hide them so my wife doesn't get mad. 😊 I have both the analog and the digital tuner versions of that one. It's fun to compare them. Your videos are awesome. I have been a fan of yours for years.

[@tedbell4416]

I'm the same way radios and clocks

[@raymondmartin6737]

Very interesting. I had an old sony portable AM pocket radio in 1960 as far as I can still remember. I looked now on Amazon and the p26 you showed is about $50.00 in a bundle with headphones and rechargeable batteries 🔋. The P27 by itself is cheaper at around $29.00.

[@brandonbebonang8989]

I bought one because of this video. I thought AM wasn't working on my radio but turns out AM radio is being phased out. In my area every radio station uses FM. In other parts of the country AM is still used.

[@Charonupthekuiper]

AM is largely empty here in UK, with one or two talk stations. The BBC still broadcasts on 198kHz long wave that has a huge coverage and features the shipping forecast so it has to go a long way. Probably nearly all vessels have more sophisticated ways receiving weather information, but the radio is a reliable stand by.

[@careydavies1197]

Closing down next year

[@dutchbeef8920]

@@careydavies1197BBC is saying end of 2027. It is likely local broadcasters will continue on AM. I did a band scan at night just from my home the other day and was able to receive many foreign stations.

[@diegomontoya8889]

My Dad, may he rest in peace (November 18, 2021), would smoke his Winston lights in the garage, or sit on the steps of the front porch in milder weather of the Seattle summers. In the garage he had a nail by the garage window, where he would hang his headphones for his transistor radio. It was a compact AM only model,which he purchased at Radio Shack, some time in the mid 90s. It's still there in the garage to this day. He was a die hard Seahawks and Mariners fan and he must have listened to thousands of mariners games over the years on that little radio and when he'd smoke at like 1 or 2 AM on restless nights, he would be listening to Art Bell's, "Midnight in the Desert"... This is a cool video. I live in Yuma, AZ, now, so unfortunately, the radio leaves a lot to be desired out here (Except the wonderful 88.9 FM, KAWC, of course).

[@catgirl_eva]

I picked up one of these a couple of years ago and absolutely love it. The last one I had with a built-in speaker was lost in my move from Kansas to Virginia back in 2000. It too, was a Sony.

[@thelastpersonalive]

I found one of these at a yard sale for a dollar a couple of years ago. I keep it in my kitchen to listen to NPR. Easily one of my favorite yard sale finds.

[@themaritimegirl]

That intro was very creative! Sad to see the P26 is discontinued, but glad to see the P27 still provides a competent option. So far, my Sony Watchman FD-30 is still the best-performing thing close to a transistor radio that I've personally used.

[@fungo6631]

Bruh, good riddance for these Sony IC based radios. I have one of those and it performs like crap on FM and even on AM it suffers from FM interference. A Nokia C3 dumb phone has way better FM performance with headphones. And some Alcatel dumb phone has better DSP assistance with weaker signals and seems to be the only device I have that can receive Radio Capodistria on 103.1 outside one specific hotspot. All hail the mighty DSP!

[@boboboy8189]

@@fungo6631 this radio actually has better battery life than those cheap phone

[@dyl9013]

Hey VWestlife, I jumped a little when I saw the thumbnail. I have this exact Sony radio! I love using it to listen to local radio while cleaning the house. On clear nights I use a wireless loop antenna to listen to far away AM radio. Great radio! Surprisingly robust, and that analogue tuning is superb. Using the loop antenna, I can turn the dial ever so slightly with my fingernail and hear multiple AM stations on the same band. Thanks for the video!

[@ZippletTech]

Thanks for this video. One should ALWAYS have a good radio! I had a Sony very similar to this when I was younger. Now I have a Tecsun multi band radio. Not only is it a fun thing to play with, but it is essential for emergencies.

[@rosswarren436]

I have the P26 and love it. I mainly use it as a communication (news) device when my power goes out. Having local AM and FM stations to keep abreast of power outages, weather reports, and road conditions is a must. And as the day wears on, I can listen to music on it too, to help pass the time. I like that it uses lower cost AA batteries instead of expensive 9V types. Growing up in the 1960s a portable radio picking up far away AM stations at night opened up a world of music to me that our local radio stations weren't playing. That alone was worth the price of the radio. For those of you considering similar use, just make sure to put fresh batteries in at least once a year to keep them from leaking and doing damage to your radio. Supposedly Energizer Max alkaline batteries are less prone to leaking. YMMV.

[@christo930]

Do you remember how they used to sell speakers with a 3.5 mini-jack on them to hook to things like pocket radios? I am pretty sure I remember Radio Shack selling them (IIRC, it was like 8" in a plastic enclosure). They also sold them in the back of magazines. Could you do a video with a larger and better speaker hooked to a transistor radio, preferably one with FM and "show" us how it sounds. Shango or RTPN did a video years ago of an RCA (one of the early ones from the late 50s) transistor radio where the guy who owned it rigged it to a lantern battery because it was uneconomical to keep replacing the smaller batteries it took natively. He probably was also driving a bigger speaker through the headphone jack since it was completely stationary since the radio was only a bit bigger than a lantern battery.

[@scotness]

I am pushing 50 soon and I still love the radio. I fall to sleep at night at night listening to the radio with my headphones. I wish Sony many made an affordable shortwave radio but I will be happy with what I can get.

[@chrisbosley7095]

I had to hit the trigger and purchase an ICF-P26 and found one on that auction website. I didn't realize I needed another true analog radio until I watched this video, thanks! - Edit - I've had the radio now for a couple of weeks and really like it. The AM performance is great and the FM would probably be better if I didn't live near so many local transmitters. It is perfect for listening to the local all news AM station as I doze before going to bed! No drift and sound quality is quite good on AM which is want I wanted - it is a keeper!

[@Mr.T711]

I have a couple 60’s transistor radios and rotary phones on my nightstand. Love these old radios. Also great in an emergency. Thanks for sharing.

[@autoneurotic]

I bought this exact radio for less than 10 dollars a few years ago at Walgreens. I keep it handy every time we have a hurricane warning and am glad to have it.

[@MultiPetercool]

My most recent tech purchase was a Techsun PL-330. This little gem is an excellent AM/FM stereo portable with excellent Shortwave and Middlewave coverage. Uses a commonly available Lipo pack: a canon-style digital camera battery with lots of aftermarket options. It charges via USB. I live near Seattle and often can pick up stations in Idaho on AM at night. On short wave it’s easy to get radio Havana, and radio New Zealand from where I live. Occasionally, I like to do a little camping and go off grid, and nothing satisfies more than having AM/FM and full middlewave an shortwave coverage. It’s fun to try to identify a language you’ve never heard before on shortwave. It’s also fun to listen to radio Pyongyang. 😂

[@stereophonicstuff]

The makeshift paper turned conveyer belt was a nice touch. I've seen this model plenty of times before, but never knew it was actually worth buying. Even when the stock of the ICF-P26 dries out, I wouldn't have any reservations about buying its replacement.

[@deantheodosiou2886]

It's so great to hear someone give props to the past. We really did have a life without cellphones dominating our existence to the nth degree.

[@AudioMobil]

I really must admit that AM sounds amazingly well, much better that what I'm used to over here in Germany. Well, at least back when there were still some AM stations left to listen to.

[@Veso266]

Hey, its not that bad, you still have Radio Romania (855.756.1152.etc), and Radio Oltenia on 1314, and dont forget Radio Channel 292 on 6070khz Not sure at what part of germany you are but you may also get some Dutch LPAMs

[@michaelturner4457]

It's because AM stations in America have more bandwidth than in Europe.

[@fungo6631]

@@Veso266 And there's also some good old RuZZian propaganda on 999 and 1413 AM.

[@Kubko5656]

@@michaelturner4457 well, thats yes and no. Many stations in Europe exceed even the standard American bandwidth.

[@jonpeley]

In Spain the AM signal quality is also very poor.

[@Dec4AllTimeAlways]

Got two P26s for $20 each back in 2018 from the now defunct Fry's. One to give to my mom because she wanted to listen to LA Clippers games at home. She could not a good signal for it for AM 570 or 1150. The one I kept eventually broke down after 2 years. I believe the Duracell alkaline batteries melted from the heat inside my car. The leak left a stain that made the battery compartment get shut. Like it glued it shut that I couldn't slide down to open it. I eventually threw it away in 2020 or perhaps I gave it to Goodwill? Don't remember. But I did get the one from my mom's since she never really used her's except once. It's still in my car. It's actually next to me and I turned it on and it still works. Surprised the batteries didn't melt as it's just been sitting in my car for a few years already unused. I'm not the biggest fan of it because I remember the first one I had eventually degraded with the reception. If I moved the dial just a slight to get a clearer sound, it's either way too loud or way too soft. But I am a fan of the battery life. I used my ICF-P26 for 2 years and never changed the battery for it. I probably had 100+ hours of listening from it. I might start using this second one again. I sometimes forget I even have it! It's good to have a transistor radio, binoculars, and flashlight 🔦 next to a first-aid kit for emergencies. I keep thinking of Gilligan's Island. The transistor radio 📻 was their only way to know of the outside world. Their only form of entertainment.

[@SuperMatthew128]

It is very interesting to hear how good AM radios are in the US. Almost all AM radios that I can pick up have really poor quality, barely suitable for music and with a lot of noise (southern Brazil). It leads me to believe that because the FM spectrum in the US East Coast is extremely busy, they tend to have more stations on AM, and to keep people coming back, they work hard on having good quality sound, which is especially important for music-only radios. It makes me wonder if this Sony radio can pickup AM Stereo too.

[@vwestlife]

No, like I said, it is only mono on both AM and FM.

[@JadoreLulu]

My dad (born in 1946) still has one. He loves that thing. I gave him an iPhone to keep up with the times and I saw him one day using it as a coaster. 🥴

[@Warp2090]

Kinda a bad idea to give him an iphone to keep up with the times

[@andrewmorgan6734]

I bought my grandpa that same radio for his birthday, couple years ago. He still listens to AM stations in the morning, he definitely enjoys more than his old off-brand radio. His off-brand radio did not have headphone jack, shorter antenna, and mono only.

[@brettstover1850]

I use one every time I go camping. 2AA lasts about 48 hours. Mines digital though. It makes it a lot easier to tune in to a station

[@grayfiresoul]

I grabbed a P26 two years ago specifically for its analog tuner and have loved it since. I think I'll pick up another specifically for my camp pack, knowing they're not in production anymore. Thanks for this little showcase.

[@markharwood7573]

I have owned the predecessors of these models. As indicated on the video, the FM reception is outstanding. In fact, I have recommended the Sony to a friend who seemed to have no FM at her house and now she has it. It's another Sony winner.

[@rjonzun5828]

I am glad to see that Sony is still making transistor radios. That was their first major selling product, the TR-63. Disappointed it doesn't utilize their excellent CXA1129N IC chip but radio is in decline so I can understand it probably isn't worth it anymore. The SRF-39, SRF-59, and SRF-S84 all use that chip and sound incredible. Interestingly Sony used smaller capacitors than originally designed in order to save money. You can upgrade the capacitors in these radios to make them sound even better.

[@CdEmm50]

Interesting, I have the SRF59. I got it around 2012 I believe.

[@rjonzun5828]

@@CdEmm50 I've tried to post how to find the old website that shows how to do the capacitor upgrade but KZbin apparently won't allow it.

[@CdEmm50]

@@rjonzun5828 Thank you, I'll probably be able to find it. I'm a electronics hobbyist, Bob.

[@rjonzun5828]

@@CdEmm50 You have to use the wayback machine. The site was called fixup.

[@rickcurtis2983]

Transistor radios use to be works of art! My dad ran a store years ago and when he got in some new chrome covered radios I couldn't wait to pick one out! I enjoyed your video, big like!

[@juanignacioaschura9437]

My grandmother has both the P26 and P36, which is the horizontal version of this radio. The only weak points are the trimmer potentiometers for both tuning and volume, which have a short lifespan and can: - Go out of sync - Be easily overcome by lint and dirt. My brother had to solder new pots. That said, it's serviceable and you may find schematics if you look hard enough. Other than that, I highly recommend these. And the speaker is LOUD.

[@haroldsolomon394]

Rad

[@areaone3813]

Nice. I have a new shortwave radio. We used to listen to all sort of things in the 90s while camping and I have never been without a radio since. Thank you for your report I appreciate it.

[@Lucius4992]

I gave that exact same model as a birthday gift to my father who constantly keeps carrying, dropping and eol-ing portable radios. He already managed to accidentally melt the plastics but it still works perfectly fine after around 4 years of daily use. My choice was because I fell in love with it myself, but this is the first time I see a proper review on it!

[@josepharturi5442]

I had one of the green plastic ones shown in the 70s. More amazing than the fact that they still make transistor radios is the fact that cousin Brucie it still alive! Haven`t heard about him since his CBS FM days.

[@cjsebes]

I recently helped an older friend find a better radio to listen to his AM radio shows. His older pocket-sized radio picked up his station, but it was faint and barely listenable. I really didn't know how he put up with it. I found him a larger portable transistor radio from Greadio that picked up his station so clearly that it sounded like the transmitter was next door. My friend is thrilled with it. Up here in the hills of northern NJ, I'm lucky to get three stations.

[@Kubko5656]

You guys in America still have it fine. Where I live, I catch only 1 AM station during the day, and even that's in a language I cant understand at all. 🤷

[@cjsebes]

@@Kubko5656 in my best Russian accent… “In mother Russia, AM radio listens to YOU.”

[@Kubko5656]

@@cjsebes well, i catch Radio Rossii during night, so i can listen to russian radio :P

[@grayrabbit2211]

I just picked up Sony ICF-306 and Sony ICF-19 radios to replace my 1980s Panasonic that got lost in the shuffle from Hurricane Ian. I didn't know that quality portable radios were still being made but Sony's still doing it. Great tuners and long battery life (400+ hours on the ICF-19) mean these will get you through any emergency.

[@Retroaria]

Thank you, always wonderful content on this channel. The brand name "Sony" has an interesting relationship with the emergence of the first transistor radios. When the Japanese company decided to market its radio in the US it had to choose a name and the choice was "SONY". The TRANSISTOR story itself is amazing, have you seen the PBS documentary (Nova) on the Transistor story? Thanks and greetings from Seoul, Tito.

[@carlcat]

I'll be 77 in about a week. All my life I always loved radios. I started out in the 50's as a preteen with a crystal rocket radio. It had no batteries, electrical cords or speaker, just an alligator clip and one tiny ear phone. It cost me less than 3 bucks. I used to love listening to it before I went to bed and would fall asleep with it on, listeing to Murry the K in New York City. I'm amazing Cousin Brucie is still around. As a self employed artist I would listen to dialog radio in my studio to keep me company. Even now I love to listen to the radio but now it's mostly in the car. This brought me back.

[@princejm448]

Wow, I'm so impressed that Sony continues to manufacture one of these analog transistor radios until today but, most of the modern radios are using some DSP based AM/FM tuners from which are more prone to interference and choppiness while tuning a station. That's why I keep using analog transistor radios forever, nothing changes.

[@moow950]

Everyone should have an AM/FM radio for emergency needs

[@timb7085]

Funny thing - some of your viewers grew up with such transistor radios! (I had several - and had the typical mono earpiece to listen after bedtime). Mine were all powered with a single 9V battery - and were AM only. But - back in the day, there were plenty of decent AM stations. Thanks always for the entertaining and informative videos!

[@lucidbarrier]

I got that Sony handheld from Walmart for about $20 a couple years back. There's only like 2 choices for an FM radio on their display. It's remarkably good for such a small radio. My dad took my Radioshack shortwave radio to listen to oldies on a local station. I actually have a Curtis Mathis boombox that I listen to when I'm in the kitchen or cleaning. I picked it up cheap at Goodwill and fixed the wiring for the speakers. I remember my parents mentioning phono jacks but had forgotten about it until I needed the wiring. We pretty much used RCA in the 80s and never needed the older stuff. I went to Radioshack and actually bought phono cables and cut the ends off and soldered them to the speaker wires. This channel makes me want to open it up and replace the belt for the cassette deck since that has never worked since I bought it.