As children, we were fascinated with communication. Tin can phones, secret codes, sign language, even tossing paper plane notes in class were part of our everyday activities. We begged our parents for walkie-talkies and other 2-way toys to share messages with our friends and carry out elaborate missions from the treehouse, but as we matured along with technology, communication proves time and time again its ever-evolving importance.
So where did our obsession with 2-way communication start?
Though Robert Hooke's Tin Can Telephone or "Acoustic String Phone" can be dated as far back as 1667, today we're going to cover something a bit more practical that's still used to this day: the Walkie-Talkie.
The walkie-talkie is said to have been invented by Don Hings in 1937. There were many “inventions” of the same product in that time period by different inventors, all of which use various methods that simultaneously served the same purpose. Though it did not go by that name at the time and was not as easily accessible as it is today, the walkie-talkie was and still is serves as a reliable tool for communication.
Originally invented as the field radio for small-time pilots, the walkie-talkie was not truly recognized until World War II occurred in 1939. At that point, it was redeveloped for soldiers to utilize in battle. During this period, the walkie-talkie weighed around five pounds, was about seventeen inches in height, and for the most part, it was made entirely of metal.
This description does not quite fit the walkie-talkie you dreamt of as a kid, but then again at that time they were not marketed as children’s toys.
Over the years, the walkie-talkie has slowly evolved from a portable radio to a practical handheld device. It was not until the 1970’s and 80’s that they became more and more popular in everyday society. Cellular devices in that time became available to the public as well, and have simultaneously improved and become more accessible ever since. Before the cell phone, the "walkie-talkie" changed the dynamic of communication and was the first device to give users the flexibility of mobility.
Galvin Manufacturing, which had made its claim to fame with the invention of the car radio (known, of course, as the Motorola), created two notable innovations in the legacy of the two-way radio, first inventing the self-contained SCR-536 "handie-talkie" in 1940, and then creating an FM-band two-way radio technologies—first showing up in police cars in 1941 and on the battlefield in 1943. (It wasn't self-contained, it should be noted, as its apparatus was 35 pounds and contained in a backpack.)
To infantrymen in WWII, the walkie-talkie was comparable to a football team a quarterback. Before the walkie-talkie, battalions in today's swift moving warfare, often would be like a football team without a signals-calling quarterback because of inadequate or broken down communication lines.
Presently with the walkie-talkie, battalion headquarters can direct units over wide stretches of battlefront the way a quarterback sends his team plunging into action, and in addition the headquarters will know all the time what is developing in each area of operations. The sheer existence of the walkie-talkie in the 1940s likely saved many, many lives, but it's the civilian world where walkie-talkies really had a chance to shine.
Quickly, for example, it became associated with toy uses. In fact, the federal government has had to get involved in protecting the rights of kids to use walkie talkies for that purpose. In 1977, the Federal Communications Commission formally moved the official frequency for unlicensed "toy" walkie talkies from 27 MHz to 49 MHz.
Today the walkie-talkie, radio, 2-way, whatever you prefer to call it, has so many applications. From construction sites, to event production, hunting, hiking, and much more, radios offer seamless communication where cell phones often fail. With its vast evolution since birth, there's no telling what the future holds for the walkie-talkie, but what we can say for sure is it's here to stay!
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