JAPANESE electronics giant Sony has closed a prestigious chapter in technological history, as it recently finished production of its groundbreaking Walkman. It is now likely to be stored into museums as precious exhibits.
Sony has confirmed that the last models of the Walkman in Japan were shipped out in April this year, and no more will made. To meet the required orders from Europe and Asia, the final productions will be made from a factory in China, though this is only thought to be a short-term measure.
The Walkman stepped upto the global scene in 1979, and has been a major success for Sony, with only the PlayStation’s birth in 1995 has come anywhere close to being a major sales figure for the giant. Worldwide, over 200million walkmans have been sold, but as time and technology has gone on, so the Walkman has begun to age. First, it was overtaken by the portable CD player, then the mini-disc player and lastly the MP3/I-Pod generation, which hit the headlines back in 2001.
It may look bulky to many now, but the Walkman was a pioneering piece of electronic kit, at a time when technological advances were far slower than what they are in today’s world. Some ‘vintage’ editions have been sold on for thousands of pounds, and despite lacking the features of today’s music players; the Walkman has made its impact and with it, provided many fans and memories.
It may be out-of-date and soon to be out of production, but the Walkman’s legacy on our technology world will never be forgotten.
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