In our last blog post about clock radio history, we talked about the history of the clock radio. In this follow-up post, we’re going to discuss modern clock radios and the future of clock radios. There are all sorts of cool gadgets coming up.
The clock radio changed dramatically in the 1950s. Earlier models were huge, heavy, and typically wooden. In the 1950s nearly all clock radios were sleeker, lighter versions of their ancestors, but they still contained tubes. The technology limited the design. This is the opposite of the problem we have today. What limits the size of our gadgets and gizmos is not the technology, but our human fingers.
It was difficult to figure out the first clock radio to leave tubes and use microprocessors. A search of the US Patent office revealed a gem. In 1970, three engineers from GE applied for a digital alarm clock patent.
Before we go any further, we need to explain the difference between digital and analog. Many people think that the designation of a “digital clock” versus an “analog clock” is rooted in how the clock functions. Is it gears or is it circuit boards? That’s not the case. The difference is in the display. An analog clock uses hands and a digital clock uses numbers to indicate the time. This is why some pre-microchip clocks are called digital. The old clocks that use rotating plastic cards with painted numbers are, technically speaking, digital.
In this 1970 patent application (it was approved and given the patent number 3,664,116), they stated their objectives as wanting to provide an alarm clock with a digital display that can be available for consumer use. They do mention that there are other digital display alarm clocks, but they have “found limited use”. We can’t say this GE patent is the first digital alarm clock radio, but we’re going to say that it’s the first digital alarm clock radio for consumer use that we were able to find.
In 1979, GE released a clock radio that was hailed as a “remarkable clock radio that makes full use of the best in microprocessor technology”. This article in a 1980 issue of The Southeast Missourian paper is the oldest reference to a clock radio using microprocessor technology that we were able to find. The Great Awakening clock radio by GE features three wake up settings, uses a keyboard for user input instead of dials, up to six radio stations can be stored in the memory, and had an LED display. This clock was given five stars in the December 1979 issue of Popular Mechanics. It was originally going to sell for just over $100, but we found sale prices listing it from $69 to $89. We can only wonder if the 1970 patent lead to the 1979 clock.
The Great Awakening may have been considered the biggest consumer success that came out of GE’s Electronic Application’s Center (EAC), but it wasn’t the first LED clock radio. In 1975, Maxwell Home Furnishings sold an electronic clock radio with “$2,000 worth of technology” for $70. The “Full Feature Electronic AM-FM Clock Radio” had a “unique 24 hour brain displayed by LED (light emitting diode) computer logic time that’s completely silent”. We couldn’t figure out what “computer logic time” was or make much sense of that sentence, so we just quoted them. If you figure it out, please explain it in the comments.
That’s enough about history. What about clock radios of today?
Clock radios are a dime a dozen now. You can get docking stations for your iPod that operate as clock radios. We’re not going to bore you to death talking about what you can find at WalMart, but we will talk about the most expensive clock radio in the world and the smallest. If you Google that phrase you’ll be told the most expensive clock radio in the world is a Sharper Image clock radio.
They are mistaken.
The most expensive clock radio we’ve been able to find is part of the Bose Wave system. The Bose Music System SoundLink sells for roughly $600.00. It contains a CD player, alarm clock, AM-FM radio and a thing called the SoundLink adapter. This adapter connects electronic devices via a wireless USB connection that allows you to play music on the Bose system that is stored on another device.
The smallest clock radio in the world might be the one that is housed inside a cell phone. The Orange U9 Mirror Mini SZR656 is about the size of a matchbox. It contains a FM radio, clock, alarm setting, and all of the other features of a typical cell phone minus a QWERTY keyboard.
The clock radio of tomorrow isn’t going to be focusing on getting smaller. It’s going to be focusing on utility. The Sony ICF-C717PJ will project the time on a wall or a ceiling, wake you with a buzzer or a radio, and can receive input from a mobile music device.
That’s cool and handy, but not very futuristic.
How about a clock imbedded into your sheets? Is that cool enough for you? Florian Scharfer has taken technology used in artificial muscles and designed a set of sheets that is also a radio alarm clock. When these special fibers experience the tingle of electricity, they raise up a bit. Basically, the sheets are the alarm clock and the numbers and controls will feel like embossing. It’s only in the design phase right now, but we can’t wait!
Stocco has created a touch screen bathroom mirror that houses the controls for a clock, radio, barometer, and an MP3 player. Technically speaking the mirror isn’t a clock radio. It only holds the control interface, but it’s futuristic enough and cool enough to include here.
Finally, we would like to humbly remind you that OnlineClock.net invented the world’s first web-browser based clock radio back in 2008. We then began creating press releases for our clock radio in late 2008 and early 2009.
We hope that all of you reading this will try using our internet clock radio, because it’s a whole lot of fun. We offer about a dozen different genres of talk and music stations that you can select from, and in total they offer literally hundreds of different free radio stations that you can listen to online…as well as the useful alarm clock function that you’re hopefully already familiar with from our main alarm clock. All that you need in order to listen to the free streaming radio stations is the free version of the Real Player browser plugin, which can be downloaded in a jiffy from the Real.com website.
From 25lbs wooden consoles to sheets and mirrors and even an online version, clock radios have come a long way.
A tech-hungry consumer never has to be without a clock radio in modern times…They’re online, they’re in our pockets, on our nightstands, and now even in our web browsers.
For those of you about to clock radio, we salute you! 