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The Most Unusual Walkman Design: The Toshiba Walky
"Make it smaller, at any cost"
In the mid-1980s, Toshiba's industrial designers were apparently tasked with designing a Walkman that would be smaller than everyone else's—in just one dimension, that is. They then came up with the KT-AS10, a/k/a the Walky:
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
The unusual design called for a removable radio tuner unit shaped like the bottom two-thirds of a cassette.
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
With the tuner pulled out, you could then insert a cassette, which protruded out of the top of the unit.
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
So yes, the Walky was technically smaller (shorter) than any of its competitors.
So where do you put the tuner when you're listening to a cassette? Hey man, that's your problem.
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
It's such a weird trade-off, but it's kind of fun to see Japanese designers experimenting like this. It's literally outside-of-the-box thinking.
Image: Cassette Players Walkman Blog
That said, the unit doesn't look fun to use. Here's a demo video shot by someone selling one on eBay, to prove it works:
Enter a caption (optional)
Funny thing: This video is at least partially faked. Watch closely around 1:19, and you'll spot a jump in the video—look at the top of the cassette—yet the music continues uninterrupted. I hope whomever bought it on eBay didn't get screwed.
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Comments
the video isn't faked. the movement of the cassette you call a jump in the video is a result of the tape side / direction change and the electro-mechanical stuff going on in there. It also happens at 1:03 when the direction is changed.
Aiwa (the brand) had the most amazing walkmans then.
Don't forget LP players that are a fraction of the size of the disc, including two here https://www.clutter.com/blog/posts/best-vinyl-record-players/ and the https://rokblok.co