The walkie-talkie was invented in 1937 by a man named Donald Lewes Hings whilst working for a company based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The device's applications and absolute value became apparent after the second world war broke out in Europe in 1939 and helped soldiers to communicate wirelessly and effectively for the first time ever in modern battlefield combat. The initial devices were constructed from metal and first gained real ubiquity later on in the 20th century with home users and enthusiasts alike.
Two-way radios have evidently been around for quite some time but the basic concept has not changed much over the years. The basic two way walkie talkie is a receiver/transmitter device that allows two or more users to communicate without using additional equipment. In fact, it is the basic principle behind cellular phones and walkie talkies as the two need no wires or extensions to connect.
Though created in the mid-20th century, the history of two-way radio communication actually dates back to the year 1890 when it was conceptualised by Alexander Parkes. The invention was intended to be used as a form of telegraphic communications but it was quickly embraced by the military and used by civilians because of the ease of operation and low cost.
With the availability of two-way radios today, and their ease of use, many manufacturers have attempted to create a product to meet all the communication needs of the consumer. However, the history of two-way walkie talkies reveals that there have only been a handful of truly revolutionary products that have impacted the market. In recent years, new technology has allowed for smaller, more affordable walkie talkies with expanded capabilities. As a result, the marketplace is flooded with numerous options that each have something to offer, and, luckily for the general public, many of these options are inexpensive!
In the late 1990s, walkie talkies became increasingly popular with children. All different types of designs were released for kids to play with, whether it was talking to their friends way up high in their garden treehouse, or to their Mums, yelling at them down the radio to tell them dinner was ready - walkie talkies were found to be a convenient and easy to use piece of equipment by all.
With the drastic changes in technology through recent years, however, sales of walkie talkies have declined when we look towards recreational sales, however they are still widely used by companies all over the world. A two-way radio system is one of the cheapest and most simple ways to communicate between staff members, soldiers and many others in a variety of professions to this day.
A great advantage offered by two-way radios is their ease of operation. Unlike some, more niche or newer devices, they are extremely easy to operate, which makes them practical for anyone to use, especially in a professional context. They have no complicated instructions to follow and essentially all one needs to do is set the correct frequency to send and receive signals - then start talking! This ensures that beginners will find the devices easy to operate, but more advanced users can still configure the devices effectively and can even incorporate some customisation to their devices’ functions.
Common usages for walkie talkies appear everywhere, police officers can use them to communicate with colleagues nearby, soldiers can use them to effectively communicate around a wide area in a battlefield, and even bouncers in nightclubs use them - I guess it’s much easier to identify someone in a crowd when you can actually hear each other speak!
Secure radio communication is another problem though. If you’re a soldier in a battlefield, you’ll probably want a piece of equipment that is a little more advanced than a simple walkie talkie. Today, there are many ways to communicate over secure, encrypted radio frequencies that we won’t go too much into detail in as part of this article. Just know that today, two way radio communication is not only viable, but a necessity in many modern scenarios - don’t count walkie talkies out just yet!
Resources:
Licensed Two Way Radios - Postach
Licence Exempt Two Way Radios - Slides
Intrinsically Safe Two Way Radios - Sphero
Atex Two Way Radios - Substack