SONY make.believe

1981:  More than 700 million people watched a wedding,  people traded radio for watching music videos on TV and the first space shuttle took flight. To keep up with this new generation of technology and pop culture, you could snag a Sony MAVICA camera, the first still video camera.

Headlined “Pictures without Film” by Amateur Photographer in 1981 “  The MAVICA digital camera, was considered a large breakthrough in photographic technology.

The MAVICA (Magnetic Video Camera) recorded images on the old school discs similar to the ones you might find in your or your parent’s junk drawer – it was a disc developed by Sony which was only 1.7” . For the first time, this camera took away the need for purchasing and developing film. Simply insert a new disc, and away with you’re snapping. To do this a microchip was behind the camera’s viewing reflex mirror but in front of the disc. The chip converted the light into an electronic signal which was then recorded as an image onto the disc.

Three lenses were offered with the camera: A 25mm f/2, a 50mm f/1.4 and a 16-64mm f/1.4 zoom lens.

It’s fascinating to think now the space shuttle is soon to be retired. Not to mention going from the MAVICA camera to the TX7 that captures panoramic photos and full HD video. So have fun with all this improved technology because it could make your weekend better. Weekend you say? That’s right. It’s Friday and a Flashback Friday to boot.

1971: You could invest your paycheck into the newly invented NASDAQ, finally vote at age 18 and record the audio details of your Saturday night parties with the Sony TC-66 Portable Cassette-Corder. With a built-in microphone and option of plug-in or battery power, this portable puppy was all you needed to document your day (or document and decide to erase…I don’t judge).

I was particularly inspired by its 1971 commercial featuring a party table like it was 1999. If my birthdays had a spread like that every year, I don’t think I’d mind so much growing older. 

So as your tuck your bloggies into your pocket as you head out the door this weekend, appreciate the TC-66 and those who gallantly recorded before you. Why? Because it’s Flashback Friday and perhaps some thirty years from now you might just see your gadget here.

960’s: Smiling faces plastered merchandise; skateboarders gained popularly by skating in empty California pools, and you could give the gift of the world’s first fully transistorized television to a loved one – the Sony 8-301 W TV.

Ads read “Built like a Space Age rocket” because at the time 1960s rockets used transistors to resist shock, hold large amounts of weight and last a long time.This portable pal weighed a mere 13+ pounds which made this transistor powered TV easy to move from one room to another. Now there were other portable sets out there at the time but Sony’s was the only set to use a (at the time) standard A/C 12v auto/boat battery. Didn’t pick one up at your local store? That’s okay you can just bring along your special alkaline battery pack accessory. It was leak proof too! Wow.

Okay so on our Flashback Fridays it’s always a blast to think about how “light” and “easy” these portable devices were to carry around. Especially now when somenotebooks weigh under 2 pounds. There were some interesting facts about this TV which made it pretty cool for it’s time. First, it introduced the signature style of a central Sony logo. You can see how it’s displayed here and now carried through onBravia TVs today. One you read how many transistors it had, you’ll fully appreciate the name.

The Sony 8-301 was said to have 23 silicon and germanium transistors, 15 diodes and 2 high-voltage diodes (a diode allows an electric current flow in one direction and prevents it from flowing in the opposite direction)

So as you now cozy up to your 40+ inch TVs and turn on your recorded shows that you activated from your mobile phone, think back to the “space age” of the 1960’s and wonder what “space age” lies ahead. Because you have time. It’s Friday, a Flashback Friday and you have the whole weekend ahead of you.

November 25th, 1966. You could buy a pen set for about $12, for the first time disposable diapers were purchased to fill stockings, and if you happened to live in Philadelphia, you just might have heard a funny phrase called “Black Friday” in reference to the electric first day of the holiday shopping season.

More than 40 years later we’ve got Black Friday sales, t-shirts, TV episodes and now even “Cyber Monday”. Being Sony Style and having a hand in these special sales, it’s only fitting to make today about sharing what I found on how this term came to life.  

Now the term “Black Friday” has been used since the 1800′s in reference to economical times  (also in accounting, being in “the black” indicates a profit) but only in the last 40 years or so has this term been redefined around the holidays. Some believe that this is how Black Friday came to be associated with shopping as retailers were hoping that the day after Thanksgiving would get them into “the black” on the books.

There are other theories that the first public reference of this shopping day term came from the Philadelphia Police Department in the 1960′s in reference to the crowds and traffic jams created the day after Thanksgiving from eager shoppers. In the 1975 this term received national recognition when it made it’s way into a New York Times article.

Now what I was able to find that was somewhat consistent was that the term Black Friday really didn’t become popular until the 21st century (perhaps brought on by the internet). I can’t seem to buy that (no pun intended) since I remember this term at a much younger age. Bottom line is that no one person truly invented the term. If you have any information on when “Black Friday” started or a memory of your first time hearing it, pop in and comment on this article. I’d love to know what you know.

So as you search for deals, brave the malls and push those carts through crowds, remember the colorful spirits of all of us surrounding this holiday. Why? Because it’s not just any Black Friday, it’s a Flashback Friday.