40 years of the Walkman

It is the 40th anniversary of the Walkman. It was launched in July 1979. Sony has released an official 40th anniversary video showing all the designs from cassette to compact disc and beyond.
the company history lists changes to design and functions. Initially it was felt it might not sell due to a lack of recording function. In 1982 the first in ear headphones were introduced and in 1984 the first cd player in the range.


Sanderson, Susan & Uzumeri, Mustafa, 1995. "Managing product families: The case of the Sony Walkman,"Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(5), pages 761-782, September.
provides a good overview of the innovation and design process in the company from the launch until the early 1990s.
For a later update on the rise of the iplayer and Apple try this article.
Camelia Cojocaru & Silviu Cojocaru, 2014. "Sony vs. Apple - iPod launching, a case study of leadership and innovation," Manager Journal, Faculty of Business and Administration, University of Bucharest, vol. 20(1), pages 115-125, December.

It explains how by 2004 the Walkman sales had declined. This is said to be due to a lack of cooperative culture between units in Sony.

 The cultural impact of the Walkman

for a good example of a cultural study of the walkman and its impact - try the classic book Doing Cultural Studies by Paul Du Gay. A good review of its content is on the LSE Review of Books blog

Time magazine lists it as one of the most influential gadgets - it also has some interesting facts that in the UK the original proposed name was stowaway

 There are a number of sites offering products and cultural histories run by enthusiasts. These include 

Walkman Central which has images of all the versions with descriptions

CR Fashion Book has 22 iconic images

 The Walkman Archive is maintained by Hugo Rodriguez, it has an interesting section on film appearances of the walkman

it also has reviews. Fascinating image of the original box complete with roller skaters!