Hitachi Black and White Television

Televisions nowadays are all in the form of LCD, LED and even 3d. In this post, I will feature one of the black and white television used in the in the 1960s to 1970s. I chanced upon this beautiful working set at a shop one day, and decided to buy it to add to my collection.

Television History
1880s to 1899	Period of Dreams, Concepts and Initial Discoveries
1900	The word "Television" is first used
1922 to 1927	Early Experiments with a MECHANICAL scanning disc system. TV Picture is neon orange and very small.
1928 to 1934	First Mechanical TV Sets sold to public -- At the peak, 42 US stations were in operation using the Jenkins system. However, picture quality is lacking. Not suitable for commercial use. Electronic TV offers greater promise.
1926 to 1935	Early Experiments with All-Electronic Cathode Ray Television (the basic system we have today)
1935 to 1941	Electronic (Experimental) TV begins broadcasting in Germany, England, Italy, France, USA, Holland, etc.
Early 1940s	Work begins on CBS Mechanical Color Television
1-Jul-41	Electronic (Commercial) Black & White Television begins broadcasting in United States
1942 to 1945	World War-II halts all TV sales and most all public broadcasting.
Late 1946	First American Post War TV set is RCA 630-TS (Less than 7,000 TV sets in USA, pre WW-II)
25-Jun-51	First Mechanical Color Television Set Placed on Market (CBS-Columbia) at $499.95.
20-Oct-51	Mechanical CBS Color TV Broadcasting ends forever
May-54	First All-Electronic Color Television Set is RCA CT-100, selling at $1,000
1987	Japanese demonstrate ANALOG high-definition TV system (called MUSE)
1990	General Instrument's Video Cipher division announces DIGITAL Hi-Definition System
1995	Congress Passes the Telecommunications Act of 1995, replacing the old 1934 laws
Late 1990s	Internet, World-Wide-Web explodes onto the scene -- ushering in new global communications for the 21st century!

Gramaphone/Phonograph

Also in my collection, there is a Gramaphone sitting on my bedside table. This is actually a "Frankenstein" set assembled by me with parts from different Gramaphones. The gold coloured horn is actually a modern remake as the original horn was damaged beyond repair. The base however, is an original vintage item, which is estimated at about 50-60 years old.

The phonograph, record player, or gramophone is a device that was most commonly used from the late 1870s through the 1980s for playing sound recordings.

Usage of these terms is not uniform across the English-speaking world (see below). In more modern usage, this device is often called a turntable, record player, or record changer. When used in conjunction with a mixer as part of a DJ set up, they are often called decks.

The term phonograph ("sound writer") is derived from the Greek words φωνή (meaning "sound" or "voice" and transliterated as phonē) and γραφή (meaning "writing" and transliterated as graphē). Similar related terms gramophone and graphophone have similar root meanings. The coinage, particularly the use of the -graph root, may have been influenced by the then-existing words phonographic and phonography, which referred to a system of phonetic shorthand; in 1852 The New York Times carried an advertisement for "Professor Webster's phonographic class", and in 1859 the New York State Teachers' Association tabled a motion to "employ a phonographic recorder" to record its meetings.

Singapore's Vintage Coin Phone

Many of us (Singaporeans) will recognise this orange phone box. I recall, as a kid, I would dig my coin pouch for a 10 cent coin to call my mummy after school and let her know that I am taking the public bus home. Walking past my primary school the other day, I saw a primary school kid call his mum using his Iphone, and then i realised, times have changed.

For all the good old memories:

1975 National Panasonic Portable Radio

In my collection, I also have a portable radio made by National and Panasonic. This 35 year old radio is still in working condition which shows the high standards of QC and product development in the past.

Vintage KDK Fan

Apart from collecting old banknotes, I have also developed an interest in collecting vintage items such as old clocks, radio sets, televisions, fans etc. I chanced upon this vintage KDK fan which was in a very bad condition during the weekend and after buying it, I restored it by cleaning it and giving it a protective layer of paint to prevent further corrosion.

Kawakita Denki Kigyosha (Japanese for "Kawakita Electric Company"; commonly known as KDK), is the brand name used by Matsushita Ecology Systems Co., Ltd., a separate company of the Panasonic Corporation (formerly the Matsushita Electric Industrial Group), to manufacture the group's ventilating products. Before becoming part of Matsushita Electric, KDK was a separate company not affiliated with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. KDK was registered as a trademark in 1912 but originated in 1909 as Nippon Electric Industry Co. Ltd.

KDK primarily manufactures electric fans, although the company also manufactures ceiling fans, ventilating fans, range hoods, air doors (air curtains), hand dryers, dehumidifiers, and subterranean air blowers, under the Panasonic brand.

Singapore Uncirculated Old Coin Sets

Besides proof sets for collectors, Singapore Mint have also produced Uncirculated Coin Sets (different from Proof sets) for sale to the public. These coins are normal coins that you can obtain from the bank, but are not circulated. Before these coins had the chance to be issued out, they were packed in sets for sale by the Singapore Mint, often at a small premium. For the proof coins, they are uncirculated coins which are specially polished to a shine. Thus, under some careful comparison, one can discern a proof set from an uncirculated set.

However, for collectors who just want a normal set of nice looking coins at a low price, they can consider buying these Uncirculated Coin Sets. The coins are brand new, and sets are as affordable as 8-10 dollars per set.