Walkie talkie two way radios have been around since Motorola built a large, cumbersome hand-held portable two-way radio for US soldiers to use during World War II.
The original military walkie talkie was a breakthrough for its day, because it meant that any soldier could pick it up and use it, and unlike other military radios, this one could be carried easily. The batteries were built-in, and the telescopic antenna could easily be collapsed for transport. So it was very quick to get the radio set going, and it could be operated just about anywhere – even while a soldier was walking. And that’s where the nickname ‘walkie talkie’ came into being.
That first handheld US Army walkie talkie had only one channel, and despite its chunky size and low power transmission strength, it was powered by valves – as all radio equipment was back in those days. The transistor had already been discovered back then but wouldn’t go into production for several more years.
By the 1960s transistors were becoming commonplace and simple silicon chips were coming into use as well. This was a perfect time to introduce walkie talkie CB radios to the American public. These low-powered CB radios were licensed by the FCC as Part-15 radio appliances.
These 27 MHz walkie talkie two way radios were limited to a few hundred milliwatts of power, and by law they could only have a small antenna. This meant they could only be used over short distances, but they proved to be very popular nonetheless.
For the first time, these small cheap 27 Mhz handheld CB radio transceivers could be carried by campers, hunters, fishermen and other sportsmen and hobbyists.
Soon they would be replaced by VHF and even UHF two-way radios, which also worked mostly line-of-sight but had an FM signal for better sound clarity. FM became the normal mode for business radios and for police and public service band radios in mobile, base and handheld walkie talkies as well.
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