Walkman didn't last, but will be remembered

There have been few gadgets in the past that have captured hearts quite like the original Walkman did. The original Walkman was something truly new, not something that you come by quite often, it was one of those products that made people go: Wow, what the f*ck is this? But its completely awesome! No one even knew about or contemplated the existence of portable music, and for a product to be released that did something people didn't even know existed, well that reaction should have been expected.

Since the Walkman's launch it has sold 220 million units globally, consequentially, changing the lives of some 200 million people around the world allowing them to listen to music, on the go. 

Of course, nothing lasts forever, and a couple of weeks ago Sony quietly announced the cease of production of the cassette Walkman in its home country, Japan. Despite the Walkman's recent shortcomings, it'll always be remembered as one of the greatest engineering feats of all time and one that literally took music to a new level opening up new market potentials for the music industry, and thus forming the basis of the creation of the Apple iPod. 

The Walkman name still lives in MP3 players and some Sony Ericsson music mobiles, and somewhere inside the Portable Audio department at Sony, and in the hearts of all Walkman fans alike, the Walkman will be back some day, stronger than ever. 

TheSonyPony