Kmart Spy Walkie Talkies

Remember those cheap toy walkie talkies? – This little pair of walkie talkies come in a bubble pack with an instruction sheet. Cost $8 a pair in the toy department of K Mart. They need 3 AA batteries each, current draw 20-40 MA, depending on signal strength. Expect about 20 hours continuous use, if turned on all the time. They are fitted with a press to talk switch, an on/off switch, (no… Read more

volume control!) and a little clicky push button for sending Morse code. Claimed range is 30 metres, modulation of voice is not real clear, and maybe a little less than this can be expected if using voice alone , say, in the house. The Morse code function, however can be discerned over 100-200 metres, as a tone, which may have some practical use for various things. There is no squelch, so expect lots of hissing noise when not receiving a strong signal. The operating frequency for this device is 40.8 MHz, as on the tag attached to the side. This requires no licence or registration in Australia for this class of radio transmitter. The circuitry consists of two transistors and an IC (LM386), there is no crystal frequency control, only an LC tuned circuit. The performance may be improved by tuning this closer to the frequency of the other unit. The units have a 35 mm speaker, which also acts as the microphone. This design is a very old recipe, maybe dating back to the 1950s, previous incantations were always crystal controlled transmitters and regenerative receivers. The units are worth much more than the aggregate price of the components if they were purchased separately. These are a great little toy from our childhoods, and something that every kid remembers having, or playing with their cousins who had them. In the mid 70s you could hear lots of locals playing with them on the air on any afternoon. The emergence of internet and mobile phones with their sterile, predictable motions has generally relegated these things to the junk bin, don’t expect these to be on the top of the toy box this time next year, but for a little fun for an hour on a Saturday afternoon, blow the eight bucks and buy 6 batteries. In the absence of an affordable walkie talkie device which is practical and you’d like to buy (maybe the next cheapest is a pair of rechargeable UHF handhelds from Aldi for $29-49, these are a nice toy. Nice for someone to make a $20 pair of single channel handhelds.