LISTENING-IN

Gisborne Times, Volume LXV, Issue 10308, 18 January 1927, Page 5

LISTENING-IN

THE POPULARITY OF WIRELESS ALL CLASSES OF COMMUNITY INTERESTED. ‘ (Special to the Times.) AUCKLAND, Jan. 17. There is no question that in Auckland City and suburbs listening-in has come to stay. The experience of local dealers in wireless apparatus during the recent Xmas season shows that a typical hundred owners of radio sets may be taken as a fair cross-section of, the whole population. The people who bought sets, or “makings” thereof, were young and old, employers and wage-earners ot large and small means, male and female. Their purchases ranged from a £6O five-valve set guaranteed to hear Australia, or even California, down to the components of a crystal set costing 5s or 10s. Dealers are inclined.to specialise, some in expensive sets, others in cheaper ones, and others again in “parts,” of which there is bewildering variety. A year ago before the new IYA opened, the demand for crystal sets was very small; to-day it has grown to such a proportion that few dealers can afford to ignore it. The great majority of people are not interested in wireless foY its own-sake, but only for what it can bring them in the way of entertainment. Many of these are content with programmes from the local station, or if not quite content, they, at least, trust that in the natural order- of hings there will be gradual improvement, considering that the annual licence fee of 30s works out at about one penny a day. The entertainment is cheap, to say the, least.