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In 1877, Thomas Edison invented the phonograph, the first sound recording device. A cylinder five inches wide by fifteen inches long, recorded sound onto a sheet of tinfoil. A hand crank was used to turn the cylinder under a recording sound stylus.
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Similar to Edison's phonograph, the gramophone was capable of recording and replaying sound. The gramophone's vinyl record increased the speed and quality of music playback.
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Originally known as the "Nickel-in-the-Slot" machine, the juke box earned over $1000 within the first 6 months of its use. This machine made recordings of the age popular.
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The Victrola contained an internal horn and looked like a fine cabinet in appearance. Originally priced at $100, the victrola was usually seen in the homes of the wealthy. This invention also gave way to other record players and turn tables.
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By 1963, The Phillips Company introduced the compact cassette to the public. It was made out of polyester, and its playback speed was higher than any other device at the time.
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The Phillips Company introduced the compact cassette to the public to be used portably by the Sony Walkman, which was created in 1979.
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The Philips Company introduced the compact disc in 1981. This early form of digital music allowed playback without unwanted surface sound or wear to the recording.
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Finally, in December of 1991 the Faunhofer Institute invented the MPEG Audio Layer III aka, MP3 file after a year of researching how to compress files. The MP3 is a method of compressing an audio file so it's small enough to be downloaded from the internet, which of course was popularized by Apple's ipod.
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The iTunes music store quickly became the primary source of legal digital music. Since its release, iTunes has sold over 25 billion songs.
