VEF Spidola was the first mass-produced transistor radio with short wave band in the Soviet Union (tube short wave receivers were produced for many years before). It was manufactured by the VEF factory in Riga, Latvia, since 1962. A small series under the name "Spidola" (Спидола ПМП-60 ) had been manufactured since 1960. It was named after the fictional witch Spīdola from the Latvian epic poem. The word "spidola" was a genericised trademark for "transistor radio" for a long time in Russian (other synonyms included "transistor"). In many cases, the Spidola was used to listen to Western stations, such as the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, BBC, and Deutsche Welle. The criminal prosecution of at least one Soviet dissident involved confiscation of the Spidola as an "instrument of crime," but without specifying the "crime" committed with the confiscated Spidola.

Specifications

First, "Spidola" was a ten-transistor, seven-band superheterodyne. Some versions were eight-band.

Interesting facts

In Chukchi, the word spidola is generic for any portable transistor radio. There have been cases where, in criminal cases against Soviet dissidents, Spidolas have been confiscated as instruments of crime because they could be used to listen to Voice of America broadcasts (the good selectivity of the jamming stations meant that they had less impact).