Introduced in Brazil in 1972, colour TV combined science, engineering and art, transforming how the world saw information and entertainment.
Colour television marked one of the greatest technological and cultural revolutions of the 20th century. Its arrival not only improved the audiovisual experience but redefined the very concept of mass communication. What had been broadcast in shades of grey now vibrated in colour, shaping advertising, journalism and entertainment. The invention combined principles of physics, electronic engineering and human visual perception, opening a new chapter in the history of media.
The development of colour television began in the 1920s, when engineers such as John Logie Baird and Vladimir Zworykin experimented with mechanical and electronic image-scanning systems. But the decisive leap came in the laboratories of RCA (Radio Corporation of America) in 1950 in the United States, with the emergence of the NTSC (National Television System Committee) standard. This system used three signals — red (R), green (G) and blue (B) — encoded into a single composite video wave, compatible with existing black-and-white sets.
The optical principle is based on the additive combination of the primary colours. Each luminous pixel of the picture tube displayed a mix of these colours, producing millions of perceptible tones. The synchronisation between the video signal, the electronic scan and the coloured phosphor on the screen was a feat of technological precision. Colour television was, in essence, the first mass application of real-time image engineering.
The cathode-ray tube (CRT) was the heart of colour TV for more than four decades. Inside a vacuum glass bulb, three electron guns — one for each primary colour — fired high-speed electron beams at a phosphor layer on the screen. Metal shadow masks ensured each beam hit only its corresponding group of dots (or triad), forming the colour image line by line.
Vertical and horizontal synchronisation coordinated a full scan of the screen 60 times per second, ensuring visual stability. The magnetic-deflection circuit controlled the movement of the beams, while the video signal modulated their intensity. The result was a continuous, precise and bright image — a combination of applied physics, special materials and high-precision analogue electronics.
In Brazil, the official debut of colour television took place on 19 February 1972, during the broadcast of the Grape Festival in Caxias do Sul (RS). The country adopted the PAL-M system, a variation developed in Germany and adapted by Philips and Telefunken. This standard combined the colour stability of European PAL with the 60 Hz frequency of the American NTSC system, delivering excellent picture quality for Brazilian electrical conditions.
TV Globo and TV Bandeirantes were pioneers of the transition, investing in cameras, transmitters and colour studios. From 1974, the national production of colour televisions grew rapidly, boosting the Brazilian electronics industry. Brands such as Philco, Gradiente, CCE and Semp Toshiba consolidated the domestic market and stimulated technology consumption.
The arrival of colour TV transformed social behaviour and how people perceived the world. Variety shows, soap operas, sport and news gained an unprecedented aesthetic dimension. Football, in particular, became a visual spectacle — the green of the pitches and the colours of the flags intensified the emotion. Advertising also reinvented itself, exploring the psychology of colour to sell products and ideas.
In the 1980s, colour television established itself as the centre of the Brazilian home. “Watching TV” became a family ritual, and tube sets dominated living rooms for decades. Colour stopped being a luxury and became the standard, shaping the visual language of an entire generation.
Behind the magic of the images lay a complex electronic system. Colour televisions contained high-voltage circuits (25 kV), line transformers, power transistors and dozens of manually adjusted capacitors and resistors. Convergence adjustment — which aligned the three colour beams — was carried out with optical instruments and technical expertise. Repair workshops and electronics courses flourished across the country, training generations of specialist technicians.
Repairing CRT televisions was an exercise in precision and safety. Besides the electrical risk, the tube needed calibration and the periodic replacement of valves and transistors. This professional ecosystem sustained the technical-service industry for more than 40 years.
In the 1990s and 2000s, the arrival of LCD and plasma monitors began the decline of the CRT tube. Limited resolution and high energy consumption made the technology obsolete against flat panels. In 2007, most tube factories in Brazil and worldwide ceased operations. However, the digital transition brought new environmental challenges: millions of old televisions were discarded without proper treatment.
CRT tubes contain lead, phosphor, copper and special glass — recyclable materials, but hazardous if poorly managed. Each 29-inch tube can contain up to 3 kg of leaded glass. When discarded incorrectly, these components release toxic substances into soil and water. Safe recycling requires manual dismantling and controlled smelting, carried out at only a few specialist centres.
Television recycling initiatives in Brazil have grown since 2014, with the implementation of the National Solid Waste Policy (PNRS). Specialist companies and cooperatives dismantle old sets, separating plastics, metals and glass. The CRT tube, given its complex make-up, requires specific processes: cutting the bulb, extracting the phosphor and melting the glass in furnaces at 1,100 °C. The treated glass can be reused in ceramics or asphalt, and the recovered metals are reintroduced into the production chain.
The Ecobraz Virtual Electronics Museum values this sustainable cycle, promoting the restoration of old televisions and showing the environmental impact of technological obsolescence. Preserving emblematic sets such as the Philco Safari and the Telefunken PAL-M reinforces the importance of educating people about conscious disposal and the circular economy.
Colour TV was not just a technical innovation — it was a mirror of society. It influenced fashion, behaviour, politics and national identity. Historic broadcasts such as the 1970 World Cup, the Diretas Já movement and Halley's Comet in 1986 were followed in vivid colour by millions of Brazilians. The image stopped being mere information: it became emotion, belonging and collective record.
Even in the digital age, the fascination with the analogue aesthetic of colour TV endures. Visual artists and designers revive the effect of vibrant colours and the visual noise of CRT images as a nostalgic language and a critique of the perfection of modern screens.
Colour television symbolises the meeting of science and emotion. Its legacy goes beyond entertainment — it is a story of innovation, engineering and social transformation. From the first phosphor tube to 4K streaming, the principle remains the same: translating light into human experience. Preserving the memory of colour TV is preserving an essential part of the technological and cultural evolution of Brazil and the world.
If your company needs to give old televisions or CRT monitors a documented destination in Brazil, Ecobraz handles TV and monitor disposal.