Both play recorded sound, and the difference is the format each was built for. Edison's phonograph used cylinders; Berliner's gramophone used flat discs. Discs won, and the words then diverged by country — Americans kept phonograph as the general term, Britons kept gramophone.
The core difference
- phonograph — Edison, 1877. Recorded onto a rotating cylinder.
- gramophone — Berliner, 1887. Played a flat disc.
Why discs beat cylinders
Cylinders had genuinely better sound quality at first, because the groove moves past the stylus at a constant speed along the whole recording. On a disc the outer edge travels faster than the inner, so quality falls off towards the centre.
Discs won anyway, for reasons of manufacturing and handling:
- They could be stamped from a master in large numbers; cylinders were far harder to duplicate.
- They stacked flat and stored easily.
- They could be pressed on both sides.
This is a standard case of a format winning on logistics rather than on quality.
How the words split by country
Gramophone was a trademark, which made American writers reach for phonograph as the generic term. In Britain the trademark lapsed into general use and gramophone became the ordinary word — hence the Gramophone Awards and the magazine of that name.
Record player later replaced both in everyday speech, and turntable is now the usual term where the device is treated as equipment.
The related machines
- Graphophone — a rival cylinder machine from Bell and Tainter, using wax rather than tinfoil.
- Victrola — a Victor brand of gramophone with the horn concealed inside the cabinet, which is why the visible horn disappeared.
- Jukebox — a coin-operated player. The origin of juke is likely Gullah, meaning disorderly or rowdy.
Where the names come from
Both are Greek compounds, and the two halves are simply reversed. Phonograph is phone (sound) plus graph (writing) — sound-writing. Gramophone is gramma (letter, something written) plus phone — writing-sound. Berliner appears to have inverted Edison's name deliberately to distinguish his machine.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a phonograph and a gramophone?
Format. Edison's phonograph recorded on cylinders; Berliner's gramophone played flat discs. Discs won, and the words then split by country.
Why did discs replace cylinders?
Manufacturing and handling. Discs could be stamped from a master in quantity, stacked flat and pressed on both sides — despite cylinders having better sound at first.
Why do Americans say phonograph and Britons gramophone?
Gramophone was a trademark, so American writers used phonograph as the generic term. In Britain the trademark passed into general use.