

Sometimes the middle pin is supplied bent to form a triangle of leads (as found in TO-18 case transistors and, for example, the ZTX108-L) to match the pinout of the BC108 more exactly. lead 1 (left in diagram) is the collector,.As viewed in the top-right image, going from left to right, the pinout is as follows: the "pinout", uses the same convention used by some - but not all - other TO-92 devices. The assignment of transistor elements (b,c,e) to leads, i.e. The BC548 is supplied in a standard TO-92 3-pin package. Thus the BC548 (or BC546 to 550) is a valid substitute in any circuit designed for the older BC108 (or BC148), which includes many Mullard and Philips published designs. Datasheets for the BC548 give specifications that are identical to, or exceed, those of the BC108, BC148 and BC238 predecessors.

The BC548 is the modern plastic-packaged BC108 the BC548 article at the Radiomuseum website describes the BC548 as a successor to the BC238 and differing from the BC108 in only the shape of the package.

The BC548 is a part of a family of NPN and PNP epitaxial silicon transistors that originated with the metal-cased BC108 family of transistors. The BC548 is low in cost and widely available. It is notably often the first type of bipolar transistor hobbyists encounter and is often featured in designs in hobby electronics magazines where a general-purpose transistor is required. The BC548 is a general-purpose NPN bipolar junction transistor commonly used in European and American electronic equipment.
