Segment Reporting (Schedule Of Segment Reporting Information) (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended				9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012		Sep. 30, 2011		Sep. 30, 2012		Sep. 30, 2011
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Net sales and operating revenues	$ 1,000.2		$ 1,031.8		$ 2,961.7		$ 2,991.1
Operating (loss) income	(58.8)		10.6		(78.2)		124.6
Interest income	0.5		1.4		1.3		2.2
Interest expense	(13.2)		(12.6)		(39.2)		(33.2)
Other loss	(0.6)				(0.6)		(4.1)
(Loss) income from continuing operations before income taxes	(72.1)		(0.6)		(116.7)		89.5
Franchise fee revenue	3.0				3.0
Goodwill impairment charge	3.0				3.0
Charge to earnings due to termination of contract			23.4				23.4
Net loss on the closing of Chinese manufacturing plant			0.8				11.0
Severance costs related to departure of CEO and headcount reductions	8.5				8.5
U.S. RadioShack Company-Operated Stores [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Net sales and operating revenues	814.4		846.3		2,420.4		2,539.3
Operating (loss) income	62.1	[1],[2]	95.6	[1],[2]	225.4	[1],[2]	384.7	[1],[2]
Other [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Net sales and operating revenues	185.8	[3]	185.5	[3]	541.3	[3]	451.8	[3]
Operating (loss) income	(15.4)	[3],[4],[5]	0.9	[3],[4],[5]	(13.9)	[3],[4],[5]	(3.6)	[3],[4],[5]
Operating Segments Subtotal [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating (loss) income	46.7		96.5		211.5		381.1
Unallocated [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating (loss) income	(105.5)	[6],[7],[8]	(85.9)	[6],[7],[8]	(289.7)	[6],[7],[8]	(256.5)	[6],[7],[8]
Increase in unallocated category of operating loss	19.6				33.2
Target Mobile Centers [Member]
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Operating (loss) income	25.4		7.3		38.2		14.1
Long-lived assets impairment charge	$ 11.7				$ 11.7

[1] Includes a goodwill impairment charge of $3.0 million for both the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012.

[2] Includes a charge to earnings of $23.4 million for both the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2011, related to a payment to T-Mobile in conjunction with our transition from offering T-Mobile wireless handsets to offering Verizon wireless handsets.

[3] Includes $3.0 million of franchise fee revenue for both the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012, related to the opening of our first franchised stores in Southeast Asia.

[4] Includes an operating loss of $25.4 million (including a long-lived assets impairment charge of $11.7 million) and $38.2 million (including a long-lived assets impairment charge of $11.7 million) for our Target Mobile centers for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012, compared with $7.3 million and $14.1 million for the same periods last year.

[5] Includes a net loss on the closing of our Chinese manufacturing plant of $0.8 million and $11.0 million for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2011, respectively.

[6] The unallocated category included in operating income relates to our overhead and corporate expenses that are not allocated to our operating segments for management reporting purposes. Unallocated costs include corporate departmental expenses such as labor and benefits, advertising, insurance, distribution, and information technology costs, plus certain unusual or infrequent gains or losses.

[7] Includes severance costs of $8.5 million for both the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012, related to the departure of our CEO and headcount reductions.

[8] The operating loss for our unallocated category increased by $19.6 million and $33.2 million for the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2012, respectively. These increases were primarily due to decreased intercompany profits earned by our distribution operations due to the mix of products distributed.