7/26/2015

AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

WatchTheIncredible70Year
EvolutionOfTheCellPhone
JUSTINMEYERS,WONDERHOWTO
MAY6,2011,10:47AM

Rememberwhatlifewas
likebeforeyouriPhone?
Beforetherewerepalm
sizedsmartphoneswith
seeminglyendlessfeatures,
therewerephoneslike
Motorola'sRAZRthat
peakedwithitsembedded
camera.Beforethat,there
weresimpleflipphones
withtextingcapabilities,
bulkytwopoundGordon
Gekkosevenbriefcase
phones.
Thecompletevisual
historyofthemobile
phone
Mobilephoneshavecomealongwayinthelastseventyyears,sobethankfulyoursfitsin
yourpocket.Maybeonedayitwillevenbeabletobendlikeapieceofthinplastic.Maybe
youwon'tevenhavetotouchit,doingallofyourmultitaskingfromcellularimplants.But
seventyyearsago,you'dbelugginga25pound'portable'phoneonyourback,withvery
limited5milerange.
Andnow,avisualhistorymarkingtheaccomplishmentsofmobilephones,frommilitary
applicationstomobileapps.AlexanderGrahamBellwouldsurelybeproud.
ThispostoriginallyappearedatWonderHowTo.
ViewAs:OnePageSlides

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1938
Notquitewhatyouwould
consideramobilephone,the
SCR194and195werethefirst
portableAMradios,produced
bytheU.S.ArmySignalCorps
EngineeringLaboratoriesin
FortMonmouth,NJ.
Consideredthefirst"walkie
talkie,"thesedevicesweighed
roughly25poundsandhada5
milerange.Theywerewidely
usedforinfantrybattalionand
companyintercommunication
duringWorldWarII.

WonderHowTo

1940
NextcametheSCR300radio
transceiver,developedforthe
U.S.MilitarybyMotorola.This
timeaportableFMradio,it
weighedanywherefrom32to
38poundswitha3milerange.
ItreplacedtheSCR194and
195withnearly50,000units
usedinWorldWarIIbyAllied
Forces

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1942
Motorolaproducedthefirst
"handietalkie"fortheU.S.,
labeledSCR536.130,000units
weremanufacturedandused
duringthewar.BacktoAM,
thishandheldversionshedthe
fatofftheprevioustwo
transceivers,weighingonly5
pounds.Butitslandrangewas
only1mile(3milesover
water).
Movingawayfrommilitary
gradeportableradios,wegetto
themobileradiotelephones(or
0G)...

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1946
BellSystemintroducedthefirst
commercialmobiletelephone
service,calledtheMobile
TelephoneSystem(MTS).The
originalequipmentwaslarge,
weighing80pounds(notquite
whatyou'dcallmobile)with
limitedcallingbandsavailable
fromAT&T.
Theservicewasn'tcheapeither
costing$30amonth(roughly
$330today)withadditionalper
callcharges.Notreallyintended
forregularJoeBlows,these
deviceswereusedbyutilities,
truckfleetoperators,and
reporters.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1956
Ericsson'sMobileSystemA
(MTA)wasthefirstpartly
automaticmobilesystemfor
automobiles.Firstusedby
Sweden,theunitweigheda
whopping88pounds.Again,
"mobile"iskindofamisnomer,
consideringit'sequivalentto
almost300iPhones!

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1964
WiththeadaptionofBell's
newerprecellularImproved
MobileTelephoneService
(IMTS),autoownerssaw
lighter,moreadvancedmobile
carphoneswithpushbuttons.
ThisonebyMotorolaweighed
40pounds,halfasmuchofthe
originalunitsfromthe'40s.
Overtheyears,theymanagedto
getdownintothe20pound
range.Buttheynevermanaged
togetintothehandsofJoe
Blow,withastillheftyprice
andrationedservicethroughout
thenation.

WonderHowTo

1973
Withaprototypeofthe
DynaTAC(DYNamicAdaptive
TotalAreaCoverage)portable
phone,formerMotorolaVice
PresidentMartinCoopermade
thefirstprivate,practical
mobilephonecallinanon
vehiclesetting.Who'dhecall?
HisrivalatBellLabs,JoelS.
Engel.
WonderHowTo

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1982
Withtheimpressivesizeofthe
DynaTACprototype,it's
disappointingtoseeNokia's
MobiraSenatorweighinginat
22pounds.
Itlaunchedduringtheworld's
firstfullyautomatic
internationalcellularservice
NMTthefirstgeneration
(1G)ofmobile
communications.

WonderHowTo

1983
10yearslaterafterthe
prototype,Motorola'sDynaTAC
cellularphonewasmade
availabletothepublic,
weighingunder2pounds,but
costingnearly$4,000(almost
$9,000today)whichiswhyit
wasstrictlyfortheGordon
Gekkosoftheworld.Itworked
onAMPS,NorthAmerica'sfirst
1Ganalogservice,launched
firstbyAmeritechinChicago.

WonderHowTo

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1984
Backtolargermobiledevices,
theMobiraTalkmanbrought
longertalktimeatcheaper
costs.TheDynaTACcouldonly
manage60minutesoftalktime,
butthisminiaturebeastgave
hoursorvoicetovoice
communication.

WonderHowTo

1989
NextupwasMotorola's
MicroTAC,whichintroduced
thefirstflipphonedesign.The
hardwarewasplaceinahinged
sectionofthephone,reducing
thephone'ssizewhennotin
use.Itwastrulytheworld'sfirst
pocketphone.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1992
TheMotorolaInternational
3200becamethefirsthand
sizeddigitalmobilephonethat
used2Gdigitallyencrypted
technology(unveiledin1991as
GSM).

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1993
Perhapstheworld'sfirst
smartphone,IBMSimonwasa
mobilephone,pager,fax
machineandPDA,allrolled
intoone.
Itincludedacalendar,address
book,clock,calculator,notepad,
email,gamersandatouchscreen
withQWERTYkeyboard.It
originallysoldfor$899,which
wouldbejustover$1,300
nowadays.
YoumayrememberSimonfrom
SandraBullock'sTheNet.

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1994
Carphonesremainedpopular,
despitetheirsmallerpocket
sizedversions,butMotorola's
BagPhone(2900)wasthecar
phonetohaveduetoitslong
talktime,greatbatterylifeand
superiorsignalrange.
Theyfirstworkedwith1G
networks,buteventually
crossedoverinto2Gterritory.

WonderHowTo

1996
StillshrinkingthelineofTACs,
Motorolaunveiledthefirst
clamshellmobilephonewith
StarTAC.Itimprovedthe
foldingfeaturebycollapsingin
half,whichiswhyit'scalled
"clamshell"becauseit
resemblesaclamopeningand
closingshut.Itranon1G
networks,buteventually
crossedoverintotheworldof
2G.
It'ssaidtobeinspiredbythe
communicatorfromtheoriginal
StarTrekseries.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1997
TheSimonwasgood,butthe
Nokia9000Communicatorwas
whatreallybroughtonthe
smartphoneera.Itwasthefirst
cellphonethatcouldalsobe
calledaminicomputer(though
ithadlimitedwebaccess).
Whenopened,thelongways
clamshelldesignrevealedan
LCDscreenandfullQWERTY
keyboardthefirstonamobile
phone.

WonderHowTo

1998
TheNokia8810wasthefirst
cellphonewithoutanexternal
antennawhiporstubantenna,
possiblypavingthewayfor
iPhonesandDROIDs.Italso
mademobilephonesmore
aestheticallypleasing,withits
slidingkeypadcover.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1999
Oneofthemostpopularmobile
phonesinhistorywastheNokia
3210,withover160million
sold.Itwasoneofthefirstto
allowpicturemessages,but
onlypreinstalledoneslike
"HappyBirthda,y"andwasone
ofthefirsttobemarketing
towardyoungpeople.

WonderHowTo

1999
Nokia's7110wasthefirstcell
phonetoincorporateWireless
ApplicationProtocol(WAP),
whichgavemobileusersweb
accessforsimpledevicesa
strippeddown,mostlytext
version,butarevolutionarystep
formobileinternet.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

1999
GeoSentricwasresponsiblefor
theworld'sfirstmobilephone
andaGPSnavigatorintegrated
inoneproducttheBenefon
Esc!Itwassplashproof,
greyscale,andallowedusersto
loadmapstotracepositionand
movement.

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1999
InJapan,Kyocera'sVisual
Phone(VP201)wasthefirstto
haveabuiltincamera,butit
wasdesignedprimarilyasa
peertopeervideophone,as
opposedtoSharp'sthenext
year...

WonderHowTo

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2000
Sharpwasfirsttothecamera
phonemarketwiththeirJSH04
(JPhone),releasedbyJMobile
inJapan.Itofferedamere0.1
megapixelresolution.
Someliketogivecreditto
Olympusforbeingthefirst
cameratotransmitdigital
imagesoveracellularnetwork
withtheirDeltisVC1100.
OtherspreferPhilippeKahn's
storyofriggingupacameratoa
cellphonewithwirestosend
imagesofhisnewbornbaby.
WonderHowTo
ButtheJSH04wasthefirst
commerciallyavailablecell
phonetohaveanintegrated
CCDsensor,withtheShaMail(PictureMail)infrastructure.Thiswasthestartofwhatweknow
asMMS.

Seemore:FromBackpackTransceivertoSmartphone:AVisualHistoryoftheMobilePhone
HowToNewshttp://www.wonderhowto.com/news/wonderment/frombackpacktransceiver
smartphonevisualhistorymobilephone0127134/#ixzz1La40vQTO

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2002
NottoofarfromtheJPhone,
theSanyo5300fromSprintwas
thefirstcameraphonesoldin
NorthAmerica.

WonderHowTo

2002
RIM'sBlackBerry5810wasn't
thefirstBlackBerrydevice,but
itwasthefirsttoincorporatea
mobilephoneintotheirpopular
brandofdataonlydevices.
Professionalswhoneeded
immediateaccesstotheiremails
andscheduleswerethemain
targetforRIM,butthebuiltin
phonemadeitappealingto
everyone.Thedownside?No
speakerormicrophone.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2002
Oneofthefirstphonestoequip
afullyfunctionalweb
experienceandintegratean
instantmessagingclient(AIM)
wastheDangerHiptopin2002,
laterrebrandedtheTMobile
Sidekick.
Itsmessagingfeaturesand
keyboardmadeitoneofthebest
sellingphonesinthedeaf
community.Alsonewwasan
LCDscreenthatrotatedand
flippedtorevealalarge
QWERTYkeyboard.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2002
Perhapssurpassingthe
BlackBerryachievements,
Microsoft'sPocketPCPhone
Editionstartedspreadingacross
PDAslikewildfire,including
theHPJornada928Wireless
DigitalAssistant,combiningthe
bestofthePDAwithintegrated
wirelessvoiceanddata
capabilities.
Itwasaniceadditiontothe
olderWindowsMobileClassic
devices,whichessentialrana
miniversionofWindowsXP.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2002
AnotherPDAaddingphone
supportwasPalm'sTreo180by
Handspring,runningthePalm
OS.

WonderHowTo

2004
Thenexthighlypopulardevice
wasacameraphonecalledthe
MotorolaRAZR,whichwas
firstmarketedasa"fashion"
phonein2004,selling50
millionunitsbymid2006.
Ithelpedgivecellphonesanew
look,whichweregettingstale
withthesameol'boring
designs.Thoughnothing
revolutionary,itslooksdid
morethanimpress.

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2005
ThefirstPalmsmartphoneto
operateoutsideofthePalmOS
wastheTreo700w,poweredby
WindowsMobile.Itwasagreat
alternativeforuserswhoneeded
accesstoMicrosoftsoftwareon
thego.

WonderHowTo

2005
Believeitornot,theiPhone
wasn'tthefirstcellphoneto
haveApple'siTunesmusic
playerintegrated.Itwasthe
MotorolaROKRE1,butitonly
couldmanage100songsata
timenotquitethesameasan
iPhone...

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2007
In2007,SteveJobsintroduced
theAppleiPhone,a
revolutionarytouchscreen
smartphone.Itwasn'tthefirst
smartphone,butitwasthefirst
togettheuserinterfaceright,
eventuallyadapting3G
technology(whichwasalready
availablesince2001).

WonderHowTo

2008
Thefirstsmartphonetorun
Google'sAndroidOSwasthe
HTCDreamslidersmartphone.
ItfeaturedaQWERTY
keyboard,fullHTMLweb
browser,Gmail,YouTubeand
more,andpavedthewayfor
phonesliketheNexusOneand
MotorolaDROID.

WonderHowTo

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AVisualHistoryofTheMobilePhoneBusinessInsider

2010
TheHTCEVO4GfromSprint
wasthefirstcellularphoneto
meet4Gstandards,runningon
theWiMAXnetwork.Itwas
soldpoweredbyAndroid2.1
andhadoneofthelargest
touchscreendisplays,an8MP
camera,HDvideocapture,
HDMIoutput,MobileHotspot
capabilityandHTCSense.

WonderHowTo

2011...
EverythingYou
NeedToKnow
AboutSamsung's
Infuse4G

EllisHamburger,BusinessInsider

More:MobileFeaturesSmartphonesWonderHowTo
*Copyright2015BusinessInsiderInc.Allrightsreserved.

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