The Evolution Of The Cellphone
Early Beginnings
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Since Motorola engineer Martin Cooper made the world's first public call on a mobile phone, over 40 years have passed. According to Cooper, Motorola spent close to $1 million in the phones production, a device weighing around 1.5 kilograms and widely hailed as the first mobile phone.
Since that time, the deign of cellphones have quickly evolved into the small, high-tech multitasking computers we use today. To understand this journey we take a look through the history of the cellphone, and how it has changed through time. |
The Forerunner of the Future |
Around ten years after Cooper's original call, the first mobile phone was approved for use by the public. The first Motorola phone, the DynaTAC, became commercially available in 1984. The DynaTAC weighed in at 0.8 kilograms, with a rechargeable battery sporting an eight hour life between charges.
This handheld mobile phone paved the way for the modern cellphone. Like a modern cellphone, Motorola charged for monthly services, which was compared by the company at the time to car phone charges. They imagined the device as being used alongside the customers home and car phones, rather than ever being a replacement to them. |
The device came equipped with a host of new features that we would be considered standard issue in a modern cellphone. The next stage in the evolution of the cellphone brought:
The device weighed in at less than 0.5 kilograms and was released in a limited run of 2,000 units.
- A Pager
- A stylus for writing on the screen, with handwriting support for faxes
- A complete keyboard combining letters and numbers
- A calendar that could update automatically from a remote computer
The device weighed in at less than 0.5 kilograms and was released in a limited run of 2,000 units.
Camera Phones
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The evolution of the cellphone continues with the major introduction of cameras into the devices in 2002. Nokia brought out the Nokia 7650, boasting a "large 176x208 pixel colour display".
Things have a come a long way since then, with modern smart phones offering in excess of eight-megapixel auto-focus cameras, with built-in face detection, as standard. |
Integrated Phones |
Blackberry's first released their integrated mobile phones in 2003. The Blackberry 6210 was the first device the company had created that offered all the following features in one unit
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The Next Generation Smart Phones
The evolution of the cellphone continued, with ever sophisticated models appearing until, in 2007, Apple released the first iPhone. The iPhone was advertised by the company as a combination of three products in one handheld device. It combined a phone, an iPod, and a wireless communications device.
One of the most revolutionary aspects of the new device was the ability to control it entirely via an in-built touchscreen. This functionality has now been adopted by virtually all cellphone manufacturers and is central to the modern idea of a smart phone.
The iPhone included other new features, such as a touchpad keyboard, the ability to link its photo library to a remote computer, and a viewing screen of almost 3.5 inches, large enough to watch television and movies.
The cellphone has come on a long way from Martin Cooper's first call. The iPhone undoubtedly set a new standard in smart phones, with all present day devices featuring touchscreens, large high definition screens and high resolution cameras. All that remains to be seen now, is where the evolution of the cellphone will take us next.
One of the most revolutionary aspects of the new device was the ability to control it entirely via an in-built touchscreen. This functionality has now been adopted by virtually all cellphone manufacturers and is central to the modern idea of a smart phone.
The iPhone included other new features, such as a touchpad keyboard, the ability to link its photo library to a remote computer, and a viewing screen of almost 3.5 inches, large enough to watch television and movies.
The cellphone has come on a long way from Martin Cooper's first call. The iPhone undoubtedly set a new standard in smart phones, with all present day devices featuring touchscreens, large high definition screens and high resolution cameras. All that remains to be seen now, is where the evolution of the cellphone will take us next.
For further informations about the futur of mobile, visit the website Smithsonian