Who invented the first mobile phone?
The journey of mobile phones, from their inception to the advanced smartphones we use today, is a fascinating tale of technological evolution. The first mobile phone was the brainchild of Martin Cooper, an engineer at Motorola. His groundbreaking invention, the DynaTAC 8000X, was the first device that allowed people to make calls without being tethered to a landline. History of mobile phones
On October 17, 1973, Cooper made history by making the first-ever mobile phone call. This monumental call was made on a New York street and was directed to Joel Engel, his greatest technological rival at AT&T. The DynaTAC 8000X, weighing 1.1 kg and measuring 33 x 4.5 x 8.9 cm, was a far cry from the sleek devices we use today. Despite its bulky size and limited functionality, offering only 30 minutes of talk time after 10 hours of charging, it was a revolutionary step forward.
How has the mobile phone evolved? History of mobile phones
The DynaTAC 8000X was launched on March 13, 1983, with a hefty price tag of USD 3,995. Despite its high cost and limited functionality, the device was a success. Within a year of its launch, nearly 300,000 people around the world owned a DynaTAC 8000X.
The evolution of mobile phones has been driven by significant advancements in telecommunications infrastructure, such as the development of the 5G mobile network. Today’s smartphones offer a multitude of functionalities beyond making and receiving calls. They serve as cameras, calculators, diaries, gaming devices, and internet browsers, among other things.
The widespread use of mobile phones didn’t occur until the 1990s. By 1990, the number of mobile users was close to 11 million. Today, more than 5 billion people worldwide use a mobile phone, representing 68% of the world’s population. Users spend approximately 30% of their waking lives using these devices.
Following the success of Motorola, other companies began to develop their own mobile phones. Nokia launched the Mobira Cityman in 1987, which was lighter and had significant improvements over the DynaTAC. Samsung launched its first analog display mobile, the SH-100, in 1988. Despite its initial sales failure, it laid the foundation for Samsung’s current cutting-edge devices.
The first text message was sent on December 3, 1992, marking another significant milestone in mobile phone history.
The first smartphone in history History of mobile phones
After the cordless phone, the first mobile phone that could be considered a smartphone with applications and a touch screen was created in 1994: the IBM Simon, although this novelty did not achieve great popularity. This was followed by slider phones, such as the Motorola StarTAC. This clamshell device introduced vibration.
With vibration came the QWERTY6 keyboard. The Nokia Communicator 9000 was marketed in 1996, the first mobile phone with a keyboard and business-related functions, such as e-mail, fax, word processing, etc. In 1998 came the Siemens S10, the first model with a colour screen.
With the turn of the millennium, the aesthetics of phones flourished, becoming smaller and lighter. The Nokia 3310 is considered the most iconic mobile phone in history, thanks to its long battery life the user could talk all day or leave the device on standby for up to a month. The company sold more than 126 million units.
Over time, mobile phones evolved, adding new functionalities and becoming smaller, lighter, and more efficient.
