Cellphone History

Cell phones have become a crucial part of modern society, yet few people know their origins. From the Motorola DynaTac to the iPhone 5S there is an interesting history in the cell phone. Early forms of cellular communication were the radios in ships and trains. The drive for the invention of truly portable devices came after World War II. Motorola demonstrated the first genuinely mobile phone in 1973 and a Japanese company named NTT launched the first automated commercial cellular network. However, it would not be until later that cell phones would be commercially launched to the public and decades later until it could be cheap and widespread. In 1984 Motorola commercially released their mobile phone called the DynaTac. It was priced at four thousand dollars, gave you thirty minutes of talk time on 1G signals, and had the shape and portability of a brick. At first, the device had to be hooked up to your car to use, and later came the one you could stuff into your briefcase. The first call on the DynaTac was made by David Meilahn in his Mercedes. Due to its high cost, only rich people and businesses could afford these devices. Adjusted for inflation, if a DynaTac were to be released today it would cost ten thousand dollars. This cell phone was a marvel of an invention, but its availability to a limited amount of people also limited its success in the market so the majority still resorted to payphones as a means of communication when they were not at home. This would prompt Motorola to release a cheaper cell phone, the MicroTac. In April of 1989, the release of the MicroTac made headlines across world newspapers. It was the smallest and lightest cell phone at the time with its innovative “flip” design. One of its key selling points was its ergonomics. The MicroTac alleviated the pain of having to lug around a huge brick to make wireless calls and that it could fit into your shirt pocket. Despite costing two thousand dollars, it achieved a wider market than