It's 2016, and the question is: “Do you have a mobile phone?” - sounds more stupid than ever. Yes, there’s a phone there - everyone has been walking with smartphones for a long time, but the fact that earlier with the help of the device you could only talk was puzzling to many. It used to be a little different. People were also embarrassed that the phones could ring, this was no less surprising, but it happened without a bit of contempt, but with sincere admiration.
The history and evolution of phones is quite bright and fast. Few technical means developed at such a rapid pace. The evolution of cell phones has proven even more rapid. Just a few leaps over the past 30 years have turned the communications device into a perfect computer.
The time has come to remember and nostalgia. In this article we will return to the main historical events in the world of cell phones, consider such an entity as the “evolution of mobile phones”, photos of the first such devices and look into the future ...
Discoverers ...
Nokia Mobira Senator device. 1982 year.
If we talk about the origins, it is worth paying attention to the first experiment of engineers from Finland. The evolution of cell phones and cellular networks began precisely with this miracle. It was one of the first phones to support first-generation cellular networks.
Mobira Senator, in fact, was not a mobile phone, but represented the so-called category of car phones. The weight of the device was almost 10 kg - and indeed far from a mobile phone. But this was only the first brick from which the evolution of phones was repelled.
Truly mobile
Motorola DynaTAC 8000X device. 1984 year.
The first compact device appeared to the world 2 years later, when Motorola made its first breakthrough. It was a truly unique product, which is an engineering find. The problem was only in commercial implementation. Despite the fact that the gadget was very convenient and compact (weight 800 grams and a length of 25 centimeters), it failed. The reason for the failure was: a huge cost - $ 4,000, and low battery life. You could talk on the phone for no more than an hour.
More compact
Nokia Cityman; Motorola MicroTAC. 1987-1989 years.
Surprisingly, already in the 80s, the developers wanted to spit on autonomy and started a crazy race for millimeters and grams. In the period from 1987 to 1989, two fundamental devices came out.
Nokia's engineering novelty impressed with its dimensions: such compact devices (even taking into account the antenna) did not exist. The phone has become a true legend, shone in various movies, becoming a kind of icon among mobile communications.
Two years later, engineers from Motorola entered the game, deciding to make an even more compact device. MicroTac baby weighed only 300 grams, which certainly affected the battery life of the phone, it was reduced by half an hour compared to the previous generation.
GSM era
Orbitel 901, Nokia 1011. 1992.
The evolution of phones is inextricably linked to the development of mobile networks. In the distant 1991, the first GSM network was launched in Finland.
After some time, a device appeared that was able to work with it. The first sign was Orbitel 901, which in its appearance resembles a modern home phone. The phone weighed more than 2 kg. This, of course, is not 10, but still enough to ensure that the phone permanently migrated to the car and died there safely.
Dramatic changes came with Nokia. The evolution of phones as a whole is inextricably linked with this company, but in 1992 the company took a long step forward by introducing an incredibly compact phone with support for the modern GSM standard.
Bezantenny design, games and ringtones
Hagenuk MT-2000, Nokia 2110.1994.
The evolution of telephones, like any other type of progress, is merciless and will swallow anyone who is not fighting for their positions, even if he introduced something new that has seriously affected the market. The same thing happened with the Hangenuk brand. Perhaps the only well-known gadget from the German company is MT 2000, it was the first phone to add a video game to. At its core, the game resembled Tetris. Another distinctive feature of the device was a new unique design - the antenna was hidden in the case itself.
The procession of multimedia functions was continued by the Nokia brand, already known at that time, which introduced the ability to listen to melodies into its phones.
The world's first smartphone
Simon Personal Computer. 1994 year.
Everyone who is young in soul and body will not believe it, but the first PDA was developed back in '94 by IBM. By today's standards, the specifications of Simon Personal Communicator seem ridiculous, but at that time it was a bomb (but not the same as the Galaxy Note 7).
Large, 4.5-inch, monochrome, resistor display with a tiny resolution of 300 by 160 pixels. The smartphone had a decent set of programs that together turned it into a good organizer. The phone, in addition to calls, could respond to emails, make calculations on a calculator, create events in the calendar, and so on.
Super STAR 90s
Motorola StarTAC. 1996 year.
The evolution of Motorola phones is closely associated with “clamshells”, a sea of pathos and advertising.
So, for example, the company loved to create phones in the original design. One of these was StarTAC, which did not differ in decent characteristics, did not even work with GSM at first, but at the same time became wildly popular, due to its external characteristics.
The phone reached 19 centimeters in length, was compact and was considered very stylish.
The first smart watch and GPS in mobile phones
Samsung SPH-SP10, Benefon ESC. 1999 year.
In 2015, we were introduced to the Apple Watch, presenting it as a wrist phone. It turns out that a similar one was already developed more than 15 years before. The watch phone was introduced by the Korean corporation back in 1999.
Also during this period, the first phone supporting GPS navigation services entered the market.
Hello, “Snake” and MP3
Nokia 3310, Samsung UpRoar. year 2000.
The evolution of mobile phones at the beginning of the XXI century entered a new phase and began to directly depend on what multimedia features will be added to the device.
It is unlikely that now there is a person who does not know about the “Snake” (in the original Snake). An uncomplicated but addictive game came to this world with the new Nokia phones released in 2000.
Then, shifts began in the world of music, something was wrong with MP3 players, and Samsung decided to strike. The history of this company and the evolution of Samsung phones have repeatedly shown that the company is better than others able to copy and go to failed experiments. In 2000, a year before the release of the iPod, Koreans decided to add the ability to listen to MP3 music in their phones. It would seem ingenious, but, alas, the phone did not gain much popularity, and at the same time it became a significant detail in the progress mechanism.
New stream of communicators
Nokia Communicator 9500, Blackberry 6210. 2003-2004.
The first prerequisites for transforming phones into compact computers appeared long before Nokia Communicator and Blackberry, but these models have significantly influenced this process. Both phones were widespread in the corporate environment, where the key factor was a full-featured multi-functional physical keyboard.
Coup. The first smartphone that impressed
iPhone 2G. 2007 year
One of the symbols of the decade was introduced to the world by the legendary Steve Jobs almost 10 years ago. The product of the California corporation was a real triumph, because it was the first smartphone with a capacitive multi-touch screen capable of recognizing gestures. The first iPhone was not equipped with any powerful equipment, it had a mediocre camera, it was very expensive, but surprising, and this was a decisive factor.
The evolution of Apple's phone further set the tone for the entire industry and irrevocably influenced the development of the market.
Despite the fact that at the time of release only the lazy did not laugh at the iPhone, it was this product that killed several large companies and allowed the "apple" office to get rich.
Birth of Android
HTC Dream. 2008 year.
The appearance of such a mastodon as the iPhone, could not but give rise to the same serious competitors. In 2008, the first smartphone was introduced, working on the basis of a new operating system developed by an alliance of companies led by Google.
HTC Dream was a kind of compromise between the classic PDAs (the phone had a physical keyboard) and modern smartphones with touch screens. This was the first uncertain step on the road to developing the most popular mobile system.
The phenomenon of stillborn Windows Phone
LG Optimus 7. 2010.
A few years later, Apple was already bathed in luxury, and Android was rapidly gaining momentum. At this time, Microsoft finally realized that it was time to take action, and it entered the market with Windows Phone, which was obviously a failed product. Collaboration with LG was disastrous for both sides.
Tiled, uncomfortable interface, lack of support from third-party developers - all of this put Microsoft in the position of catching up, which they hold to this day.
Hey Siri!
iPhone 4s. 2011.
The last brainchild of Stephen Paul Jobs, which he could not present in person. The Apple smartphone with the 4s article was the first in which real artificial intelligence settled. Siri became the first voice assistant with truly human behavior. A girl living in the bowels of the iPhone could tell the weather, read mail, send a message, and much more.
A year later, Google set off after releasing its analogue of a voice assistant, and a year later, Koreans from Samsung also connected to them, having again failed in the software field.
Samsung as the new leader in the mobile market
Series Samsung Galaxy S. 2013-2016.
The next major player in the smartphone market was Samsung. Koreans are very dispersed, their Galaxy line has gained worldwide popularity, and now they own the largest user base.
Samsung copied for a long time what Apple did, until it finally got in its way. Phones from Korea have gained their own character, unique design, new features. The company acquired a number of patented technologies, creating the best conditions on the market. Today, Samsung is the most dangerous competitor for Apple, with the best Android smartphones. The evolution of Samsung phones is a great example of how you can build your own successful business using someone else's example.
Chinese expansion
Rulers Xiaomi, Oppo, OnePlus, Meizu. year 2014.
When smartphones gained enough popularity and began to bring a lot of money, the Chinese joined the race. The Chinese are copying no worse than the Koreans, while they do not have pride like Samsung, and therefore began to sell their gadgets at unimaginable dumping prices, thereby creating a completely new market. A market where you could buy a “top-end” smartphone for a pathetic $ 200.
In this dangerous period for flagships, there were many companies that quickly disappeared from the radar, but still managed to grab their piece of the pie.
Wireless sound, frameless displays and the first phone from Google
iPhone 7, LeEco, Xiaomi Mix, Google Pixel. 2016 year.
Despite the fact that many users are fed up and are rather skeptical about the new products of the current year, it is worth noting that they are decisive for the future. In the developments of 2016 there are no cardinal changes, this is only the evolution of phones, but very high-quality and ambiguous.
For example, Apple has released the most controversial smartphone in its entire history. In Cupertino, it was thought that it was time to get rid of the headphone jack and "transfer" all users to wireless options. LeEco, based on rumors, did the same.
The Chinese from Xiaomi decided to realize the dreams of their fans and introduced a smartphone, the display of which occupies 91% of the front panel (an absolute record).
Google was also surprised, which this year finally decided to release its own smartphone with a completely new voice assistant. And this is just the beginning.
All these “boring” new products will have a serious impact on the industry in the future, and users and potential buyers can only watch what engineers from all over the world have prepared for them, than these hard workers will surprise again, where the evolution of phones will turn, photo concepts of which today excite consciousness ...