The world's first mobile phones: how much did they cost and who made them?
Mobile phones are an integral part of human life in the 21st century. It seems that the world would not be the same without smartphones. True, the new generation of phones is only about 25-30 years old: until then, they did not really resemble current phones.
February 22, 2025 06:55
When were mobile phones actually invented?
It can be said that the era of mobile phones began well over 100 years ago – in 1908, when a patent for a wireless telephone was issued in Kentucky, USA.
More tangible work was undertaken in 1940 by AT&T engineers, who created elements of mobile phone base stations.
When you look at the first mobile phones, it was hard to tell that they were really phones: their appearance did not at all resemble that type of device. They were two-way radios, more like walkie-talkies that helped taxi drivers and emergency services communicate.
And the first real mobile phone saw the light of day on April 3, 1973. The first company to mass-produce portable mobile phones was Motorola. These devices are called “Zero generation” ( 0G ) mobile phones, while most modern phones are based on 4G or 5G mobile technologies .
The first phone – Motorola DynaTAC 8000X: 1985
The first Motorola was created by engineer M. Cooper, and another Motorola employee, R. Krolopp, worked on its design.
The phone weighed almost a kilogram – 793 grams , which is up to 5 times heavier than modern phones. And the price of this first mobile phone was truly impressive: almost 4,000 US dollars (today this amount would be equivalent to almost 10 thousand) or more than 3,000 British pounds sterling .
The capabilities of the first phone were quite limited: when fully charged, it only worked for up to 8 hours, and when talking – only 30-60 minutes. And charging the phone took up to 10 hours! True, whether due to consumer outrage or other circumstances, chargers were soon significantly improved: the battery could be charged in an hour.
The phone had a small LED screen and a 21-character keypad. It could store 30 contacts in its memory.
By the way, it is interesting that a leather case (which can also be attached to a belt) was created specifically for this phone , with a transparent film covering the front case near the keyboard and screen.
This phone, due to its size, shape, and weight, was rightfully called a "brick" and also featured in the popular 1987 crime thriller "Wall Street." By the way, as early as 1985, wealthy people could be seen using these phones in business centers and fine restaurants.
10 first mobile phones that made history
The 1980s saw the emergence of mobile phones that literally resembled and were called "bricks." Eventually, the iconic Nokia phones, the "ancestors" of modern mobile phones, took hold on the market.
1992: Nokia 1011
This was probably the first mass-produced phone to use the new GSM standard. The phone had an LCD screen, a retractable antenna, and could store up to 99 phone numbers.
1997: Hagenuk GlobalHandy
This name will probably be unfamiliar to few people. The phone was made in Germany. It was practically the first mobile device that did not have a visible external antenna. By the way, the phone itself was small, and its screen was even smaller and quite impractical.
1998: Siemens S10
It was the first phone to have a color screen! It's true that the design wasn't anything special, and the screen was only 97 x 54 pixels. But it still deserves to be included in the historical archives.
