Cellular phone technology developed rapidly after this and led to the smartphones we all know and love (or hate) today.
1. Motorola DynaTAC 8000X – Release Date: 1983
The Motorola DynaTAC 8000x, aka the “brick phone”, became the first commercial cellular phone to receive FCC approval on September 21, 1983, making it the oldest cell phone ever in the world. Motorola had produced mobile phones for cars for several decades and wanted to develop portable mobile technology.
2. Motorola MicroTAC 9800X – Release Date: April 25, 1989
The Motorola MicroTAC 9800X was the world’s first semi-flip phone and was Motorola’s solution to the heaviness and large size of its earlier DynaTAC models. Initially, the mouthpiece was on the part of the phone that flipped down, but it was moved to the base of the phone.
3. Orbitel 901 – Release Date: 1991
The Orbitel 901 might look like a landline phone, but it was the world’s first GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) mobile phone. While cell phones were birthed in the United States, European telecommunications companies were the first to move away from analog systems and invest in digital cellular technology.
4. Motorola International 3200 – Release Date: 1992
Although British company Orbitel beat Motorola to produce the world’s first digital phone, the Motorola International 3200 was the first digital hand-held mobile phone. The International 3200 was designed to replace original analog cell technology developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s and first commercially available in 1983.
5. Nokia 1011 – Release Date: November 10, 1992
The Nokia 1011 was the very first commercial cell phone produced by Nokia and it was also the world’s first mass-produced GSM cell phone. By the standards of the time period, the Nokia 1011 was pretty compact and could fit into pockets and purses.
