Do you remember your first phone? With most people, this question is a glimpse of the question and they start to smile. Yes, at that time everything was different, at a time when the displays were still tiny and of course only one-color and you could still visit your buddy over the weekend without taking the charger with you. This time seems far away, but hardly two decades have passed since then. Admittedly, compared to modern smartphones, the retro mobile phones were primitive and yet most people depend on it somehow, because the old devices create pleasant memories.

Were not you proud of your first phone? They presented it to your parents, friends and girlfriend. Having a cell phone was cool, because you could reach it at any time. At WhatsApp and Co. was not at that time still to think and everything turned around the 160 characters, which fit into the frame of an SMS. How did it all begin?

The history of the mobile phone

Smartphones have now become the indispensable (and sometimes annoying) companion of most people. They constantly ring, pound, or flash, and want to be constantly charged.Even children in elementary school carry the devices around with them. Once, however, they were no more than a utopia, and later status symbols, which showed how rich and important the owner was.

prehistory

The history of mobile phones goes back even further than many suspect. As early as 1926 there was a mobile telephone service on the trains of the German Reichsbahn and the Reichspost on the Hamburg - Berlin route, which was, however, exclusively reserved for first-class travelers. The Second World War put an end to the development and the focus of the action shifted to the USA. In 1946 the first autotelefons were used.

In Germany the first such devices were available since 1958 on the market. The radio technology still used vacuum tubes and the car phones were fixed in the vehicle because they were too big and heavy to carry around with them. The phones cost almost half the original price of a good car and were reserved for few celebrities and businessmen only.The discussions were mediated by hand in the so-called A-network.

The first phones

For many years, nothing very new has happened in the field of mobile radio technology.The already existing network was expanded and the automatic transmission of calls was introduced soon. The American company Motorola succeeded. There, in 1973, a team of developers succeeded in constructing the prototypes of a mobile phone. They combined parts of FM radio with a powerful metal hydride battery.

The device was patented in the USA in 1975 but was still far from the market. It was not until 1983, when the company presented the first commercial mobile phone of the world, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x , to the public. The unit weighed more than 1 kilogram and the battery allowed a maximum talk time of 20 minutes.

At the same time, the mobile communications network in Germany has been continuously expanded. Since 1985, there was the C-network, which was still analogous, but because of the smaller cells required a lower transmission power of the mobile phones. The devices began to shrink. At the end of the eighties, in the beginning of the nineties, the digital mobile radio network (D-network) was set up in Germany. There were 2 networks, the D1 network with the operator DeTe Mobil (Deutsche Telekom mobile radio) and the D2 network with the operator Mannesmann mobile radio.

These networks used the mobile radio standard GSM. In 1992, the first, GSM-enabled mobile phone, the Motorola International 3200 came onto the market in Germany (nickname bone, because of its shape) to be followed in the same year by the mobile phone Nokia 1011. The model designation 1011 is derived from the date of market introduction, 10 November 1992.

How it went on

In 1994, Motorola introduced the first Flip Handy, the Motorola MicroTAC . In 1994 the German company Siemens presented the Siemens S3, the first mobile phone to send and receive SMS. The Nokia 9000 Communicator was the first smartphone to be used for commercial use. It unified telephone and organizer in one device. The Siemens S10 saw the light of the world in 1997. It was the first mobile phone with a color display at all. One year later Nokia launched the Nokia 5110, the first mobile phone that was suitable for the mass market.

The next year, the Finns put one more thing on it and presented the WAP-enabled Nokia 7110 , the first mobile phone with access to the mobile Internet. The new generation of Ericsson was the first to launch Ericsson's first mobile phone with integrated Bluetooth, the Ericsson T36. The Japanese company Sharp developed the first mobile phone with integrated camera in the same year. However, the model was launched only in Japan.This was different with the Nokia 8310. In this device was installed for the first time a radio, it laid the foundation for today's multimedia devices. The year 2002 saw 3 premieres in the field of mobile radio technology:

• Ericsson P800, first phone with color touchscreen
• Nokia 7650, first mobile phone with camera for the mass market
• Motorola A830, first UMTS (3G) mobile phone for the European market

In 2003 came the Nokia 3650, the first mobile phone, equipped with a video camera. In the same year, the Nokia 1100 appeared, which became the largest sales success so far.250 million units of this model have been sold worldwide. In 2004, Samsung released the SGH-Z105, the first mobile phone to make video cams. The SCH-B710 from the year 2007 manufacturer was the first device to have a 3D display and a 3D camera. 2007 was also the birth year of the iPhones. The company HTC from Taiwan introduced in 2008 with the HTC Dream the first mobile phone with Android operating system.

Some of the main manufacturers of retro phones

Some of the companies are still major manufacturers in mobile communications, while others have moved their focus to other areas or merged with different companies or former competitors.

Motorola

The American company was founded in 1928 and is one of the pioneers in mobile communications. The first mobile phone in the world was developed by Motorola 1973 and presented to the public in 1983. In 2011, the Group divided into two divisions: Motorola Solutions and Motorola Mobility. The latter segment manufactures Motorola mobile phones. Motorola Mobility was taken over by Google in 2012, which it sold 2014 to the Chinese company Lenovo. The Motorola brand, however, still exists today. One of the most successful models was the Motorola RAZR series, currently popular smartphones.

Nokia

The roots of the Finnish company date back to the year 1865. At that time, Nokia produced paper and a variety of different commodities, including rubber boots and bicycle tires. The entry into the market for mobile telecommunications began in 1981 with the development of car phones for the Scandinavian market. From 1998 to 2011 Nokia was the market leader in the production of mobile phones. The company developed its own operating system for its mobile phones. Since 2011, the sales figures have declined and in 2014 the sale was made to Microsoft Corporation, which since then has been distributing mobile phones as Windows Phone with various versions of the Windows Mobile operating system.

Ericsson

The Swedish company was founded in 1876 and still exists today. However, their products are intended for business customers, such as mobile telephony providers. In Germany, Ericsson has been present since 1950. The company succeeded in obtaining approval for the expansion of the D2 network in 1990. After the turn of the century there was a recession in the mobile phone sector, of which Ericsson was particularly hard hit. In the year 2000, a devastating fire occurred at an important supplier in the USA. Insiders suggest behind this the reason to a joint venture with Sony to the company Sony Ericsson. This company existed until 2012, then Sony bought the shares of Ericsson and since that time the devices under its own logo and name on the market.

Sony

The Japanese company was founded in 1946 and is still one of the largest electronic companies in the world. The Group's focus is on entertainment electronics. Sony has been active in the mobile phone segment since the mid-1990s. At the beginning, the company worked with Siemens and developed the batteries for the Siemens mobile phones. The cooperation was terminated in 1998 and in 2001 became the joint venture Sony Ericsson which existed until 2012. Since then, Sony has been producing and marketing under its own name.

Siemens

The German electronics group was founded in 1847. For a long time Siemens was a term in the market for mobile phones. The C1 model was one of the first mobile phones launched in Germany in 1985. The company developed among other things the first mobile phone with color display and the first mobile phone in the form "Slider". After the sales figures went down again, Siemens sold its mobile phone production to BenQ from Taiwan in 2005. Since then, there is no German manufacturer of mobile phones. One year later, BenQ reported bankruptcy.

Retro mobile phones

You can still remember one or the other of the models listed below. Although they have long since been overtaken by the technical development, some of them have now become highly sought-after collectors' items, which earn high prices at auctions. The best known models include:

Motorola DynaTAC 8000x

The first mobile phone in the world was presented to the public in 1983. It weighs nearly 800 grams and has almost the dimensions of a brick. The phonebook could store 30 numbers and the battery allowed a talk time of one hour. At the launch of the market in the US it cost just under 4,000 US dollars. Inflation-adjusted this is now slightly more than 7,000 euros.

When the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x was sold in Germany, the country was divided and no one suspected that the reunion would come in a few years. The Cold War was at its peak. The fake Hitler diaries made a furore and Udo Lindenberg brought out his hit "Sonderzug nach Pankow". The Bavarian Prime Minister, Franz Josef Strauss, provided a bill of lending to the stale GDR.

Nokia 8110

The cell phone was known under the nickname "Banana" and was an important prop in the cult movie "Matrix". It weighed about 145 grams. If the keyboard was not needed, it was protected with a lid that could be opened downwards. As a result, the microphone came closer to the mouth when speaking. The display was monochrome and the mobile phone could send and receive SMS.

The Nokia 8110 came on the market in 1998. International was at this time the sex affair of the US President Bill Clinton speak of itself. This year the football world championship took place in France, which won the hosts. In Germany the election of Gerhard Schröder as Federal Chancellor put an end to the Kohl era and the people were arguing strongly about the introduction of the spelling reform.

Ericsson T28

The mobile phone was sold in Germany from the year 1999. It belongs to the category of folding handys and weighs only slightly more than 80 grams. As a result, it was one of the smallest and lightest mobile phones on the market and was particularly successful in the USA. Characteristic for the Ericsson T28 is the short antenna jam, which is fixed to the device. The mobile phone was one of the first with a lithium polymer battery.

Internationally the terrorist group Al Quaida drew their attention for the first time and agreed to the bombings on the US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya. The German government moved from Bonn to Berlin. In August a total eclipse of the sun could be observed and wild speculations and gloomy prophecies about the coming millennium turned up.

Motorola StarTAC

The mobile phone was launched on the market in 1996 and was the first real folding handy in the world. At the time, with a weight of 88 grams, it was one of the smallest and lightest mobile phones on the market. As one of the first mobile phones, it was equipped with a vibration alarm. The model was sold a total of more than 60 million times. Later digital models could send and receive SMS, while the first analogue devices were not yet capable of doing so.

In 1996 Germany became European champion for football in the final for the third time. In the same year, the boxer Henry Maske lost his last fight and took leave of his career as a professional boxer. In Great Britain, scientists were able to clone a mammal for the first time. "Dolly the sheep" was world famous.

Motorola 4500x

The device came on the market around the year 1988.The Motorola 4500x as mobile phone, would have been a joke, since the device is as large as a brick and weighs about 3.5 kilograms. It basically consists only of a chunky container with the battery and the electronic components, to which a handset with a spiral cable is fastened. This does not require the entire device to be held to the ear during the telephone call. The keyboard consists of simple number keys without letters, since there was no SMS at the time. the display could only display numbers.

International began in 1988 the withdrawal of the Soviets from Afghanistan and the first Gulf war between Iraq and Iran ended. In Canada the XV. Olympic winter games instead.After the Soviet Union, the GDR won the most gold medals. In the Federal Republic, the European Football Championship took place, which was won by the Netherlands. Steffi Graf experienced a great success and won first all 4 Grand Slam tournaments.

Motorola MicroTAC

The device was built in the form of different models for almost a decade. It was one of the first folding handys in the world. However, it was flipped downwards and the lower part contained the microphone. At the time, it was marketed as a "cell phone for the handbag" because it was almost tiny compared to its predecessors, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x.

The year 1889, when the Motorola MicroTAC came on the market, entered the "German destiny year" in the history. The Wall fell, and the people of East and West lay in their arms. The reunion of the country, which had been divided since the end of the war, began and could not be stopped.

Nokia 2110

The mobile phone was offered in Germany 1995 for the first time in the trade. At the time, it was among the top models and was more powerful than the devices of other manufacturers. The Nokia 2110 was the first phone with the well-known Nokia ringtone. It is equipped with an internal memory and can display the 10 last dialed numbers, missed calls and received calls. The mobile phone can send and receive SMS.

At that time the Civil War was raging in the former Yugoslavia. Nato intervened in August to stop the bloodshed as quickly as possible. On the domestic front, 1995 was hardly marked by major events. The bands "Die Ärzte" and "Die Fantastischen Vier" were represented with songs in the hit parades. The film "Forrest Gump" won an Oscar.

Nokia Mobira Cityman 900

The Finnish company Nokia has been launching transportable telephones since 1982. The first Nokia mobile phone however, one could hardly call a mobile phone. The Nokia Mobira Senator car could be used in principle also separate from the vehicle, but with a weight of nearly 10 kilograms it was really no light weight. His successor, the Nokia Mobira Cityman 900 was a leap into a new dimension. With a weight of less than 800 grams, it is a flyweight compared to its predecessor and the first truly compact mobile phone from Nokia.

The analogue device came on the market in 1987. In Finland, it was called "Gorba", because the then Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev used a Nokia Mobira Cityman 900 during a press conference to call Moscow. The device has only number and function buttons because there was no SMS yet. In addition to the charging indicator of the battery, the last dialed number and the call duration are also displayed.

The year 1987 was eventful. Great things cast their shadows ahead. The (still) divided city of Berlin celebrated its 750th anniversary, both in the east and in the west, Honecker came to Bonn for a state visit and Ronald Reagan demanded in Berlin in a famous speech Gorbachev to demolish the wall. At that time no one had any idea that this would actually happen 2 years later.

Motorola International GSM 1000

The device came in 1992 for the first time on the market. This was not a mobile phone, but a predecessor, a so-called porty. These are Autotelefone, which are not fixedly installed, but with a few hand grips from the holder solved and also on the way could be used. At a weight of more than 2.5 kilograms this was rather tedious. The Motorola International GSM 1000 was one of the first telephones that could be used in the new D-network of Telekom. The transmission power of the phone is 8 watts.

The year 1992 brought with it some important events. At the beginning of the year, Maastricht treaties were signed and the EU became a reality. Erich Honecker was arrested on his return from Moscow, where he had escaped to the Chilean embassy, ​​at the airport in Berlin. In the US, Bill Clinton was elected President.

Nokia 9000 Communicator

The device was offered in Germany from 1996 and was the first of a whole series. The Nokia 9000 Communicator was the predecessor of modern smartphones, because it had a very lush equipment for its time. With the device, SMS, emails and even faxes could be sent. The equipment has its own web browser, with which one could mobile surf the Internet. At that time, even many desktop PCs still had no access to the Internet. It also includes an extensive suite of office programs, making the Nokia 9000 Communicator an office-style pocket. The first device was still held in the classic bar form, the successors could be opened as a laptop and had a full QWERTZ keyboard.

In 1996, the Federal Constitutional Court ruled that the expropriations carried out in the Soviet occupation zone between 1945 and 1949 were final and can not be reversed. The real estate speculator Jürgen Schneider, who had caused damage in billions, was delivered from the USA to Germany and Greenpeace presented the first three-liter car of the world, the Twingo Smile, on the basis of the Renault Twingo.

Nokia 7110

The introduction of the Nokia 7110 was accompanied by mishaps, because it shifted several times due to errors in the operating system. It was not until 1999 that it came into the market in larger numbers.Characteristic is its large, green-black display and a sliding door, which is designed to protect the keyboard. It was the first WAP mobile phone to surf the Internet. A similar model was used in the Matrix movie, but it was the Nokia 8110. The phonebook can store up to 1,000 names and can be assigned to each name up to 3 numbers. Features include 4 games, including the famous Nokia game "Snake". In standby mode, the recharge time is up to 260 hours (almost 11 days!) And while talking up to 4.5 hours.

In 1999, the coming millennium turned its shadow ahead. All possible sunset prophecies made the round and people feared a global computer crash. The US embassies in Nairobi and Daressalam were blown up by Al Quaida and in Germany a total solar eclipse could be observed.

Motorola International 3200

The mobile phone of Motorola experienced its market launch in 1992 in Germany. Because of its shape it received the nickname bones. It weighs slightly more than 500 grams. The battery allowed to talk a maximum of 110 minutes, the standby time is officially 24 hours, but was never reached in practice. The Motorola International 3200 was the first mobile phone to work in the new D-network. By contract it cost at the time the stately price of 3,000 to 8,000 DM. Its transmission power is 2 watts, the device was not yet designed for sending and receiving SMS.

In 1992 the civil war in Yugoslavia escalated and the UN Security Council was forced to intervene and send troops. Both in Rostock and in Mölln there were xenophobic riots in which asylum-seekers' homes were attacked and partly put on fire.

Sony CM-H333

The mobile phone was presented to the public for the first time in 1993.Because its shape and size corresponded approximately to that of the contemporary chocolate bar, it got the nickname "Mars-Riegel". The mobile phone has a telescopic antenna. To make a call, the lower part must be opened with the microphone. to end the call, it will be closed again. The Sony CM-H333 was at that time a good alternative to the market leaders Nokia and Motorola. The phone has a one-touch dial function. Today, it is a coveted collector's item.

The year 1993 brought some significant changes. As a consequence of the civil war in Yugoslavia, the war crimes tribunal was founded in The Hague. Czechoslovakia shared peacefully with the two countries of the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and in the former GDR the old districts were dissolved and the countries which had existed before 1952 were reintroduced. There were new five-digit postal codes.