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Available to consumers
Motorola releases the first consumer-available cell phone, called the Motorola DynaTAC. This date demonstrates one of McLuhan's Four Laws of Media, that the new medium tends to render obsolete another process or thing; the cellphone makes the letter obsolete.
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Flip phone
Motorola releases the MicroTAC, which later becaome the inspiration fo the first flip phone
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PDA capabilities
IBM and BellSouth releases the first mobile phone to feature PDA capabilities. This date demonstrates William Ogburn's Cultural Lag Theory, Process #1: Invention. This date also demonstrates one of McLuhan's Four Laws of Media, which is that any major medium enhances or accelerates a certain process or thing; the cellphone with PDA capabilities enhances person-to-person communication.
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StarTAC
Motorola upgrades the MicroTAC to the StarTAC, a genuine flip that operated the GSM networks.
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Candybar phone
Nokia releases the first candybar phone. It was lightweight and featured a rechargeable battery. This date demonstrates William Ogburn's Cultural Lag Theory, Process #2: Discovery.
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BlackBerry
RIM releases the first BlackBerry as a two-way pager. It hosts PDA functions but still lacks mobile connectivity. This date demonstrates one of McLuhan's Four Laws of Media, which is that any major medium retrieves some process or thing that had been previously obsolete; the cellphone with a two-way pager revives person-to-person communication for people who had been separated by distance.
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Bluetooth
Ericsson introduces the first Bluetooth phone. It allows consumers to wirelessly connect their phones to their computers.
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BlackBerry smartphones & Camera
Research in Motion (RIM) upgrades their BlackBerry PDA's into BlackBerry smartphones. The Sanyo SCP-5300 appears on the market as the first-ever phone with an integrated camera.
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Style
Style was finally incorporated into cell phones, courtesy of the Motorola Razr, an elegant phone only 14-mm thick.
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iPhone 1.0
The Apple iPhone 1.0 revolutionizes the cellular industry via a multi-touch display and a full-fledged operating system. This date demonstrates William Ogburn's Cultural Lag Theory, Process #3: Diffusion. This date also demonstrates one of McLuhan's Four Laws of Media, which is that any major medium, when pushed to its extreme, flips into something entirely new; the iPhone flips into a portable computer, camera, calendar, alarm clock, etc. Ultimately, a new way of life.
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5th generation iPhone
The iPhone is on its 5th generation and 4G technology is on the rise. Copy and past the following link to get an idea of what the future holds!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0IyHXC6JUmE
(*Note: day and month unknown)
