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Creation by Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell's telephone patent drawing, March 7, 1876. The first successful bi-directional transmission of clear speech by Bell and Watson was made on March 10, 1876 when Bell spoke into the device, “Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you.” and Watson answered. -
Candlestick Phones
Popular from the 1890s to the 1930s, the candlestick phone was separated into two pieces. The mouth piece formed the candlestick part, and the receiver was placed by your ear during the phone call. This style died out in the ’30s. -
Rotary Phones
The rotary phone became popular from the 1930's-1960's. To dial, you would rotate the dial to the number you wanted, and then release. -
Push-Button Phones
In 1963, AT&T introduced Touch-Tone, which allowed phones to use a keypad to dial numbers and make phone calls. Each key would transmit a certain frequency, signaling to the telephone operator which number you wanted to call. While much better than the rotary dial, these dial tones were subject to spoofing by what were called “blue boxes.” Using a blue box, you could make free long-distance phone calls. -
Portable Phones
A jazz musician named Teri Pall invented a version of the cordless phone in 1965 but could not market her invention, as its 2-mile (3.2 km) range caused its radio signals to interfere with aircraft communications. In 1968, she sold her rights to the cordless phone to a manufacturer who modified it for practical use. -
Flip phones
The Motorola StarTAC was the first successful flip phone, and in many ways, the first successful consumer cell phone. Introduced in 1996, Motorola eventually sold 60 million StarTACs. Weighing in at just 3.1 ounces, and combined with its innovative clamshell design, the StarTAC was a milestone in the trend toward smaller and smaller cell phones. -
Touchscreen Phone
When the iPhone was introduced in 2007, Apple brought the smartphone to the masses. With its intuitive touchscreen, intelligent sensors, and sleek design, the iPhone has been an incredible success. The iPhone quickly showed just how clunky previous smartphones and flip phones were. We still use these today.
