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first ever mobile phone made
on 1973 Martin Cooper made the first mobile phone in midtown manhattan and almost everyone close to him wanted one -
The First Cellular Network
In 1947, Bell Labs engineers were already looking for ways to implement cell service in vehicles. These researchers theorized that hexagonal cells would work best for vehicles. -
AT&T’s Mobile Telephone Service
In 1949, AT&T launched something called Mobile Telephone Service. We mentioned this service above as part of the automobile cell phone section. This Mobile Telephone Service was initially only available in St. Louis. By 1948, however, the service was available in about 100 towns. -
Manchester, UK and the Post Office Radiophone Service
A similar service evolved in the UK soon after AT&T’s Mobile Telephone Service. That system was called the Post Office Radiophone Service, and it was launched in Manchester in 1959. -
AT&T Launches Its New Improved Mobile Telephone Service (IMTS)
AT&T heard the complaints of its customers and sought to address them. They added more radio channels, for example, which meant more simultaneous calls could be placed in each geographic area. -
Russia’s First Cell Phone
Between 1957 and 1961, Soviet inventor Leonid Kupriyanovich developed a number of mobile phones that looked surprisingly similar to modern mobile devices. One of Leonid’s phones weighed just 70 grams and could easily fit into the palm of your hand. -
European Mobile Radio Networks
Europe, like America, developed its own series of mobile radio networks. The most noteworthy networks could be found in West Germany, which initially launched the A-Netz network in 1952 and then the B-Netz network in 1972. -
1973: The First Mobile Telephone Call is Made
In 1973, 10 years before a cell phone was first released onto the market, the first cell phone call was made by Motorola researcher and executive Martin Cooper. Cooper, from Motorola, placed a call to Dr. Joel Engel of Bell Labs. -
Radio Common Carrier
In an effort to compete with AT&T, independent American telephone companies introduced something called Radio Common Carrier, or RCC. This system used frequencies near the IMTS frequencies. This system persisted until the 1980s, at which point cell-based AMPS systems made RCC equipment obsolete. -
1G Cellular Networks
“1G” refers to the first automated analog cellular networks around the world. 1G was first deployed in Tokyo in 1979 and would spread throughout the rest of Japan in 1981. Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark also received 1G that same year. -
Radio-based Cell Phones
Later, during the First World War, the German military tested wireless phones on military trains running between Berlin and Zossen. Later, in 1924, wireless phones were tested on trains running between Berlin and Hamburg.
