Evolution of the Cellphone and How it Changed our Lives - Essay Example

?John Walker Ms. Anderson Expository Writing 15 Nov Evolution of the Cellphone and How it Changed our Lives Moblile phones or cellphones has certainly gone a long way. From an enormous, 80 pound, car mounted communication apparatus, it is now miniaturized to a small terminal in our backpockets (PC World). Its size may have been reduced but certainly not its battery life and functionality. The former two pounds weight and 60 minutes batterly life is now reduced to four ounces and can now extend to more than a week of battery life. What used to be a “brick” is now a full-fledged computer, with a video camera, audio/video playback and high-speed internet (PC World). Its functionality is so diverse that it can cater to various needs (and even wants) and preference of its users that extends beyond its use as a handheld mobile communication device that it is now called a personal trusted device (Steinbock 164). Currently, cellphones are now on its fourth generation which uses 4G technology that employs an all-IP network which has a bigger bandwidth. The current generation cellphones no longer needs the circuit switching of its predessors and now treats voice calls like a streaming audio media similar to the internet . Its download speed has tremendously improved(up to 10 times faster) from its 3G predecessor that downloading streaming media is no longer a wait. The celphone device in itself is no longer just a phone. It has evolved into an all purpose device that can virtually function like a computer. The introduction of apps or applications made its functionality almost limitless that it can enable users to do functions such as online banking, trade stocks and play games, just to name a few. Passing through the cellphone memory lane The cellphone technology is already 38 years old. It started in 1973 when Dr. Martin Cooper, Motorola’s researcher and executive, made a first call on the first cellphone that was made. The call was made to Dr. Joel S. Engel of Bell labs and was patented under his name on October 17, 1973 under the name “Radio Telephone System” with US Patent 3,906,166. It took ten years (1983)however after its invention for the cellular phone to become commercially available. The first commercial phone that was made cmmericially available was the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, a literal brick for it was bulky and can no other function than making a call. Then came Motorolla MicroTAC 9800X which was considered small during its time because it can fit into a shirt pocket. It featured an 8-character dot-matrix red LED display with an innovative new flip design. In 1993, Motorola introduced that Bag Phone 1992 which was power intensive compared to cellphone today because it runs on a 3 watts of power while today’s cellphone only requires .06 watt or less. During the same year however, competetion in the celphone industry begun. For the first time, Nokia introduced its model 1011, the first mass produced GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) phone. A year later, another competitor went in the cellphone industry with IBM Simon, IBM’s first smart phone. From then on, cellphones slowly added other features such as the addition of customized ringtones in the Mova N103 Hyper (1996). Siemens went into the market and put color on the LCD screen (1997). In 1998, Nokia introduced its first phone that removed the external antennae with its model 8810. In 1999, several features on the cellphone was added by different manufacturing companies. Nokia 7110 introduced the first mobile phone with a WAP browser that can surf the internet and do the functionality of an email. The popularity of MP3 on cellphones was also first introduced with Samsung SPH-M100 Uproar. Benefon Esc also pioneered the idea of integrating GPS into a cellphone. Sharp also introduced the first multicolor display screen with its J-SH04 model which had a mere 0.1 megapixel resolution. A year later, the Bluetooth capabilities in cellphone was introduced with Ericsson T39 (White). The introduction of Lithium Ion Batteries was introduced in 2004 which enabled cellphones to have a longer talk time with shorter recharge time and no longer needs to be emptied before it can be recharged. In the same year, cellphone’s streaming media capability was introduced with Motorola A845 that enables two way video calling. Fashion phone also became in vogue with Motorola RAZR. The first smart phone was also introduced with Treo 700w which was the first Palm smartphone (2007)(White). Then came Apple in 2007 which revolutionized the cellphone industry. Its first generation Apple iPhone was a literal computer for it integrated several features in other cellphones such as multi-media playback capability, internet access, camera and game capability. From then on, cellphones became a multi-use devise with a capability of a computer for features after features had been added to suit the end users need. How did cellphone changed the world and our lives? For cellphone manufacturers, perhaps the development of the cellphone device is just a matter of technological or business contest considering how profitable the mobile communication industry is. Because in a very short period of time, the cellphone industry has evolved from a bulky, single use cellphone to a literal mobile comunication computer whose use ranges from a mere communication device to a life saving device. But for end users, it has changed their lives and to some extent, the world. Their benefits and impact in our lives can be grouped into several categories. Instant communication Without doubt, the ability to communicate with phone without being attached to a cord has a multitude of benefits that ranges from convenience to life-saving. One of the most obvious benefits of mobile communication that has changed this world and our lives is instant communication afforded by a mobile communication device. Due to the advantage of instant communication, coordination between people became easier. Empowerment through advance technology It can be mind boggling how such a small device can do so much. It did not only enable us to communicate wirelessly, but also empowered and made our lives easier. The sources of information we get from cell phones are no longer limited to the person we are talking to and its function is no longer limited to mere communication. Its ability to connect to the internet through a handheld device empowered us to do tasks easily. Traditional functions such as banking, information monitoring (news, stocks, etch) can now be done wirelessly and provided us with tremendous accessibility and saved us precious that can be used in our other functions. Long-distance calling made easy In terms of cost, cell phones have also made long distance communication very affordable. Nationwide calls are now at a standard rate not to mention that overseas calls were reduced to a fraction of what it cost before. Dr. Cooper, might have only thought of convenience when he invented the cell phone. But the implication of mobile communication extends beyond convenience to increased safety and even life-saving. People who are in dire emergencies now have a device to immediately call for help. Through the integration of global positioning system (GPS) in cell phones, parents are now less anxious to monitor the whereabouts of their children. The same functionality also empowers children (and even adults) to navigate their way to their desired destination. Conclusion The ways that cell phones have changed the world and our lives are just too many to fit in this paper. Suffice to say, that it has enriched human connection through mobile communication where access is almost universal because of its lowered cost. Its increased functionality also enriched our lives because it enabled us to do things easier (such as online banking). It may be a distraction at times, but it has definitely made this world a lot better. Works Cited Edwards, Benj, “Evolution of the Cell Phone”. PCWorld. Oct 5, 2009 8:00. November 15, 2011 Gahran Amy. “How cell phones changed our lives”. October 22, 2010. CNN Tech. November 15, 2011 Steinbock, Dan. “Mobile Revolution : The Making of Worldwide Mobile Markets”. London, , GBR. Kogan Page Ltd, 2005. White, Charlie. “From Brick to Slick: 38 Years of Cellphone Evolution”. Mashable Tech Online. October 14, 2011. November 15, 2011. Read More