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View Full Version : Inventor of cellphone exiting the business.


touchring
1st February 2008, 09:14 AM
Sad case.


http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2008/tc20080131_906120.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_businessweek+exclusives

Motorola: The End of an Error

The Razr maker will likely sell or spin off its cell-phone division. Possible acquirers include Asian rivals and private equity players.

For connoisseurs of American electronics, Jan. 31 marks what may become the end of a technology icon. Motorola (MOT), the largest and most successful cell-phone manufacturer in the U.S., announced it's considering separating the cell-phone division from the rest of its businesses, possibly through a sale.


Who Invented The Cell Phone?

A former Motorola employee, Dr. Martin Cooper, is credited with the invention of the first portable phone. Dr. Cooper made the first cellular phone call in April of 1973. He called his rival Joel Engel the head of research at Bell Labs. Although Bell Laboratories developed the idea of cell phones with technology originally used for communication between police cars, Dr. Cooper who worked for Motorola was the first person to use the technology in a portable phone that worked outside a car.

The first cell phone invented by Dr. Cooper was called the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. Although it was technically a cell phone it hardly resembled the cell phones we use today. It weighed almost two pounds and was a foot long. The first cell phone was so expensive, costing almost $4000, that at first only businesses and the military had access to them. It took ten years or so before cell phones began to trickle down to the public and after that the industry took off. Thanks to Dr. Cooper's invention, other companies began developing their own cellular phone prototypes and cell phones went from being 50 pound car phones, to two pound mobile phones, to three ounce multitasking tools. Although not originally available to the public, the cell phone became one of the most popular pieces of technology in a very short time. Today there are more cell phone lines than home lines.

jacksonm
1st February 2008, 09:16 AM
Yes! This is freaking awesome news!!!!!

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