Mobile devices have come a long way in a very short period. What began as a simple method to call someone else via a phone that probably weighed half a kilogram, has somehow developed to being a pocket-sized device, to what is basically now a super-computer in your pocket. This is some development since the first mobile phone came to fruition in 1983. This phone was the the DynaTAC 8000x, a Motorola design that offered 30 minutes of talk-time, six hours standby, and could store 30 phone numbers. This doesn’t sound so impressive compared to the average cellular device today, but at the time it was groundbreaking. Nowadays, that particular phone is probably best used as a paperweight, but has become quite cool and vintage-looking to be honest. Since this time phones have come and gone, in various sizes, appearances and features. We have composed a list of some of the most notorious phones that we simply miss but are essentially obsolete. If your phone can’t even surf the web, is it worth using?
Blackberry Curve 8520
Blackberries had a massive presence in the 2000s. It was known as the business phone. Every businessman had one, everybody wanted one. The Blackberry was the first phone to prioritize things like emails and networking with a full physical keyboard display and was considered innovative. It was also popular among teens, with the famous BlackBerry Messenger instant messaging service. Nowadays this particular app is obsolete, as it was limited to BlackBerry devices. Whatsapp is essentially an upgraded version of this but far more inclusive as it can be downloaded and used on any cellular device that has internet. This ensures that any device can reach any device without discriminating on a particular brand. That being said, this phone gave us some great memories: from the classic BlackBerry exclusive game, ‘Brickbreaker’, to its touch sensitive optical trackpad- a feature said to improve scrolling through pages, menus and the internet.
iPhone 3GS
The iPhone 3GS was the successor to the iPhone 3G and the third generation of iPhone. This was debatably the most significant upgrade in the long line of iPhones that we see today. It seems as though every iPhone is essentially the same device with a few minor changes, but this wasn’t exactly the case for the 3GS. The ‘S’ stands for speed, and showed a significant upgrade in speed on the device. In addition to this we saw performance upgrades, a 3-megapixel camera, video ability and voice control. The battery life improved and the phone brought us some great times. Surfing on an ultra-fast 3G network seemed incredible (at the time). It’s interesting to see that we’re already at 5G in such a small time.
Nokia 3310
This Nokia is probably one of the most notorious cellular devices of all time. The Nokia 3310, or ‘Nokia Brick’ as you may remember it, is something special. Was it highly regarded for its incredible processing power? No. Was it known for its high-speed internet surfing ability? Also no. So what exactly was so good about this phone? Well there are a few factors that must come into play here. To begin with, the Nokia ‘brick’ was indestructible. People would throw it on the floor, drop it constantly and the phone would never stop working. Additionally, the phone has an unbelievable battery life. The phone had a notorious beeping message-tone and in recent additions saw improvements to the system. At one stage you could even save and load custom ringtones as your personal cellphone ringtone. Lets not forget the ‘Snake’ game- this was probably the best feature of the device to be fair.
BlackBerry Storm
Back to BlackBerry, this phone deserves a special mention, but perhaps for the wrong reasons. The BlackBerry storm was essentially BlackBerry’s answer to the iPhone- a direct competitor. The BlackBerry discarded it’s physical keyboard in favor of a touchscreen device that was ultimately filled with bugs. This was basically the beginning of the end for BlackBerry, as they showed how they just couldn’t compete with the iPhone. We feel for BlackBerry, as this device tarnished the good memories we had with other devices, but the technology was just too sub-par. Perhaps Research in Motion, the Blackberry maker, could have done more.
