How Did The Cell Phones Change Throughout The World

On April 3rd, 1973, Martin Cooper, an employee of Motorola, stood on Sixth Avenue in New York City holding a piece of technology that would spark massive changes across the world. (Seward) That was the cellular telephone. Prior to that day, telephones had been limited to those hard-wired, either into homes or public places. Soon, people everywhere would be constantly connected to each other, always able to talk, and always able to check in. Since the mobile phone's debut, it has created new heights in communication, creating a world so interconnected that it will never be able go back to the simplicity of communication once so common.

Around the time when the first cell phone was invented, the Apollo 13 had recently returned to Earth, the

Beatles had broken up, and the Vietnam war was raging. (70 historic moments from the 1970s) In the communication world, the reign of the rotary phone was coming to an end and the push-button phone was becoming popular among many households. (Zigterman) By the time mobile phones actually hit the market in 1983, times had changed. (Goodwin) By this point, MTV was the latest craze and within five years, the Berlin Wall would fall. (The 1980s) The first buyer of the mobile phone would have to hand over almost $4,000, more than $9,000 in today’s dollars, for a 28oz phone that only lasted for 30 minutes of call time before needing a 10-hour charge. (Goodwin) What would be the effect of the mobile phone was something almost no one saw coming.

After the mobile phone’s debut, many people perceived it to be one of the more pointless gadgets of the time, but they were soon proved wrong when the device overtook the globe. (Wolpin) Though their sales weren’t groundbreaking to begin with, once cell phones began to be marketed to the public, they really took off. (Goodwin) Now, more than 30 years later, we use our cell phones for much more than just making calls. In addition to the classic use, we now text, email, watch videos, play games, video chat, and even track our loved ones with highly-modernized versions of the very same device that Mr. Cooper used for the first time on that fateful day in 1973. (Cell Phone Facts)

From its invention, to its release, to its evolution, the cell phone has been a truly life-changing device. Since the mobile phone’s invention, the world has become dependent on the constant use of the cell phone. Today, the cell phone is a large part of many lives and keeps us close, connected, and always able to find help in a tough situation. Without the invention of the mobile phone, the people of today could still be tethered to their landlines of the 20th century, and what a difference that would make on our modern world.