Ten years ago, my dad beamed at his newest toy, a Nokia brick something or the other that resembled an army satellite phone, sporting a 30cm aerial and green screen. The device was so large, no pocket could handle it, so it was schlepped around in his briefcase until someone pilfered it off his desk. It was the first of its kind: a cellular phone.
A fledgling technology pioneered in 1973 by Motorola, it has come a long way since, with Motorola`s Razr series and Samsung`s "slimmest mobile phone to date", the SGH-X820, with a profile of 6.9mm. The aim is to create the smallest, fastest, smartest device and manufacturers are constantly trying to outdo one another.
Sometimes, competition goes a little too far though, with phones that measure your biorhythms, those that can bounce, and pink ones, presumably for us women.
With the convenience associated with cellphones, they have also become the latest in spyware, with itemised billing providing ideal smoking gun evidence. With big brother watching, your cellphone is the fastest way to get caught doing anything, right or wrong.
Sometimes, competition goes a little too far though, with phones that measure your biorhythms, those that can bounce, and pink ones, presumably for us women.
Bhavna Singh, junior journalist, ITWeb
Naomi Campbell found that out the hard way when she was charged for assault in March for throwing her cellphone at a housekeeper. She was allowed to keep her passport though, because she was on her way here, to visit Madiba.
Other than weapons technology, there are a few developments on the cards for everyone`s favourite handheld device.
Toshiba has developed mobile phone technology that searches for product reviews on up to 100 Web journals, or blogs, in 10 seconds. All you have to do is snap a photo of the barcode of a product with a phone camera and you`ll know within seconds if it`s popular enough to buy.
Another newbie is a ticketing system to be introduced in SA by UK vendor Mobicode. Just order your movie, concert or International Fashion Sale tickets via cellphone and the barcode will be sent via MMS. Scan your cellphone screen at the venue and you`re in.
Also watch out for Virgin Mobile, yes, a new partner to your gym, coming in June to a phone near you.
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