Twenty isn't that old but if it's in terms of electronic devices, it's definitely a long time.
IBM's Simon turns 20 on Aug 16, sold in 1994 as the very first smartphone. The term wasn't coined until recently but Simon had all the hallmarks of a smartphone so it was called as such. It was marketed around the idea of the game "Simon says" because it was simple and yet could do almost anything a user would want.
Simon was fitted with a green LCD screen with touch screen technology and a stylus. It had the most basic apps too, allowing users to draw and write notes, update contacts and calendars and even send and receive faxes.
It truly had a lot going for it when it comes to functionality but Simon was about the size of half a brick, weighed like one too, and could only last at most an hour on a single charge. It could also send emails but because mobile Internet was not existent at the time, Simon had to be hooked to a computer to do so.
It also didn't help that it cost $899 but about 50,000 Simons were sold, mostly to business people, before it was discontinued in 1995. It was only available in the U.S. too, offered by BellSouth on a two-year contract in southeastern and southern states. Like many smartphones today, Simon was discounted to promote sales, reduced to $599 until the day it was taken out of the market.
By combining the functionality of personal digital assistants and mobile phones, Simon laid the foundation for a new category devices that would drastically change the way people communicate with each other. It was truly ahead of its time and that was both its strength and weakness.
It wasn't until the release of the first iPhone in 2007 that people started really paying attention to smartphones. And when the first Android device entered the market in 2008, interest in smartphones skyrocketed. In 2013, smartphone sales edged out basic handsets for the first time and analysts are predicting that by 2018 figures would represent 88 percent of the world market.
For those who would like to see Simon, the Science Museum in London will have a unit on display for the "Information Age: Six Networks That Changed Our World" exhibit. Dedicated to the history of information technology, the exhibit will feature over 200 years of innovations and inventions that have molded the way people communicate with each other. The exhibit opens on Oct. 25.
