Tuesday, November 27, 2007

A Down and Dirty Version of the History of the Phone

1876: Alexander Graham Bell Invented the telephone (although there is plenty of evidence that an Italian inventor names Antonio Meucci invented it 20 years prior).

1948: Claude Shannon of Bell Labs (Bell's Company) lays the foundation for both digital phones and the Internet.

1970: The first fiber-optic cable goes into service.

1973: The first cordless handsets for home phones are available.

1983: AT&T introduces the first commercial wireless phone.

1984: For the first time, phones are able to be bought instead of rented; consumers begin to expect more features and services.

1992: First generation of digital cell phones.

1995: CELL PHONE MANIA!!!

2007: iPHONE MANIA!!!

http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/delivery?vid=13&hid=109&sid=4de4e3ae-4141-4d8f-8c

Monday, November 26, 2007

House Phones to Cell Phones and the American Family: Statistics on telephone and cell phone subscribers

The Association of Credit Collection Professionals

http://www.acainternational.org/KnowledgeBase/?cid=648

Statistics on telephone and cell phone subscribers

As of December 2004 according to ACA International, there were 178 million landlines and they have been declining ever since. There were 219 million U.S. wireless subscribers as of September 2006 according to ACA International.

Cost of Telephone Lines in Select Cities from 1900-1912 compared to prices from 1990

Cost of Telephone Lines in Select Cities from 1900-1912 compared to prices from 1990

U.S. Households and Consumer Goods from 1900-1980

U.S. Households and Consumer Goods from 1900-1980
Note that the number of Automobile owners and Telephone subscribers decrease during the Depression