Mobile phones and smartphones: A timeline

  • Period: to

    Mobile phones and smartphones

  • Motorola's Dynatac

    Motorola's Dynatac

    Motorola's Dynatac 8000x is the world's first commercially available mobile phone.
  • First SMS

    First SMS

    First SMS (Short Message Service) - also known as a text - is sent.
  • First Mobile Game

    First Mobile Game

    First mobile game appears on the Hagenuk MT-2000 - a version of the ever popular Tetris.
  • Snake Game

    Snake Game

    Nokia introduces the popular Snake game.
  • BlackBerry Phones

    BlackBerry Phones

    BlackBerry phones appear for the first time. Popular for their messaging service.
  • With Front-Facing Camera

    With Front-Facing Camera

    Phones with a front-facing camera become popular, enabling us to take a selfie. They first appeared in Japan in 1999.
  • With Back-Facing Camera

    With Back-Facing Camera

    Mobile phones are on the market with a back-facing camera, perfect for taking a family photo.
  • 3G

    3G

    The 3G (third generation) phone network launches.
  • With Front-Facing Camera

    With Front-Facing Camera

    Phones with a front-facing camera become popular, enabling us to take a selfie. They first appeared in Japan in 1999.
  • First Apple iPhone

    First Apple iPhone

    The first Apple iPhone is launched.
  • The First Android Smartphone

    The First Android Smartphone

    The first Android smartphone is launched.
  • Acer's Liquid S2

    Acer's Liquid S2

    Acer's Liquid S2 is the first phone to include a 4K camera for high-definition images.
  • Record 4K Video

    Record 4K Video

    The first iPhone to record 4K video appears.