How long do you think it is since the first mobile phone? 10 years, 20 years, 25 years? No, as I write this it is 43 years since the first truly mobile phone was invented! It was designed by Motorola in 1973 and they remained a leader in mobile phone development all the way through to the end of the 2000s. You probably know the brand (famous for its Razr product), but like Nokia the business is no more – supplanted by the likes of the iPhone and Andriod-based phones. Such is the pace of technological development now that if you make a strategic blunder you can be dead in the water in a couple of years.

The blunder Motorola and Nokia made was not to appreciate the potential of the mobile internet. They didn’t develop operating systems for their phones that would capitalise on the opportunity. Their phones could do basic internet related things (email, surf), but it was Apple’s decision to get 3rd party developers in to produce new apps that was the killer. Before Motorola and Nokia knew what hit them Apple had transformed the landscape and changed consumers’ expectations about what was possible with a phone. Apple evangelism had arrived as had the “smartphone”.

How the smart mobile phone has changed our lives

The first iPhone arrived in 2007 and frankly that is the moment when our lives changed – all thanks to these things called “apps”. Let’s think about some of the significant impacts:

  • The way we bank – the leading economies over 40% of banking transactions now happen by phone
  • The way we socially interact – e.g. Facebook, Twitter & Instagram
  • The way we consume media – e.g. streaming TV or music
  • The way we shop for goods – e.g. groceries, clothes, technology, etc.
  • The way we buy services – e.g. taxis, dating and sell goods

mobile phone revolution

Ofcom’s 2015 report on the UK’s smartphone use noted:

  • smartphone use now exceeds that of laptops – smartphones are now the primary device for accessing the internet
  • two-thirds of people now used a smartphone
  • for users their smartphones are the hub of their daily lives!

All this has happened in just less that 10 years. On reflection that is simply astounding.

Capitalising on the Smartphone potential

In our blog over the last 12 months we’ve covered the smartphone quite a lot and reflected on how you can capitalise on its potential – to save us money, make us money and to help us have fun: