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Cellphones, as they were called in the yesteryears, have evolved rapidly since their inception in the 1970s. Devices that date back even a few years, arguably look primitive to people that are used to the experience of the blazing-fast and efficient smartphones we have today. The ‘smartness’ of phones also took years to develop and achieve, in hindsight. Today we see compact, sleek-looking smartphones that can accomplish just about any task in no time. These devices would be considered futuristic just a decade or so ago. Let’s look at 18 game-changing phones, one from each year from 2001 to 2019, and see how they contributed to the overall evolution of smartphones. (You may find some ‘special mention’ devices as well, we couldn’t help ourselves.)
The Nokia 8250 kicked things off in 2001 by introducing the world’s first monochromatic display in a phone. We bid adieu to the boring black and white display and welcomed a single-colour display, in this case, the colour was blue. The phone also sported a compact design at that time, making it a popular choice.
The Nokia 7650 amalgamated all the new features introduced in cellphones in 2002 and bundled them into one device. The 7650 had a 0.3MP camera, a large colour display (which was not just monochromatic, phew) and also integrated MMS (multimedia messaging service). The device ran on Symbian OS and had sported the super cool mechanism of a sliding numeric keyboard. The phone even had Bluetooth, making it a true all-rounder.
Ah, the Nokia 1100 (double one, double zero). This cellphone was so durable that it generated an array of memes and cultural references to signify toughness or durability. It is no surprise that this tank of a phone is one of the best selling phones of all time, despite its no-frills design. It also featured a stellar battery life, the charge-it-and-forget-it for 3000 days kind.
Writing this article is making us feel some serious nostalgic pangs. The Motorolla RAZR V3 is a legendary cellphone, remembered best for its unique, slim design. In fact, it was one of the slimmest phones ever created at that time and became a style statement. The V3 is a flip phone, with a numeric keyboard on one side and a colour screen on the other. It also featured a tiny screen on the front of the device to notify the user when receiving calls or messages.
In 2005, the Motorola ROKR E1 was actually the first phone which integrated Apple’s iTunes, with the next phone being the iPhone in 2007. Makes us wonder if Moto actually had the opportunity to make the first iPhone owing to their collaboration with Apple. However, the phone’s firmware only allowed up to 100 songs to be loaded at a time which probably dinted its popularity.
Blackberry’s glory days are long gone. However, there was a point of time when Blackberrys were the iPhones of today, with everyone wanting one of these coveted devices. The Blackberry Pearl 8100 featured a full QWERTY keyboard (which we miss sorely), a nifty-little trackball to navigate (because touchscreens weren’t a thing yet), push email and a camera. The best part? You can buy this cellphone even today!
While the first smartphone was considered to be IBM’s Simon Personal Communicator in 1992 with real PDA capabilities, the first-ever iPhone is often touted as the device that made smartphones what they are today. This is because previous smartphones relied on keypads and could only navigate a diluted version of the internet, unlike the iPhone. The iPhone’s large (at the time) screen featured a multi-touch sensor and the capacitative touch interface that replaced traditional QWERTY keyboards as well. The iPhone was also the first phone to feature an operating system, iOS, which enabled apps to run on it, which ultimately allowed the ‘smartphones’ from then on to be used as primary mobile devices.
The HTC Dream or T-Mobile G1 released in 2008. It was a slider mobile phone with a full QWERTY keypad underneath its large screen. We’ve seen phones like this in the past so what makes this one unique? Well, it was the first phone ever to be released with the Android operating system which was designed by Google. The iOS vs Android war soon ensued and the rivalry remains at large even today.
Seems like phone manufacturers and developers at the time were having a really hard time letting go of the QWERTY keypad. The Nokia N900 is yet another touch-screen phone housing a sliding QWERTY keyboard. This phone excelled at multitasking and could actually keep multiple application windows open at the same time. It also had 32GB of internal storage which could be expanded by 16GB via an SD card. The camera also featured Carl Zeiss optics and a 5MP camera, which was pretty beefy at the time.
The smartphone featured in 2010 was really a toss-up between the iPhone 4 and the Samsung Galaxy S since the latter houses much-loved features like expandable storage and a removable back to access the battery. However, the iPhone 4 had to be mentioned since it was the first phone to have a glass back panel, something which is seen in many phones today since it looks and feels premium, especially in comparison to the plastic body on the Samsung Galaxy S which is almost obsolete now.
This smartphone marks the induction of the ‘phablet’ (phone/tablet) category of devices and its subsequent popularisation. The device accommodated a massive 5.3” screen which was unheard of at the time. iPhone users ridiculed the size of the screen then, however, even Apple now sells phones with screen sizes that FAR exceed this one. It also used an AMOLED screen which is used in devices to date. This device certainly paved the way for larger display real estate which would become prevalent in the future.
While Apple and Samsung were battling it out with their flagships, the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3, HTC went ahead and launched the HTC One X. It was touted to have the best display in the smartphone industry as of then, best-in-class processor (Nvidia Tegra 3) and the design of the phone was absolutely breathtaking as well.
Just 4 years ago, in 2009, we were raving about the N900’s 5MP camera and in 2013, the Nokia Lumia 1020 blew everyone away by announcing this device with a 41Mp shooter! It was about this time that phone manufacturers and tech enthusiasts were able to foresee a future where the smartphone camera could possibly replace the digital camera completely. The Nokia Lumia 1020, running on Windows 8, even allowed users to capture RAW image files.
Special Mention: Sony Xperia Z – this was the first water ‘proof’ (actually resistant) smartphone to ever be launched, something that is a standard feature in most smartphones these days.
Special Mention: iPhone 5S – this phone was the first to have a capacitative fingerprint scanner.
The LG G3 was the first smartphone ever to house a quad-HD display (2560×1440). It featured a massive 5.5-inch screen, a micro SD card slot, a removable battery, and a fantastic camera. The phone had some of the slimmest bezels you’d witness at that point of time too. Additionally, it also had rear-mounted power and volume control buttons. However, these were uncomfortable to use.
Special Mention: OnePlus One – this phone created an entirely different segment in the smartphone industry by offering flagship specs in a budget to mid-range phone.
Special Mention: HTC One M8 – This was the first phone to introduce dual cameras, although both cameras were 4MP.
There was a time when 4K resolution was only reserved for flat screen TVs, one wouldn’t dream of housing such a screen on a phone. However, the Xperia Z5 Premium changed that. It was the first phone to feature 4K display resolution and HDR (High Dynamic Range).
Special Mention: Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge – The S6 Edge was a gorgeous device that featured a unique, curved edge-to-edge screen.
The Google Pixel effectively replaced the ‘Nexus’ line of devices from Google in 2016. The two variants – Pixel and Pixel XL – featured a stellar camera that was very acclaimed at this time. The camera scored a rating of 89 on DxoMark (the company that rates the quality of smartphone and DSLR cameras). This was the highest score that was awarded by the company to a mobile phone at that time. It achieved this stellar performance through software optimisation rather than beefy hardware.
In 2017, Apple completely changed the game by removing the power button and bezels (except for the notch). They did this with the help of FACE ID which completely replaced the fingerprint sensor on the iPhone X. Also, the lack of a home button on the phone brought a gesture-based control to the operating system which has been present on all iPhones since then and has even been adapted on several Android phones.Click here to buy.
If the iPhone X is credited (or hated) for bringing notches into the picture in the quest for a bezel-less display, the Vivo NEX can be credited for the removal of notches by introducing the pop-up selfie camera. Many phones have since then, adapted this feature and achieved the bezel-free look including the OnePlus 7 Pro.Click here to buy.
Special Mention: Vivo X21 – The Vivo X21 was the first phone in the world to feature an under-display fingerprint sensor.
Although this is quite a controversial choice at the moment, owing to their ban in the US which could effectively ban Huawei from using Android, the P30 Pro is still one of the best phones of 2019. This is mostly because of its Leica quad-camera system housed on the back of the phone. The device captures images with great detail in almost any setting. The device is also capable of 5x optical zoom as well as 50x digital zoom, which literally lets you take pictures of the moon! Click here to buy.