{"id":6155,"date":"2016-09-08T16:33:35","date_gmt":"2016-09-08T14:33:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.teleforwarding.com\/?p=6155"},"modified":"2016-11-08T13:50:10","modified_gmt":"2016-11-08T12:50:10","slug":"part-7-the-rise-of-digital-telephony","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.teleforwarding.com\/blog\/part-7-the-rise-of-digital-telephony\/","title":{"rendered":"Part 7 | The rise of digital telephony"},"content":{"rendered":"

In this series we explore the history of telecommunications in all its facets.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"digital-telephony\"We already told you about the rise and evolution of toll-free servive numbers and the first mobile phone. In this article you’ll learn more about the further evolution of digital telephony and mobile telephones; from large analogue machines to the intelligent smartphone as we all know it.<\/p>\n

3 generations: 1G, 2G and 3G<\/h2>\n

When the first mobile phone appeared in the ’80s there were different mobile networks throughout the world. Frontrunner was \u00a0Japan, where the first commercial network in the world was already active in 1979. At first it was just Tokyo that was connected, but within 5 years the rest of the country had joined the capital.\u00a0The USA followed soon after, and \u00a0Europe responded by setting up\u00a0Global System for Mobile Communications,\u00a0or GSM.<\/p>\n

All these different networks had one thing in common: they could only be used for calls through the analogue network, but soon the 1G network made a name for itself. In 1991 the first digital mobile network was implemented in Finland by Radiolinja, what later became part of Elisa Oyj<\/a>. This network was labelled 2G; the second generation of wireless telephone technology. 2G had a few advantages. Information could be transferred encrypted over the digital network, it was more efficient and 2G made it possible to send data as well – like SMS\u00a0and\u00a0MMS. And everything was secured digitally.<\/p>\n

Though the mobile network evolved rapidly with the introduction of 3G in 2001 and 4G in 2014, the 2g network is still being used today in some parts of the world, but more and more countries choose\u00a0to gradually shut down their 2G networks.<\/p>\n

Digital telephony and smartphones<\/h2>\n

Already in the ’70s Theodor G. Paraskevakos<\/a> developed the concept of a phone that could connect\u00a0intelligence and data processing with a virtual display. This concept could be realized once 2G made it possible to send data over the network.<\/p>\n

\"nokia\"There are several answers to the question who introduced the first smartphone to the market. In the middle of the ’90s there were 2 devices which could be used to call, email\u00a0and\u00a0fax, and a digital calendar was built in as well. These were the early versions of the smartphone:<\/p>\n