The principles of cellular telephones were worked out at Bell Labs in the 1940s; however building such systems had to await the arrival of integrated circuits and other microelectronic components in the 1970s. In the United States, hundreds of companies saw the promise of the business, but government regulators were very slow in making a sufficiently “broad band” of frequencies available, delaying deployment considerably. As a result, Japan and the Scandinavian countries created the first cellular systems and have since remained leaders in the technology. At the start there was plenty of room for improvement. Early cell phones were mainly installed in cars; handheld versions were as big as a brick, cost over a thousand dollars, and had a battery life measured in mere minutes. But in the 1990s the magic of the microchip drove prices down, shrank the phones to pocket size, reduced their energy needs, and packed them with computational powers.
By the year 2000, 100 million people in the United States and a billion worldwide were using cell phones—not just talking on them but also playing games, getting information off the Internet, and using the keyboard to send short text messages, a favourite pastime of Japanese teenagers in particular. In countries where most households still lack a telephone— China and India, for example—the first and only phone for many people is likely to be wireless. Ultimately, Alexander Graham Bell's vision of a wired world may yield to a future in which, for everyone, personal communication is totally portable.
I believe that this is one item that we as North Americans have grown a custom to and for good reason. A cell phone does offer you the protection a peace of mind of never being completely out-of-touch with one another (unless of course you are out of service). And I believe that with the growing population of the world it is becoming more and more difficult to keep in touch with the people we care about. With this new medium all the communication we need is just the push of a button away. In seconds we can be put in touch with friends, family member, colleagues and even 911 operators. With more and more people jumping on the cell phone bandwagon it is easy to see why it has become such a big part of popular culture.
When cell phones were first marketed, companies were selling them as a convenience item than came along with the status symbol. You were a prestigious person if you had a cell or car phone in the late 80’s. But in later years with the success of the market, companies created a need for cell phones as a marketing tool which drove the market considerably. They also helped boost the market by integrating other products and services into the phone such as calculators, digital phonebooks, cameras, access to the internet and the latest being, the ability to watch television via your cell phone. Although many people do not need these features they are pushed by advertisements and salespersons alike to be up to date with the new technology because no one who’s anyone wants to be left behind.
This course has been a real eye-opener for me I now see advertising and popular culture in a different light. I am not against popular culture because it does make life more interesting and challenges companies to come up with new and exciting products. However I am not 100% for many aspects of popular culture because of the way things are marketed and advertised. Creating a false need is basically what is driving the cell phone and other markets alike, generating millions annually to money hungry corporations. I am now able to recognize items associated with popular culture and advertising and actually view the product regardless of who’s posing or speaking on the behalf of the newest craze.
