History is full of examples when an event had such a strong impact on the world that it became, without exaggeration, the beginning of a new era in a particular industry. The technology and consumer electronics segment (which is the most interesting for the readers of the Treshbox) is no exception, because every decade there are new breakthroughs. Recently, technology has stepped forward so much and has been deposited in memory that it seems as if there were no special inventions before. But this is a mistake: in this article, we recall what events of the first half of the 1990s turned the technological world upside down.
Release of the first GSM phone – Nokia 1011
November 10, 1992
GSM is a global standard for cellular communications, belonging to the second generation of networks (digital). Compared to analogues, it has many advantages: smaller, lighter and more economical equipment for telephones; better communication quality with dense base stations; low level of industrial interference; enhanced eavesdropping protection. All these and other advantages are embodied in Nokia 1011, the name of which reflects the date of its presentation (the 10th day of the 11th month) — the phone has forever entered history.
The release of the first “smartphone” – IBM Simon
November 23, 1992
In fact, no one called IBM Simon a smartphone, because such a term appeared only three years later – in 1995. However, this communicator had innovative features at that time, thanks to which many experts call this particular gadget the first smartphone (its full name is IBM Simon Personal Communicator). IBM Simon could send and receive cellular calls, faxes, emails. In addition, it offered many built-in applications, such as an address book, calendar, calculator, notepad, and the like. In addition, there was a touch screen, stylus support, and a predictive keyboard that suggested the 6 most likely characters (which was considered incredible at the time).
Sending the first SMS
December 3, 1992
Not “Hello, World”, not “Hi”, not “Howdy Ho” – the world’s first SMS message was the phrase “Merry Christmas” (“Merry Christmas”), sent by a 22-year-old engineer from a computer to his colleague’s phone over the network Vodafone. It is noteworthy that this happened just 10 days after the invention of the first smartphone, although the events are in no way connected. It makes no sense to talk a lot about SMS – this technology has become a new type of communication that has existed even to this day. Interestingly, the limit on the number of characters in SMS was determined only a year later – 1,120 bits (160 characters of the Latin alphabet or 70 characters of the Cyrillic alphabet).
The advent of the PDF format
June 15, 1993
In the early years, PDF was used only by various publishers exclusively in workflows, but 15 years later, in 2008, this standard became open – perhaps that is why it has continued to gain immense popularity and is actively used even in modern times. In the first versions of this format, there was no support for hyperlinks, JavaScript, buttons and other complex embedded elements, and the conditions turned out to be unfavorable: PDF documents were large, due to which they were transferred over the Internet for a long time (then it was not so developed) and slowly opened on weak computers. However, despite this, PDF still became one of the most popular formats to this day.
Demonstration of a bright blue LED
1994
We can say that the 20th century was lit up by incandescent lamps, and the 21st century by light-emitting diode lamps (LED). However, if there were no blue LED, LED lamps might never have appeared: before its development, humanity had been content with only red and green LEDs for almost half a century (and a combination of all three is needed to create white light). Many laboratories have tried to develop such an LED for many years, but without success – it turned out to be so difficult and important for the industry that the creators were even awarded the Nobel Prize.
Creating a QR code
1994
The QR code was developed by a Japanese engineering company in order to simplify and speed up the work of employees: they were forced to use several conventional barcodes for marking, since they could not contain much information. As a result, a QR code appeared – with a larger capacity and faster reading. Since it was originally intended for production, the QR code was conceived to be resistant to damage – even if part of the code is missing, it can still be read. This new generation barcode has become so convenient that it has become widely used and continues to do so even now. Moreover, the cameras of many smartphones have a built-in system QR code recognizer (sometimes the option must be enabled in the settings).
- To the point: It turns out that there are animated QR codes. Why are they read
The advent of DVDs
September 15, 1995
DVD became one of the main demonstrations of the technological revolution – discs of this format were exactly the same as CDs, but at the same time they contained much more information due to the denser structure of the working area. Compared to video cassettes, DVDs were also better in all respects: higher sound and picture quality, more volume, higher data safety. It is noteworthy that the DVD also turned out to be a kind of symbol of reconciliation: at first, two groups were engaged in its development (Sony and Philips versus Toshiba and others), but in order to avoid the war of formats, which had already subsided with VHS and Betamax, IBM intervened in the development in time and combined the efforts of all engineers.
Source: Trash Box
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
