My First Cell Phone

[MolaKule]

My First Cell Phone - Seriously. It sat on the hump as it had ears and cleats to keep it from sliding.

It was analog but with a rooftop antenna on my vehicle I never got disconnected.

 

[BISCUT]

My first wife's dad was an attorney with the NYC Dinkens administration. I was finishing my grad school in MA and she was a teacher in Westchester NY. We traveled a lot so her dad got her something very similar. Amazing how that HUGE monstrosity actually worked and worked well.

 

[Just a civilian pilot]

Thats hilarious! I remember a friend had one sort of like that one you had.

You mad me laugh......Calling in an airstrike.

Actually, just remembered.....my company used to make us take a similar looking satellite phone on certain trips where we had no ACARS on the ground ( some place in Cuba IIRC ). Cuba now has ACARS most places.

 

[ka9mnx]

I bought my wife one for Christmas because she traveled 50 miles through country roads to work. They were called bag phones.

 

[MolaKule]

Mine was called a "hump phone" because it came as a kit to be mounted on the transmission tunnel or hump.

This puppy had an output power of 35 Watts. I travelled frequently between Wichita Ks and St. Louis and never got disconnected during a conversation.

 

[4WD]

Had the one below … also kept an IMTS (car) phone active … a low band radio … a high band radio …
My white Crown Vic was mistaken for a patrol car a few times (lots of antennas)

Motorola DynaTAC - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[spasm3]

I have same one here somewhere, I had the lead acid sealed portable battery, but got ride of that.

 

[harbor]

I recall having one of these “bag” phones and they worked pretty well.

 

[eljefino]

I used to listen to all you guys with my B&W tv UHF channels 70-83 and its fine tuning knob.

 

[Dinoburner]

Was behind a white Lincoln at a traffic light some 30 years ago which when it turned green it didn`t move so I tapped the horn. The gorgeous blond driver spun around and said I`m on the phone which prompted me to make a move along motion. The handset with coiled cord was the first seen by me. LOL

 

[AutoMechanic]

My parents told me all about those bag phones lol.

 

[spasm3]

I recall having one of these “bag” phones and they worked pretty well.

IIRC they were like 4 watts output.

 

[blufeb95]

Oldest phone I ever used was a Motorola V120 on Tracfone, I believe AT&T pulled the plug on the network technologies it supported in early 2008.

 

[Jetronic]

alcatel OT Pocket Specs – Technopat Database

www.technopat.net

This was my first one, I was an early adaptor.... complete witch charging station

 

[Fitter30]

Was the cost to use like $1 minute both ways.

 

[MolaKule]

Was the cost to use like $1 minute both ways.

As I recall the cost was about $135.00/month flat rate (1988 time frame), and that included the booster Amp, the basic hardware, external antenna, and the hump kit. Today, I pay more than that for Verizon service for two phones.

At the time I thought it was expensive but travelling Mo, Kansas, and Oklahoma there were very few options to communicate back home or to the office.

 

[Kira]

A pal worked for Nokiadata YEARS ago.
His bag phone was twice that of the one in post #1.
He'd fire it up and call everyone he knew as mobile service was then a novelty.

 

[grisby]

My first phone(car phone) IMTS was when I started at Bell of Pa back in 1974. Big unit in trunk of my car-horn would beep or lights would flash when I had an incoming call. Then we got the bag phones and I thought that was great. Had to carry it with me but like IMTS, never had a dropped call and when we went to the small units I got my own and it was great. I had the duty(on call) one weekend and went fishing and the darn thing fell out of my boat in the river. Got it out and it worked, never had a problem with it. When they went digital, always got the drop calls. But we didn't have internet access on the phones back in the day. Never needed it and people were'nt glued to their phones with the heads down walking off of street corners like they do nowadays. AHH the memories.

 

[grisby]

IIRC they were like 4 watts output.

Yep 4 watts and if you new someone you could get it boosted to about 5 watts.

 

[FFFEMT]

Worked for Motorola from 1995 to 2001 in Harvard, Il. Started making these Bag Phones, then the StarTac phones became the hot item Jaguar auto even had us make a special bag phone with simulated wood on the phone. Quite an experience.