Getting Educated
You know that feeling you get in your gut when a grandparent or aunt/uncle is struggling with an iPhone or tablet, because they “never had anything like it as a kid”? This consequently is why that generation of the human race constantly prefer snail mail over email, handwritten Thank You notes versus a wall post, and a big smile in person over a J via text. Fun fact: the first analog cell phone (meaning all it did was send and receive phone calls) was invented in 1970. It was a monumental discovery and immediately opened the technological doors wide open to a chain reaction of events we know today as “upgrading.” This “first generation” (1G) of phone users could communicate through the device wirelessly, voice to voice. Not even a decade later, the world was introduced to 2G – the Second Generation of cell phones.
Digital set out 2 Generate Wider Interest
While 1G (first generation) cell phones focused simply on verbal communication, 2G introduced the ability to utilize a “short message service,” more recognizable as SMS or texting. Suddenly you did not have to wait for the person to pick up their phone, as you could just leave them a message of text explaining why you called. Also, 2G offered “seamless roaming” which let subscribers text/call between phone providers. This new addition of data capabilities paved the way for a brief upgrade at the turn of the 21st century before the grand unveiling of 3G in 2004.
2.5G – Halfway to Greatness
Sandwiched between the multi-dimensional 2G and seemingly unlimited 3G, the little-known 2.5G was released as data usage and the Internet grew in popularity. Multimedia services and web browsing (always assumed to be used strictly on a computer) could now be accessible on your mobile phone. Although very few phones had this new capability, an interesting tidbit is that 2.5G was the generation that began using the term “mobile device” more often than “cell phone” as phones started resembling basic computers.
3G – You can do what?!?
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In 30+ years, we saw a large boxy phone with only one function transform into a multi-tasking sleek device now utilizing 3G. These Third Generation phones enhanced the digital qualities of 2G/2.5G to become Digital Broadband, which provided universal access across different devices. 3G also brought faster speeds, Internet, mobile TV, gaming, video calls and conferencing, and multi-media messaging services (MMS) to text pictures and videos with the click of a button. In comparison to 2G and 2.5G however, 3G users were billed at much higher prices for all of the available additions. A couple years later was a brief release of 3.5G, mainly due to technology that sped up browsing/messaging/calling even more.
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| 3G -- Overwhelming Awesomeness |
4G – The Future is Now
Wow. 4G. The Fourth Generation. We live as part of that generation right now, as we look forward to the soon-to-be-released iPad3 and iPhone 5 which promise ridiculous increase in speed, substantially improved Wi-Fi (wireless connection to the Internet), and High Definition so life-like, life itself may soon appear blurry. With the future approaching faster than ever before, there can’t be anything better than 4G, can there….?
5G – Golden. Great. Gallant. Gorgeous. Goodness me…
When someone mentions “5G” you can hear music from heaven. In a world where everything must happen the instant we want it to (or even just before), using 5G is said to feel better than winning the lottery. With 5G technology one will easily be able to connect his or her laptop with the Internet through a cell phone. Since cell phones nowadays more resemble portable computers than phones (as almost all of these phones include audio and video playback, cameras, etc.), the emergence of 5G technology will bring an enormous revolutionary change into the media market of electronics. It is said that with 5G, distant calls will be made smoother, more accessible and local. Future cell phones embedded with 5G technology will most certainly lead to a decrease in competition from normal PCs/laptops/tablets. However, since 4G technology is still under development, the possibilities for 5G technology are endless and unpredictable, and not expected to be completed until 2020.
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