The Telephones Portal 
A telephone, colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into electronic signals that are transmitted via cables and other communication channels to another telephone which reproduces the sound to the receiving user. The term is derived from Ancient Greek: τῆλε, romanized: tēle, lit. 'far' and φωνή (phōnē, voice), together meaning distant voice.
In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell was the first to be granted a United States patent for a device that produced clearly intelligible replication of the human voice at a second device. This instrument was further developed by many others, and became rapidly indispensable in business, government, and in households. (Full article...)
A mobile phone or cell phone is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link while the user is moving within a telephone service area, as opposed to a fixed-location phone (landline phone). The radio frequency link establishes a connection to the switching systems of a mobile phone operator, which provides access to the public switched telephone network (PSTN). Modern mobile telephone services use a cellular network architecture, and therefore mobile telephones are called cellphones (or "cell phones") in North America. In addition to telephony, digital mobile phones support a variety of other services, such as text messaging, multimedia messaging, email, Internet access (via LTE, 5G NR or Wi-Fi), short-range wireless communications (infrared, Bluetooth), satellite access (navigation, messaging connectivity), business applications, payments (via NFC), multimedia playback and streaming (radio, television), digital photography, and video games. Mobile phones offering only basic capabilities are known as feature phones (slang: "dumbphones"); mobile phones that offer greatly advanced computing capabilities are referred to as smartphones. (Full article...)
A smartphone, often simply called a phone, is a mobile device that combines the functionality of a traditional mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multimedia playback and streaming. Smartphones have built-in cameras, GPS navigation, and support for various communication methods, including voice calls, text messaging, and internet-based messaging apps. (Full article...)
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The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus are smartphones that were designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. They are the eighth generation of the iPhone, succeeding the iPhone 5, iPhone 5c and iPhone 5s, and were announced on September 9, 2014, and released on September 19, 2014. The iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus jointly were themselves replaced as the flagship devices of the iPhone series by the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus on September 9, 2015. The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus include larger 4.7 and 5.5 inches (120 and 140 mm) displays, a faster processor, upgraded cameras, improved LTE and Wi-Fi connectivity and support for a near-field communications-based mobile payments offering.
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus received positive reviews, with critics regarding their redesign, specifications, camera, and battery life as being improvements over previous iPhone models. However, aspects of the design of iPhone 6 were also criticized, including plastic strips on the rear of the device for its antenna that disrupted the otherwise metal exterior, and the screen resolution of the standard-sized iPhone 6 being lower than other devices in its class. The iPhone 6 sold extremely well, making it the best-selling iPhone model and the most successful smartphone to date.
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus have been the subject of several hardware issues, including most prominently, being susceptible to bending under hard pressure (dubbed "Bendgate"), and as a byproduct of this lack of rigidity, the touchscreen's internal hardware being susceptible to losing its connection to the phone's logic board (nicknamed "Touch Disease"). Additionally, some iPhone 6 Plus models were the subject of camera issues, including some with malfunctioning optical image stabilization or otherwise defects on rear cameras. (Full article...)Types of phones -
Windows Phone (WP) is a discontinued mobile operating system developed by Microsoft for smartphones as the replacement successor to Windows Mobile and Zune. Windows Phone featured a new user interface derived from the Metro design language. Unlike Windows Mobile, it was primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market.
It was first launched in October 2010 with Windows Phone 7. Windows Phone 8 succeeded it in 2012, replacing the Windows CE-based kernel of Windows Phone 7 with the Windows NT kernel used by the PC versions of Windows (and, in particular, a large amount of internal components from Windows 8). Due to these changes, the OS was incompatible with all existing Windows Phone 7 devices, although it still supported apps originally developed for Windows Phone 7. In 2014, Microsoft released the Windows Phone 8.1 update, which introduced the Cortana virtual assistant, and Windows Runtime platform support to create cross-platform apps between Windows PCs and Windows Phone.
In 2015, Microsoft released Windows 10 Mobile, which promoted increased integration and unification with its PC counterpart, including the ability to connect devices to an external display or docking station to display a PC-like interface. Although Microsoft dropped the Windows Phone brand at this time in order to focus more on synergies with Windows 10 for PCs, it was still a continuation of the Windows Phone line from a technical standpoint, and updates were issued for selected Windows Phone 8.1 devices. (Full article...)Selected audio -
The TeleZapper is a device designed to reduce the number of telemarketing-related phone calls a household receives by imitating the tone signal normally played by a phone company to indicate a line has been disconnected. The Telezapper was created by Privacy Technologies, Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Appliance Mfg. Co. (Full article...)
List articles
- Comparison of smartphones
- List of best-selling mobile phones
- List of countries by number of broadband Internet subscriptions
- List of countries by number of telephone lines in use
- List of countries by smartphone penetration
- List of country calling codes
- List of iPhone models
- List of mobile network operators
- List of mobile phone brands by country
- List of mobile phone generations
- List of telecommunications companies
Related portals
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Mobile payment system. (from Smartphone) -
A French Gower telephone of 1912 at the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris (from History of the telephone) -
Mobile phone subscribers per 100 inhabitants. 2014 figure is estimated. (from Mobile phone) -
The original Apple iPhone; following its introduction the common smartphone form factor shifted to large touchscreen software interfaces without physical keypads (from Smartphone) -
The back of a Nokia 9 PureView. It features a five-lens camera array with Zeiss optics, using a mixture of color and monochrome sensors. (from Smartphone) -
A New York City driver holding two phones (from Smartphone) -
Antonio Meucci, 1854, constructed telephone-like devices. (from History of the telephone) -
A user consulting a mapping app on a phone (from Smartphone) -
A sign in the US restricting cell phone use to certain times of day (no cell phone use between 7:30–9:00 am and 2:00–4:15 pm) (from Mobile phone) -
Inserted memory and SIM cards (from Smartphone) -
A 19th century acoustic tin can or "lovers' telephone" (from History of the telephone) -
Cellular networks work by only reusing radio frequencies (in this example frequencies f1-f4) in non adjacent cells to avoid interference (from Mobile phone) -
Scrapped mobile phones (from Mobile phone) -
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Typical mobile phone mini-SIM card (from Mobile phone) -
1917 wall telephone, open to show magneto and local battery (from History of the telephone) -
A sign along Bellaire Boulevard in Southside Place, Texas (Greater Houston) states that using mobile phones while driving is prohibited from 7:30 am to 9:00 am and from 2:00 pm to 4:15 pm. (from Smartphone)
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The master telephone patent granted to Bell, 174465, March 10, 1876 (from History of the telephone) -
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IBM Simon and charging base (1994) (from Smartphone) -
A smartphone touchscreen (from Smartphone) -
Two decades of evolution of mobile phones, from a 1992 Motorola DynaTAC 8000X to the 2014 iPhone 6 Plus (from Mobile phone) -
Smartphone with infrared transmitter on top for use as remote control (from Smartphone) -
Tooltip in Kiwi Browser, a Google Chromium derivative, reveals the full URL by hovering over the tab list using the stylus on a Samsung Galaxy Note 4. (from Smartphone) -
People using phones while walking (from Mobile phone) -
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Several BlackBerry smartphones, which were highly popular in the mid-late 2000s (from Smartphone) -
A driver using two handheld mobile phones at once (from Mobile phone) -
A text message (SMS) (from Mobile phone) -
Private conversation, 1910 (from History of the telephone) -
The LG Prada with a large capacitive touchscreen introduced in 2006 (from Smartphone) -
Top of cellular telephone tower (from History of the telephone) -
Mobile/desktop convergence: the Librem 5 smartphone can be used as a basic desktop computer (from Smartphone) -
Active mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants (from Mobile phone) -
Dupuis and Haug during a GSM meeting in Belgium, April 1992 (from Mobile phone) -
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Alexander Graham Bell was awarded the first U.S. patent for the invention of the telephone in 1876. (from History of the telephone) -
Mobile payment system (from Mobile phone) -
Actor portraying Alexander Graham Bell in a 1932 silent film. Shows Bell's second telephone transmitter (microphone), invented 1876 and first displayed at the Centennial Exposition, Philadelphia. (from History of the telephone) -
The Nokia 9110 Communicator, opened for access to keyboard (from Smartphone) -
Thomas Edison invented the carbon microphone which produced a strong telephone signal. (from History of the telephone) -
Elisha Gray, 1876, designed a telephone using a water microphone in Highland Park, Illinois. (from History of the telephone) -
The Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. In 1983, it became the first commercially available handheld cellular mobile phone. (from Mobile phone) -
"Device options" menu of Samsung Mobile's TouchWiz user interface as of 2013, accessed by holding the power button for a second (from Smartphone) -
1896 Telephone (Sweden) (from History of the telephone) -
A Moto G7 Power; its display uses a tall aspect ratio and includes a "notch". (from Smartphone) -
This layout of the camera viewfinder was first introduced by Apple with iOS 7 in 2013. Towards the late 2010s, several other smartphone vendors have ditched their layouts and implemented variations of this layout. (from Smartphone) -
Antonio Meucci's telephone. (from History of the telephone) -
Android smartphones (from Mobile phone) -
Personal Handy-phone System mobiles and modems, 1997–2003 (from Mobile phone) -
Philipp Reis, 1861, constructed the first telephone, today called the Reis telephone. (from History of the telephone) -
Historical marker commemorating the first telephone central office in New York State (1878) (from History of the telephone) -
A smartphone displaying the homepage of the English Wikipedia (from Smartphone) -
Old Receiver schematic, c.1906 (from History of the telephone) -
Bell prototype telephone stamp(from History of the telephone)
Centennial Issue of 1976 -
Martin Cooper of Motorola, shown here in a 2007 reenactment, made the first publicized handheld mobile phone call on a prototype DynaTAC model on 3 April 1973. (from Mobile phone) -
Optical track pad sensor of an HTC Legend, 2010. (from Smartphone) -
The back of a Huawei P30. It features three rear-facing camera lenses with Leica optics. (from Smartphone) -
A Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus, featuring a "hole-punch" camera (from Smartphone) -
Apple iPhone smartphone (from History of the telephone) -
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Track-side emergency brake and emergency telephones at the platform of the metro station Aspern Nord, Donaustadt, Vienna, Austria -
The AUTOVON was a worldwide American military telephone system that was built starting in 1963. -
Android smartphones -
Rotary dial telephone, probably from Belgium; the circuit diagram inside is in Dutch and French -
Acoustic telephone ad, The Consolidated Telephone Co., Jersey City, New Jersey, 1886 -
Photograph of the interior of the Prairie Grove Airlight Outdoor Telephone Booth in Prairie Grove, Arkansas, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places -
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Landline call blocking in use -
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Apple iPhones -
A Bell Canada payphone with digital display -
An example of a K6, the most common red telephone box model, photographed in London in 2012 -
Emergency telephones, on the Paris-Bordeaux railway line, Saint-Saviol station, Vienne, France -
A historic telephone booth in Skansen, Stockholm -
Public telephone, Bucharest, Romania -
Telephone booth box art outside the Tower of London, 2012 -
A police box outside Earl's Court tube station in London, built in 1996 and based on the 1929 Gilbert Mackenzie Trench design -
Automatic electric Rotary dial telephone -
Wooden wall telephone with a hand-cranked magneto generator -
A Western Electric candlestick phone from the 1920s -
A Northern Electric telephone, model number N415H, circa 1950 (probably) -
Mailbox and public telephone in Haßfurt, Germany -
Historical telephone with the German imperial eagle and the heraldic shield of the House of Hohenzollern dynasty; Vollmer's Mill, Seebach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany -
Rotary dial telephone, probably from Belgium; the circuit diagram inside is in Dutch and French -
A Funke + Huster telephone inside the Idrija Mine, Slovenia -
A traditional North American rotary phone dial. The associative lettering was originally used for dialing named exchanges but was kept because it facilitated memorization of telephone numbers.
Topics
| Types | |
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| Accessories | |
| Connectivity | |
| Calls | |
| Applications | |
| Mobile networks, protocols |
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| General operation | |||||||
| Mobile devices |
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| Mobile specific software |
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| Culture | |||||||
| Environment and health | |||||||
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Cellular network standards | |||||||||
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| 0G radio telephones (1946) | |||||||||
| 1G (1979) |
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| 2G (1991) |
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| 2G transitional (2.5G, 2.75G, 2.9G) |
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| 3G (1998) IMT-2000 (2001) |
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| 3G transitional (3.5G, 3.75G, 3.9G) |
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| 4G (2009) IMT Advanced (2013) |
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| 5G (2018) IMT-2020 (2021) |
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| Related articles | |||||||||
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