History
We have come a long way since the early days of computing!
As we celebrate 40 years since the first mobile phone was used to make a call by Martin Cooper (a Motorola engineer), it is worth spending a little time reflecting on where today's smart phones and lightweight hand-held computers have come from. In doing so, we can appreciate the next step in even smaller wrist or head-worn computers that many companies, including Motorola, are working on. However, the first computer - the Z1 - was designed and produced by Konrad Zuse in Germany from 1935 to 1938. Shortly after, the war effort saw the military on both sides invest time and effort to produce faster computing machines; these machines were the beginnings of today's computers. |
Wearable Computing Timeline
1960's Elliott Computer used by many universities.
Photo courtesy of Mike O'Flynn.
Photo courtesy of Mike O'Flynn.
1951. The first commercial computers are released: the LEO (Lyons Electronic Office) in England and the UNIVAC in the U.S.
1953. IBM ships its first computer, the EDPM 701. 19 machines were sold, while one could be rented at US$15,000 per month (US$129,000 in 2013).
1954. IBM 650 is released as the first mass produced commercial computer.
1958. The first Computer Chip (Integrated Circuit) is released.
1962. The first computer game is created: Spacewar.
1963. The computer mouse is invented by Douglas Engelbart.
1969. Apollo Guidance Computer assists in man landing on the Moon and the "floppy disk" is released.
1973. The first mobile phone is used.
1976. Apple 1 is released with 4K of RAM and cost US$667 ($2,759 in 2013).
1981. IBM "PC" (personal computer) is released and uses Microsoft's MS-DOS.
1984. Apple releases its Macintosh computer, which cost $2,500 ($5,666 in 2013).
1989. US Army starts working on the concept of "wearable computers".
2007. Apple releases the iPhone. The 2G was the first of the "smart phones" and has changed the way we access the Internet and all its features ever since.
Dates sourced from Computer History Museum and Bellis, except where identified. Inflation figures calculated by DollarTimes.
1953. IBM ships its first computer, the EDPM 701. 19 machines were sold, while one could be rented at US$15,000 per month (US$129,000 in 2013).
1954. IBM 650 is released as the first mass produced commercial computer.
1958. The first Computer Chip (Integrated Circuit) is released.
1962. The first computer game is created: Spacewar.
1963. The computer mouse is invented by Douglas Engelbart.
1969. Apollo Guidance Computer assists in man landing on the Moon and the "floppy disk" is released.
1973. The first mobile phone is used.
1976. Apple 1 is released with 4K of RAM and cost US$667 ($2,759 in 2013).
1981. IBM "PC" (personal computer) is released and uses Microsoft's MS-DOS.
1984. Apple releases its Macintosh computer, which cost $2,500 ($5,666 in 2013).
1989. US Army starts working on the concept of "wearable computers".
2007. Apple releases the iPhone. The 2G was the first of the "smart phones" and has changed the way we access the Internet and all its features ever since.
Dates sourced from Computer History Museum and Bellis, except where identified. Inflation figures calculated by DollarTimes.