Even before the iPhone and the Android phablets, there were phones that we went nuts about. While they were not exactly the technologically advanced smartphones that we have today, they were still interesting enough back then that we were convinced to buy. So what exactly are these phones that we went crazy about back then? Here are some of them:
- Nokia 5110. Remember the Snake? Yes, that game that was the Candy Crush Saga back then was first featured in the Nokia 5110. Though the 1998-released phone merely had calling and texting features, the Snake game had proved to be one of the best boredom busters back in the day.
- Nokia 3210. Ah yes, the Nokia 3210 – the first one to ditch the antenna. Well, not exactly ditch it per se but simply put it inside of the unit, placing it out of sight. The result was a curvy handset that fit just right in the palm of our hands. And when it was released in 1999, loads of covers in an array of colors surfaced, allowing us to “pimp” and personalize our phones.
- Nokia 7650. If there was a phone that started the camera-phone trend, it would certainly be the Nokia 7650. Yep, this one, which was released in 2002, started it all. It was the first phone designed with a built-in camera. It was also the first Nokia phone to run the Symbian OS 6.1.
- Motorola RAZR V3. We simply loved flip phones back then. We thought they were cool and sleek. So when Motorola released the RAZR V3 in 2004, we couldn’t help but drool over it. Its thin, aluminum body and luminescent keypad made it so sleek and fashionable; we knew we had to get one.
- Ericsson R380. Still remember Ericsson? Some of us probably had Ericsson as our first mobile phone. But what most of us probably don’t know is that the Ericsson R380 Smartphone was the first ever to be marketed as a “smartphone”. Yes, even before the BlackBerry or the iPhone, the Ericsson R380 was the first business phone (read more), combining the features of a mobile phone with that of a PDA in one neat device. It was released back in 2000.
- Sony Ericsson W800. Sony’s Walkman was a hit during the ‘80s and the ‘90s. But when the iPods and mp3 players came into the picture, they threatened the Walkman’s existence. So what Sony did was to integrate the Walkman brand into the phone it designed with Ericsson. And the result is the series of Walkman phones, led by the W800 model released in 2005. The W800 was a distinguishable white and orange device capable of playing 30 hours of music.
Yes, we’re fond of the smartphones that we have right now. But they wouldn’t be the smartphones we know today if it weren’t for their predecessors that we got to buy and enjoy a few years back. Sometimes, it just feels good to take a trip down memory lane.