Portal:Telephones
The Telephones Portal 
A telephone 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 Greek: τῆλε (tēle, far) and φωνή (phōnē, voice), together meaning distant voice. A common short form of the term is phone, which came into use early in the telephone's history. Nowadays, phones are almost always in the form of smartphones or mobile phones, due to technological convergence.
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 cellphone) 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 National Do Not Call Registry is a database maintained by the United States federal government, listing the telephone numbers of individuals and families who have requested that telemarketers not contact them. Certain callers are required by federal law to respect this request. Separate laws and regulations apply to robocalls in the United States.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) opened the National Do Not Call Registry in order to comply with the Do-Not-Call Implementation Act of 2003 (Pub. L. 108–10 (text) (PDF), was H.R. 395, and codified at 15 U.S.C. § 6101 et seq.), sponsored by Representatives Billy Tauzin and John Dingell and signed into law by President George W. Bush on March 11, 2003. The law established the FTC's National Do Not Call Registry in order to facilitate compliance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991. A guide by FTC addresses a number of cases.
Registration for the Do-Not-Call list began on June 27, 2003, and enforcement started on October 1, 2003. Since January 1, 2005, telemarketers covered by the registry have up to 31 days (initially the period was 90 days) from the date a number is registered to cease calling that number. Originally, phone numbers remained on the registry for a period of five years, but are now permanent because of the Do-Not-Call Improvement Act of 2007, effective February 2008. (Full article...)Types of phones -
Mobile radio telephone systems were mobile telephony systems that preceded modern cellular network technology. Since they were the predecessors of the first generation of cellular telephones, these systems are sometimes retroactively referred to as pre-cellular (or sometimes zero generation, that is, 0G) systems. Technologies used in pre-cellular systems included the Push to Talk (PTT or manual), Mobile Telephone Service (MTS), Improved Mobile Telephone Service (IMTS), and Advanced Mobile Telephone System (AMTS) systems. These early mobile telephone systems can be distinguished from earlier closed radiotelephone systems in that they were available as a commercial service that was part of the public switched telephone network, with their own telephone numbers, rather than part of a closed network such as a police radio or taxi dispatching system.
These mobile telephones were usually mounted in cars or trucks (thus called car phones), although portable briefcase models were also made. Typically, the transceiver (transmitter-receiver) was mounted in the vehicle trunk and attached to the "head" (dial, display, and handset) mounted near the driver seat.
They were sold through WCCs (Wireline Common Carriers, a.k.a. telephone companies), RCCs (Radio Common Carriers), and two-way radio dealers. (Full article...)Selected audio -
A dial tone (dialling tone in the UK) is a telephony signal sent by a telephone exchange or private branch exchange (PBX) to a terminating device, such as a telephone, when an off-hook condition is detected. It indicates that the exchange is working and is ready to initiate a telephone call. The tone stops when the first dialed digit is recognized. If no digits are forthcoming, the partial dial procedure is invoked, often eliciting a special information tone and an intercept message, followed by the off-hook tone, requiring the caller to hang up and redial. (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 telephone operating companies
Related portals
General images -
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A smartphone touchscreen (from Smartphone) -
Bell prototype telephone stamp(from History of the telephone)
Centennial Issue of 1976 -
Android smartphones (from Mobile phone) -
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) -
The master telephone patent granted to Bell, 174465, March 10, 1876 (from History of the telephone) -
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) -
A New York City driver holding two phones (from Smartphone) -
"Device options" menu of Samsung Mobile's TouchWiz user interface as of 2013, accessed by holding the power button for a second (from Smartphone) -
A Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus, featuring a "hole-punch" camera (from Smartphone) -
Smartphone with infrared transmitter on top for use as remote control (from Smartphone) -
Typical mobile phone mini-SIM card (from Mobile phone) -
Apple iPhone smartphone (from History of the telephone) -
Two decades of evolution of mobile phones, from a 1992 Motorola 8900X-2 to the 2014 iPhone 6 Plus (from Mobile phone) -
A smartphone displaying the homepage of the English Wikipedia (from Smartphone) -
Mobile payment system (from Mobile phone) -
Historical marker commemorating the first telephone central office in New York State (1878) (from History of the telephone) -
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)
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Cellular networks work by only reusing radio frequencies (in this example frequencies f1-f4) in non adjacent cells to avoid interference (from Mobile phone) -
Personal Handy-phone System mobiles and modems, 1997–2003 (from Mobile phone) -
A text message (SMS) (from Mobile phone) -
Top of cellular telephone tower (from History of the telephone) -
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Scrapped mobile phones (from Mobile phone) -
IBM Simon and charging base (1994) (from Smartphone) -
Antonio Meucci's telephone. (from History of the telephone) -
A driver using two handheld mobile phones at once (from Mobile phone) -
People using phones while walking (from Mobile phone) -
The Nokia 9110 Communicator, opened for access to keyboard (from Smartphone) -
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1896 Telephone (Sweden) (from History of the telephone) -
Optical track pad sensor of an HTC Legend, 2010. (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) -
Several BlackBerry smartphones, which were highly popular in the mid-late 2000s (from Smartphone) -
Alexander Graham Bell was awarded the first U.S. patent for the invention of the telephone in 1876. (from History of the telephone) -
Philipp Reis, 1861, constructed the first telephone, today called the Reis telephone. (from History of the telephone) -
The original Apple iPhone; following its introduction the common smartphone form factor shifted to large touchscreen software interfaces without physical keypads (from Smartphone) -
The Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. In 1983, it became the first commercially available handheld cellular mobile phone. (from Mobile phone) -
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) -
Dupuis and Haug during a GSM meeting in Belgium, April 1992 (from Mobile phone) -
1917 wall telephone, open to show magneto and local battery (from History of the telephone) -
Inserted memory and SIM cards (from Smartphone) -
Mobile/desktop convergence: the Librem 5 smartphone can be used as a basic desktop computer (from Smartphone) -
Mobile phone subscribers per 100 inhabitants. 2014 figure is estimated. (from Mobile phone) -
Private conversation, 1910 (from History of the telephone) -
Elisha Gray, 1876, designed a telephone using a water microphone in Highland Park, Illinois. (from History of the telephone) -
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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) -
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A user consulting a mapping app on a phone (from Smartphone) -
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Thomas Edison invented the carbon microphone which produced a strong telephone signal. (from History of the telephone) -
Antonio Meucci, 1854, constructed telephone-like devices. (from History of the telephone) -
A 19th century acoustic tin can or "lovers' telephone" (from History of the telephone) -
A French Gower telephone of 1912 at the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris (from History of the telephone) -
Active mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants (from Mobile phone) -
The back of a Huawei P30. It features three rear-facing camera lenses with Leica optics. (from Smartphone) -
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) -
Old Receiver schematic, c.1906 (from History of the telephone) -
A Moto G7 Power; its display uses a tall aspect ratio and includes a "notch". (from Smartphone) -
The LG Prada with a large capacitive touchscreen introduced in 2006 (from Smartphone) -
Mobile payment system. (from Smartphone)
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Selected biography
Elisha Gray (August 2, 1835 – January 21, 1901) was an American electrical engineer who co-founded the Western Electric Manufacturing Company. Gray is best known for his development of a telephone prototype in 1876 in Highland Park, Illinois. Some recent authors have argued that Gray should be considered the true inventor of the telephone because Alexander Graham Bell allegedly stole the idea of the liquid transmitter from him. Although Gray had been using liquid transmitters in his telephone experiments for more than two years previously, Bell's telephone patent was upheld in numerous court decisions.
Gray is also considered to be the father of the modern music synthesizer, and was granted over 70 patents for his inventions. He was one of the founders of Graybar, purchasing a controlling interest in the company shortly after its inception. (Full article...)Selected images
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The AUTOVON was a worldwide American military telephone system that was built starting in 1963. -
A Funke + Huster telephone inside the Idrija Mine, Slovenia -
Mailbox and public telephone in Haßfurt, Germany -
Rotary dial telephone, probably from Belgium; the circuit diagram inside is in Dutch and French -
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. -
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 -
Public telephone, Bucharest, Romania -
A Northern Electric telephone, model number N415H, circa 1950 (probably) -
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Track-side emergency brake and emergency telephones at the platform of the metro station Aspern Nord, Donaustadt, Vienna, Austria -
Android smartphones -
Wooden wall telephone with a hand-cranked magneto generator -
A historic telephone booth in Skansen, Stockholm -
Acoustic telephone ad, The Consolidated Telephone Co., Jersey City, New Jersey, 1886 -
Rotary dial telephone, probably from Belgium; the circuit diagram inside is in Dutch and French -
Automatic electric Rotary dial telephone -
Emergency telephones, on the Paris-Bordeaux railway line, Saint-Saviol station, Vienne, France -
An example of a K6, the most common red telephone box model, photographed in London in 2012 -
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A Bell Canada payphone with digital display -
Historical telephone with the German imperial eagle and the heraldic shield of the House of Hohenzollern dynasty; Vollmer's Mill, Seebach, Baden-Württemberg, Germany -
A police box outside Earl's Court tube station in London, built in 1996 and based on the 1929 Gilbert Mackenzie Trench design -
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Telephone booth box art outside the Tower of London, 2012 -
A Western Electric candlestick phone from the 1920s -
Landline call blocking in use -
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Apple iPhones
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 | |||||||
| Law | |||||||
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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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