Old School Communications

How did people communicate before mobile phones were invented? They were not without options. In fact, they had quite a few to choose from!

Carrier Pigeons

These air-borne messengers were used to deliver letters because they have a unique ability to instinctively fly back home when released elsewhere. They were extensively used in the World War 1 to deliver messages and some of their messages have saved many lives.

Telegrams

These were short messages that were sent electronically via telegraphs. The handwritten messages were transmitted from the senders telegraph office to the receivers telegraph office, after which the message will be printed and delivered by hand to the addressee.

Snail Mail

Postal services or snail mail continue to be widely used worldwide. Letters, postcards and parcels are sent using the service and payment are made in the form of postage stamps.

Pagers

Each pager has a unique number that people use to send messages to. A pager owner will know who is paging for them through the alphanumeric messages they receive. They will then call the sender using a public phone or other landlines. They were popular in the 1980s.

Public

Payphones

Payphones still exist today in many countries, but not as many remain as in the past. You need to insert coins or cards to use them. They are useful when you need to call someone but do not have a mobile phone with you.

Early Mobile Phones

Mobiles in the past were bulky and some were installed in cars. Martin Cooper famously made the first phone call using a mobile phone on April 3 1973.