TOLEDO -- It was 25 years ago this summer that cell phones made their presence known in the Toledo area, and their arrival was heralded as the latest "miracle of modern technology."
At that time, still in its infancy, they weren't even called cell phones yet, but known as a cellular mobile telephone service. Whatever it was called, it was starting to ring its way into everyday life. The first service in this area was targeted mostly for business purposes and no one yet understood the far reaching impact it would have in years to come in our personal lives.
The first phones were bulky and "bricklike" and were prohibitively expensive for the casual user. Some of the units, like the classic Motorola Dynatac 8000x, made famous with its use by Michael Douglas in the movie "Wall Street", retailed for about $4,000. The cheaper sets were the more familiar "bag phones" that resembled a heavy back pack with heavy batteries and industrial-like wires and cables. A far cry from the latter day flip phones and I-phones and Blackberries.
The service was also not nearly as cheap, with many services charging as much as 50-cents a minute and even more for roaming rates, if you were out of your services area, and the service areas were not very large.
But in 1985, it was all very exciting and cutting edge. In an archive story NBC featured at that time, our reporter was impressed by the fact that he could drive down Reynolds Road and make a phone call back to the TV station while riding in a car. Little did we know at that time how many more stories were would be doing about cell phones and personal communication devices in future years.
A recent check of our files shows hundreds stories we have done on the subject of cell phone use in recent years. Clearly, cell phones, like computers have become pervasive electronic extensions of ourselves and leaves us wondering - where does it end? Stay tuned.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forWNWO