Smartphones, or digital revolution

It’s hard to believe but 2016 marks the twentieth anniversary of the launch of the first mobile phone network in Poland. It’s almost a quarter of a century! During this time we have had a chance to witness a real revolution. By which I mean of course a technological revolution.

When the first GSM operators arrived at these shores, even a stationary phone was a rarity in many households. Interestingly, despite the passage of time, stationary phones in our homes are not commonplace today, either. The reason is the ease with which anyone can get a sleek cellular phone, which has redefined the concept of telecommunication in our country in the last twenty years.

The mobile phone market saturation in Poland today is about one hundred and fifty per cent. The number of sim cards in use approaches sixty million, while almost eighty per cent of all mobile phones sold are smartphones, which are driving traditional mobile phones out of the market.

The popularity of mobile phones has brought another revolution. Smartphones have turned phones from multifunctional to universal devices, which have quickly fought off competition, and not only in the telecommunications market. The smartphone has, to a greater of lesser extent, seen off the MP3 players, the simplest photo cameras and GPS navigation devices, to name but a few most obvious examples. It is also used for reading books, watching and recording movies, and most of all for surfing online: from dropping into the social media networks to internet shopping. The phone can still be used for making calls, of course. 

For more information on smartphones and for a potted history of Polish mobile telephony, visit my blog – www.ilonaweissblog.com