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On April 3, 1973, Marty Copper made the very first mobile phone call, through what was then known as a cellular telephone. Marking it’s 40th anniversary this month.

Marty, who at the time was an employee for Motorola, made the call using a Motorola DynaTAC. This was considered a prototype that went on to become the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x. The first ever commercially available mobile phone, that was made available to the public in 1983.

Cheap international calls provider Firstnumber, are truly stunned by the recent advancements in mobile technology, considering the Motorola DynaTAC prototype was around 23cm tall and was more than one kilogram in weight, with only thirty five minute talk time after a ten hour charge, featuring only a ‘single-line, text only LED screen’.

No-one at the time were able to predict the recent advancements in mobile technology and how important the internet would be to help shape the incredibly capable smartphones we have today.

A spokesperson from Firstnumber commented on the recent anniversary:

“Considering that recent research has predicted that there will be around 900 million smartphones sold throughout 2013, not including basic feature phones. Along with there being an estimated 5 billion mobile phone owners in the world today. Mobile phones have become part of almost everyone’s life in one way or another, spanning the entire globe.

“As a company who provides low cost international calls, we believe the biggest advantage of mass mobile phone access is the instant connectivity to family and friends – no matter where they are in the world. The cost to call internationally has reduced dramatically over the years and it is now possible to call anyone, without the previous restrains of being limited to a landline.”

To help put this into perspective – mobile phone texting, otherwise known as Short Message Service (SMS), was not introduced until 1992. An interesting piece of information that may go unnoticed by the younger generations. Today, text messaging is considered one of the staple components of a mobile device.

If you want to find out more about making cheap international mobile calls visit www.firstnumber.co.uk to find out more.

About Firstnumber:

Firstnumber.co.uk is an online phone directory offering direct dial access codes that reduce the cost of making international calls from both UK landlines and mobile phones. Providing cheap international calls to over 500 countries that include cheap calls to Australia, Germany, France, Italy and many more.

Firstnumber.co.uk was launched in 2004 and is a trading style of Wavecrest.

Contact Details:

First Number / WaveCrest, 1st Floor,
Bishopsgate Court,
4-12 Norton Folgate,
London
E1 6DB
Enquiries: 0870 801 7800

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What started out as an effort by President Reagan to help poor people in rural areas have a phone in cases of emergency has mushroomed into what critics suspect is a new welfare program.

“The cost has gone from $ 143 million a few years ago to $ 2.2 billion today,” Republican Louisiana Sen. David Vitter said, noting that today’s cost is 15 times what it was.

The cost of the program increased dramatically after cellphones were added in 2008. Only low-income people on welfare and food stamps legally qualify, but some lawmakers say the program is out of control.

Sen. Claire McCaskill, a Democrat from Missouri, was incensed when she got an offer of a free phone.

“I got solicitation for a free phone at my apartment, which is certainly not a building where you’re going to have people who are qualified for free phones. … There is clearly money being wasted here.”

And Vitter adds, “The FCC, itself, said in a recent year there were 270,000 beneficiaries that had more than one of these subsidized cellphones. That’s completely against the law right there.”

Funded by a small tax on all phone bills, the program has exploded — with companies advertising free phones and offering 250 minutes.

Harold Feld of a group called Public Knowledge notes, “you have a lot of these prepaid-phone, no-contract options that are obviously very popular.”

The FCC told lawmakers the top five companies can’t verify the eligibility of 41 percent of those who get phones.

“I hear from law enforcement that these phones are often found at crime scenes and are used in drug deals,” Republican Rep. Tim Griffin of Arkansas said. “Why? It’s because you can’t trace them.”

“Just handing out phones willy nilly and allowing them to be sold on the black market,” Sen. McCaskill said. “This isn’t the way to do it, and we need to stop.”

Some recipients famously called them “Obama phones,” with one boasting to the media during the election that minorities should support the president precisely because he gave them free cellphones.

That is not true, and many are appalled by the abuse in the program. One supporter, however, argues cellphones are helpful because they’re not just for emergencies:

“It’s how we find jobs, it’s how we now participate in all the activities in the economy,” Feld said.

But McCaskill says those looking for work could simply check out a phone from the unemployment office or a shelter.

With so much abuse in the current program, she is now concerned about some new proposals: “What’s really worrisome to me is now the FCC wants to expand to this program into broadband. That’s a very bad idea, I think.”

She says such a waste of money makes taxpayers think government just isn’t paying attention. And she says the current program is so far out of control, we should simply scrap it and start over, not expand it.

Most Popular Content – www.foxnews.com

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Irvine, CA (PRWEB) January 28, 2013

Toll free number usage has been on the rise in recent years, leading to a shortage in 800 numbers that are currently available for registration. In fact, according to TollfreeNumber.ORG, a leading toll free phone number provider; 800 number supplies have dwindled to an astounding 60K out of 10 million total this year. Past years have seen these numbers fluctuate between 100K to 200K. Thus, the 60K current stock is an all-time low for toll free 800 numbers. This has led to a surge in 855 number registrations and a rise in 855 number usage amongst consumers across the nation.

    855 toll free numbers were released in October of 2010, and a staggering 1 million numbers have been registered since they became available. Unlike the 888 prefix, the FCC did not allow reservations or pre-orders for the 855 numbers before they were released in 2010. Thus, the fact that so many 855 numbers have been purchased in a narrow window of time further lends to the credibility of these toll free numbers as being a valuable business asset for small and large businesses. Tollfreenumber.org has found that clients that flock to their site for toll free numbers are actually opting to purchase 855 area codes rather than 800 or 888 numbers, given their increased availability and numerous other advantages. On average, phone companies across the board have registered an overwhelming number of 855 toll free numbers for their customers as well.

The main benefit that those who have opted to register an 855 number have encountered is their abundant availability. While most highly coveted vanity numbers in other area codes have already been purchased by companies in the past, even smaller startups are now able to register an ideal vanity number using the 855 number. Therefore, they can boost business, increase profits, enhance their level of customer service and significantly improve their marketing campaigns via an 855 number purchased through TollfreeNumber.ORG.

The 855 number supply is becoming depleted, however, as more and more businesses begin to discover the benefits of toll free numbers. Thus, those who would like to purchase an 855 number are being urged to do so in a timely manner by toll free experts and specialists within the industry. As there will be no new area codes released until at least late 2013, when the 844 area codes are slated to come out onto the market, the stock of toll free numbers of all prefixes have the potential to become exhausted quickly. In addition, those who wish to register a domain that corresponds to an 855 number are urged to do so immediately, as successful, lead generating domain name-based 855 numbers are being sold in record numbers at TollfreeNumber.ORG.

Tollfreenumber.ORG, a recognized leader in providing telecommunications services to small businesses and private individuals, is based in Irvine, Calif., and serves more than 100,000 customers in all 50 states. The company was founded in 1999, and offers services including toll-free phone numbers, customized toll-free vanity numbers, Automatic Number Identification (ANI), and a Virtual Telecenter that offers live answering, voicemail, multiple mailboxes and other services. Tollfreenumber.ORG has an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau of Greater Los Angeles.

    If you would like more information about this topic, please visit the TollfreeNumber.ORG website at http://www.tollfreenumber.org/toll-free-855-phone-numbers-are-in-high-demand. You may also visit the website or call 1-800-951-9411 to purchase a toll free number.

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We’ve all heard the statistic: Microsoft’s allegedly spending a whole truckload of money to market Windows 8. And we’ve all heard about what that’s going to mean: Essentially, Windows 8 on every corner; advertisements in every place you read; mentions in everywhere you frequent.

And, now, how about endorsements from the very celebrities you admire, follow, and chat about?

According to a new report by The Sun, British actor James Corden — of the Broadway play One Man, Two Guvnors — is joining Jay-Z and Gwen Stefani to help Microsoft hawk Windows Phone 8 to the masses. And they’re hardly the end-all, be-all list of Microsoft celebrity endorsers: Jessica Alba helped Microsoft show off Windows Phone 8 at the company’s official launch event for the platform, and the company’s already been pushing out TV ads featuring Will Arnett and Holly Willoughby, to name a few.

The ads themselves – well, minus Arnett’s – are clearly attempting to combine celebrity appeal with simplicity. In Willoughby’s, for example, she’s shown briefly interacting with the common features and apps found on her Nokia Lumia 920 and describing how they allegedly help out her life as a parent. It’s an easy, conventional advertisement that looks to show viewers that celebrities – and people of all ages – can tap into (and benefit from) all the conventions that Windows Phone 8 has to offer.

Microsoft’s ad campaign is all about relationships: The notion that Windows Phone 8 can better the lives of people from a variety of backgrounds and professions, and with an equally diverse group of interests. As The Next Web’s Emil Protalinski wrote in a late October article:

“If Microsoft can get a few movie actors, pop stars, professional athletes, and famous celebrities in general to use Windows Phone 8 devices, customize them, and narrate an ad like the one above, the company could have a great campaign on its hands. It could feature a few famous people, and mix in ‘normal individuals’ such as food lovers, movie lovers, roadtrippers, music mentors, gamers, fashion hunters, page turners, single dads, socializers, working moms, play makers, deal seekers, twin brothers, and the up-all-nighters.”

Still, we’re most curious to see who else Microsoft has tapped to endorse its new Windows world. Here’s hoping Nick Offerman shows off a mustached Windows Phone 8 at some point in the future.

For more tech tidbits from David Murphy, follow him on Facebook or Twitter (@thedavidmurphy).

PCMag.com Cell Phones Product Guide

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Skype might be the killer app for Windows Phone 8. On the new Windows Phones, Skype will work just like phone calls – you’ll be able to call anyone any time, and receive calls just as if they were ordinary phone calls.

The app won’t quite be running in the background, Microsoft told me. Since Microsoft owns Skype, Skype calls and messages will send an alert from Microsoft’s servers to Windows Phones, waking up Skype on those phones when necessary. That will make Skype more reliable than it is on iOS and Android, where the OSes sometimes shut down the app when they need free memory. It’ll also make Skype much more battery-efficient than on Android, where it needs to lurk in the background to capture incoming requests.

Skype isn’t 100 percent working yet – Microsoft couldn’t actually show me a video call in progress – but the company did show me the new UI.

Like all flagship Windows Phone apps, Skype has a “live tile” that shows how many messages you have, and who they’re from. New messages also appear as alerts at the top of the screen.

While Skype has its own contact book in the app, it’s also integrated into the People hub – you can make Skype calls directly from People. That said, the app could go a little farther to integrate into the OS: the chat interface doesn’t look like part of the built-in Messaging app, and you can’t jump to Skype from the phone dialer. 

When you receive a Skype call, it looks just like a phone call, except that accepting it opens the Skype app. You can Skype anyone at any time, and you can get Skyped at any time. That means every Windows Phone comes with super-low international calling rates and the ability to make free video calls to most of the Internet. That’s a big deal.

If you’re looking for more of a walkthrough, check out Skype’s own comprehensive blog post.

Why Carriers Might Like Skype
I asked the three initial Windows Phone carriers, Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile, whether they’ll allow perpetual Skype use on all data plans. They haven’t gotten back to me yet. AT&T has restricted the use of Apple’s similar FaceTime to a certain set of data plans; Verizon allows that app on any data plan.

But there are reasons carriers might welcome more Skyping. Most cell-phone plans nowadays come with unlimited voice; think of voice calls as the base price of your service plan rather than as the price of any specific service any more. If you think you’re going to get away with a cheaper service plan because you use Skype a lot, you don’t know carriers; if Skype becomes properly, they’ll probably just only allow Windows Phones to work with unlimited voice plans.

Skyping shifts calling from older 2G networks to the new, more-efficient 4G networks that carriers actually want you to be using. That means carriers can eventually shift spectrum from 2G over to 4G, which they want to do. Skyping also shifts calls onto now-limited data plans, letting carriers upsell larger data plans for heavier users.

All of the carriers want to get rid of 2G eventually, and they want to get rid of old-style voice calling eventually. It’s going to take them years, but Skype could help them get there. So I’d expect the carriers to take a friendly approach to Skypers.

PCMag.com Cell Phones Product Guide

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We go hands on with Microsoft’s third Windows Phone operating system for the first time, and it appears like Windows Phone 8 may have some fight in it.

Windows Phone’s journey began long ago, in 2010. Back then, BlackBerry was still a viable brand and Palm was alive. It appeared like Microsoft was about to reverse its fortunes in the smartphone space. Two years later, it’s still battling for single digit market share in a smartphone market absolutely dominated by Apple’s iPhone and Google’s Android operating system. With Windows 8 launching, Windows Phone 8 could be Microsoft’s big chance to turn things around.

Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 8 earlier this year, but today, it showed off several new features: Wallet, Kids Corner, Camera Lenses, an amped up People Hub, and Data Sense. What are all these fancily-named features, you ask? Let’s dig in.

The new phones

Microsoft has kept a tight lid on what parts of the OS we were allowed to see and what we weren’t up to this point, but today, the veil came off. Samsung, HTC, and Nokia each showed off their WP8 devices. Seeing the entire lineup together was quite impressive. This is undoubtedly Microsoft’s most varied and well-supported Windows Phone launch to date. For the first time, Microsoft has given manufacturers a lot more leeway to create handsets with more varied specs, features, and designs. These handsets offer a variety of screen sizes, resolutions, shapes, processing power, and unique features. While Nokia handsets boasted a suite of Nokia transportation apps, HTC is heavily pushing its ImageSense camera and Beats functionality. Samsung has plenty of unique apps and is stressing the connectivity between its Windows Phones and Windows 8 tablets. Phones also now seem to come in every color of the rainbow. The hands-on area resembled a Skittles commercial. Some phones even feature swappable shells, so you can change your color every day.

Kids Corner

Now that the smartphone industry is maturing, it’s beginning to get more family friendly. Today, I got to try out Microsoft’s new Kids Corner feature: a sandboxed custom homescreen you can create just for your kids to play around in. For the tech-savvy parent, I have to say, this could be a killer feature.

Kids are annoying sometimes. They won’t shut up and they’re hyper as hell. But what if you could hand them your phone without worrying whether they’ll email your boss pictures of Barney? Now you can. WP8 lets you assign whatever apps, games, music, videos, or other content you want your kids to be able to access to a special homescreen. Turning the feature on requires you to dig into the Settings menu a little, but once it’s activated, you can hand your child your phone at its lock screen. All they have to do is swipe to the left and their own custom homescreen opens. They can move all the Live Tiles around however they please and the Home button is deactivated, so you don’t have to worry about them escaping back into your content. A word of advice, though: Create a password for your lock screen. If you don’t, then your kids can still restart the screen and poof, they’re back in your email. 

Data Sense

Microsoft has followed Google’s lead and integrated a data monitoring feature in Windows Phone 8. Data Sense lets you set a data limit for the month (or another length of time) and will warn you as you pass thresholds like 50 percent of your data. Better, you can dig into exactly what apps are sucking up all of your data. I can’t believe that the iPhone doesn’t yet have a feature like this, but now every other major OS does. There isn’t a ton of depth to this app, but it’s value can be measured by the size of your phone bill. 

Rooms for your People

Windows Phone has long pushed “hubs” as a way to aggregate large numbers of apps and features around certain topics. The People hub has been a good place to find your contacts and see recent social networking status updates, but now it can do a little more. If you happen to have a group of friends who are hot on the Windows Phone train like yourself, you can invite them into a “Room” with you. Rooms are kind of like Facebook used to be: exclusive. They have to approve you, but once you’re all connected, you can share content pretty easily.

I haven’t made my own group yet, but I did check out some pre-made groups. By swiping through pages, you can connect with your friends in a few different, useful ways. There’s an open, ongoing chat window, a shared calendar (which can connect to iPhone and some Android devices via a Web link), and photo sharing. It seems like a really great way for close friends to stay in touch. Hopefully Microsoft will continue to build on this feature.

Camera ‘Lenses’

This feature doesn’t seem to be getting a lot of notoriety, but for fans of photo filters and apps, it’s pretty cool. While Instagram still isn’t on Windows Phone, there are a lot of cool apps that let you add effects to photographs and now Microsoft lets you access them directly from the Camera app. In essence, it’s now a Camera Hub. You can access these apps by just tapping one of the icons on the screen. Its easy and brings up a grid of apps. Press one and you can apply its feature or filter. Very cool. 

Better Live Tiles

Finally, I still haven’t gotten over how much nicer and more custom the Windows Phone 8 homescreen looks. Because Microsoft is now allowing even more minute features and pages to be “pinned” to the Start screen, the variety of content is impressive. Every Windows Phone I saw today had a completely different and sometimes startlingly unique look to it — a few of them were so busy that I didn’t know where to start. Microsoft has always said that the Start screen reflects who is using the phone. For the first time, I think that’s true. Live Tiles can now be resized to take up an entire row, a standard square, or 1/4 square (practically an icon). You can do a lot with the Start screen now. Apps can communicate with their Live Tiles (and you) faster and better now too. You can even allow apps to show you information on your unlock screen, if you’re into that.

It’s looking good

Windows Phone has always been a nice looking operating system, but with WP8, Microsoft seems to be smoothing out some of the gaps in its functionality and introducing more features that are unique to its platform. iOS and Android seem to chase and copy one another these days, but Microsoft continues to do its own thing. Now that Windows Phones like the HTC 8X will be on T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon this holiday season, there’s little reason not to at least check one out. You may like it. I’m may make the jump myself, if I’m able.

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