How many phones have you had? I remember the day that they became widely available in the Netherlands when I grew up and I was among one of the first people to buy this phone with a pay-as-you-go card.
the Philips Diga
My second phone was much brighter, but internally still wasn't able to do much more, however you could send text messages with it.
the Ericsson GF 768
My next one was a real popular phone, I finally joined the crowds and had my first Nokia, long after many people had been playing snake on theirs.
the Nokia 3310
I did not have this phone for a long time as the next phone was a real investment, but I loved the look from the movies and it was the first 'flip-phone'. I was one of the few to have this one and I had to order it specially for me, but I loved this phone. It was small, had all the 'popular' functions and looked professional, compared to all the other phones that started to look like toys ... and it had an antenna that you could pull out. I had this phone for a relatively long time.
the Motorola StarTac
I had this phone for a long time as I loved its size and I'd also paid quite a bit for it. Eventually my next phone was something completely different. It was the first phone that used a scroller on the side of the screen to slide up or down the screen.
the Sony CMD-C1
I could not really get used to that phone and I went back to my big love of the time Motorola. First I had the Motorola V3690.
Motorola V3690
This phone was easy to use and compact, so I even had it in 2 colours before I finally went for the next model:
the Motorola V60
Wow did I love this phone!!! It looked fancy, was a nice size, easy to use, lied well in your hands. This is a phone I had for a long time and I only had to get rid of it when the antenna broke. I did try to have it repaired a few times, but without much luck. At that point I tried to go for a more sturdy model of a trusted and well known brand.
the Nokia 7110
A sturdy and bulky model. The slide function was cool as you could give it that 'the Matrix' feel. The phone itself was very robust, but took a lot of space in the pocket. So it didn't last long with me and soon I was one of the first to posses the first phone with a colour screen.
the Sony Ericsson T610
A cool little phone, with a little 'joystick' and a built in camera, compact and easy to use. I remember going down to the shop one evening and seeing a huge football star there, Nwanko Kanu. He played for Arsenal then, but I already knew him from his Ajax days. Unfortunately he was plagued by injuries in those days, but he did have a fantastic talent and I got the shop owner to take a picture on this phone of the 2 of us. I think I still have it somewhere ... the resolution is terrible, especially if you compare it to the phone I have now 😆
the LG u8110
I was in love with flip-phones and I kept coming back to them. This phone had a great resolution and a camera that you could swivel, so that I could also do video calls, very rare in those days! For some reason LG didn't really do it for me and after my subscription ran out I went back to an old favourite and the last Motorola I'd have.
the Motorola RAZR
I liked this phone a lot, except for the fact that it scratched easily on the outside. That's quite a lot of phones until now and this is when I received my first smartphone. We're still in the days when that was a novelty and PDA's were still the thing. My next phone was a combination of both.
Sony Ericsson P900
This was the first phone where I received e-mails on my phone, it also had a full keyboard if you flipped it open and other more advanced functions. You could even expand the memory with an SD-card. The phone was pretty advanced in its days and it was also the only phone I had with a 'stylus'.
BlackBerry Curve
When I dropped my P900 in a toilet, I had to look for a new phone. BlackBerry and iPhone were just gaining popularity and being used to my P900 I wanted a phone with a keyboard again. On the other hand of the spectrum, iPhone appeared more as a toy. The phone itself took a moment to get used to, especially with the 'trackball', but once you got used to it it was a good, sturdy and easy to use phone with cool functions.
the iPhone
It did not take very long for me to cave in. My girlfriend offered to swap phones to try it out as she'd gotten it and I accepted. I liked it, but I wasn't convinced and I went back to a blackberry for my next phone.
BlackBerry Bold
This model was fantastic, in my opinion the best they'd come out with. The 'trackball' was improved and easier to use and in general its usability was very easy. However they were too slow to keep up with developments and for my next model I went with the crowd.
iPhone 3GS
It had these cool location functions like compass and other stuff, I was really excited to have one. I also remember that those early models dropped very easy due to their shape, but they were easy to use and contained all the functions that you wanted and needed to have in your pocket.
Samsung B3410
I moved back to the Netherlands and for whatever reason my iPhone was still locked or not 'unlockable', so I had to get a phone on a budget as the tariff plans were very different from the UK. How I missed my iPhone, you have no idea. This is probably the last phone I had that wasn't an iPhone. It was much harder to use and control. I didn't like it compared with my iPhone, so as soon as I could, I got myself a new one. First I got a new iPhone 3GS, which was then an older model, so cheaper to get.
iPhone 4s
This is the first phone I got in Switzerland. I don't have to elaborate on iPhnoes anymore. I love the ease of usage and the reliabiltiy of them.
iPhone 6 Plus
I wanted to try the larger model, however I didn't like it and I traded it for the normal iPhone 6 with someone. It's a phone I liked a lot and I only got rid of it after a full 2 years of usage when I felt that the next model had a good enough difference that it would justify upgrading again.
iPhone 7 Plus Diamond Black
My current phone and I'm absolutely in love with this model. It's the perfect size, weight and perfectly balanced (something I felt lacking with the 6 Plus). I like the responsiveness when you enter with your fingerprint, the size and resolution is perfect when you're watching a clip or film on it. I've had it for 1,5 years now and I might eventually trade it for the iPhone X, when my contract runs out in August.
I am also considering getting a Samsung, but I am slightly afraid of its' usability. However I've played with my wifes' Galaxy S7 Curve and it is as easy as an iPhone, all that's holding me back is all the apps I have on mine and if I can take them over or have to purchase them again. Another factor is that we have lots of Apple products at home and transferring data/files between them is easier than sending an e-mail. That's a huge barrier. I know most apps are transferable, but some aren't. The question I'll ask myself over the next months is whether all this is worth it staying with Apple?
I look forward to hearing from you whether you've made the jump from Apple to Samsung or vice versa and what did you make of that? When did you do it and would you do it again?
What was your first mobile phone, what was your favourite?
I hope you guys liked this spontaneous post, this is the kind of crap I could be writing about if you guys don't come up with questions or suggestions for my Thursday posts 😜
Thanks,
Doron