In 1981 a competition was held in Holland to design the "Phone from the year 2000" to honour 100 years of telephony. Three age categories were allowed to participate: 13-15 years, 16 to 18 years, 19 to 25 years. In each category the grand prize was a trip to Cape Canaveral. A selection from the thousands of submissions was gathered in the book "Hello, this is the future". As a kid i got the book from my mom who used to work as a phone operator back then. It got lost at some point, but as the gadget loving adult that i became, i never forgot about it. How were peoples perceptions of the "phones from the future?". I wanted to get my hands on it, but it was extremely hard to find. Here are some of the entries.
"Every phone will have a video screen. Because people arent alway ready to show their faces, there's a button to disable it."
"in 2000, a microphone will be embedded in the pinky and a receiver in the thumb. The hand will be modified to an antenna. It will no longer be needed to dial number: simply say it out loud and the antenna will connect you with a computer unit which will transfer you. A vibration in the thumb will notify you of incoming calls"
"Phone - bankcard - calculator - wallet."
In general most contestants agree that the phone of 2000 will be portable and wireless, something to always carry with you: a personal device.
"the watch-O-phone can show the time, has a caculator and a stopwatch"
COMP. STIFT-PHONE (Computer Space Telephone Internation for telecommunication)
This phone's main purpose is to easily communicate, with added attention for disabled persons: it has subtiles in realtime for deafs and buttons in relief for blinds. Can be used to play chess and checkers and have video calls. It has a pull out map with several "sectors": for a phonecall to New York, the pen is used to tip sector 17. Below the sector sits a chip that will connect you to new york via a satellite. You will then simply need to dial the person's number you want to call. Comes with an earbud for private phonecalls, an alarm and a built in tape recorder.
"In the future, phones will have an electronic agenda"
In general most contestants agree that the phone of 2000 will be portable and wireless, something to always carry with you: a personal device.
This phone's main purpose is to easily communicate, with added attention for disabled persons: it has subtiles in realtime for deafs and buttons in relief for blinds. Can be used to play chess and checkers and have video calls. It has a pull out map with several "sectors": for a phonecall to New York, the pen is used to tip sector 17. Below the sector sits a chip that will connect you to new york via a satellite. You will then simply need to dial the person's number you want to call. Comes with an earbud for private phonecalls, an alarm and a built in tape recorder.
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