Mobile Phone [Motorola StarTAC]

Maker and role
Motorola Inc., Manufacturer
Production date
Circa 1996
See full details

Object detail

Accession number

2021.8.2

Maker

Motorola Inc.

Production period

1990s

Description

Motorola StarTAC mobile phone.

Black flip phone with small aerial protruding from the top right. Printed in gold on the front of the phone is, "MOTOROLA". The battery is connected to the lid of the phone and has "StarTAC" printed in gold. On the bottom of the battery is a white and blue sticker with the text, "MOTOROLA / 3.6V LITHIUM BATTERY / [...]". On the phone lid, covered by the battery are three white stickers with various barcodes. Black text reads, ''MFG By: Motorola / [...] / ASSEMBLED IN SINGAPORE / [...] / MADE IN USA".

On the back of the phone is the Motorola logo. At the bottom of the phone is a charging port. On the left hand side of the phone are a series of three small, black buttons.

When the lid is flipped open, the earpiece is at the top with "MOTOROLA" printed in gold below. On the main handset is a small display screen with gold text, "MOTOROLA / Digital". Below this is the keypad with various buttons and text, "1 menu / 2 abc / [...]".

Brief History

Motorola launched the StarTac, the world’s first ‘clamshell’ (flip) mobile phone, in January 1996. Its design, with the earpiece folding above the display, extended on that of Motorola’s MicroTac, the first model of which had the mouthpiece and ringer in a section that folded over the keypad (later Microtac models retained the folding section but the mouthpiece and ringer were moved back into the body of the phone).

The StarTac was also the first phone with the ability to vibrate, a feature derived from Motorola’s pagers. It was the smallest phone on the market when it was launched, weighing approximately 88 grams, and was one of the first mobile phones to be widely adopted by consumers, selling approximately 60 million units worldwide.

Marks

MOTOROLA Printed
StarTAC Printed
MOTOROLA / 3.6V LITHIUM BATTERY / [...] Sticker
MFG By: Motorola / [...] / ASSEMBLED IN SINGAPORE / [...] / MADE IN USA Sticker
MOTOROLA Printed
MOTOROLA / Digital Printed
1 menu / 2 abc / [...] Printed

Media/Materials

Processed Material/Synthetic/Plastic
Processed Material/Metal
Processed Material/Paper

Other name

Cell Phone

Credit Line

Motorola Inc.. Circa 1996. Mobile Phone [Motorola StarTAC], 2021.8.2. The Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT).

Related resources

https://www.motat.nz/collections-and-stories/stories/a-history-of-mobile-phones//