OMG! The cellphone turns 40

When cellphones were hideous —

In this image from 1972, a model demonstrates a "portable radio-telephone" by Pye Telecommunications at a London exhibition called "Communications Today, Tomorrow and the Future."

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When cellphones were hideous —

Martin Cooper hoists an early phone, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. Cooper made what is widely considered to be the first cellphone call from a New York City sidewalk in 1973.

Courtesy Martin Cooper

When cellphones were hideous —

Tony James, bassist for British New Wave band Sigue Sigue Sputnik, with his girlfriend Janet Street Porter, in 1986. This brick-like model is also known as a "Zack Morris phone" after the phone-toting character on TV's "Saved by the Bell."

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When cellphones were hideous —

Franck Piccard of France talks on a mobile phone after the Mens Super G Slalom event at the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Canada. He won the gold medal. The phone, however, was shut out.

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When cellphones were hideous —

One of the most prominent pop-culture appearances of these early brick cellphones was on TV's "The A-Team," which ran from 1983-87. This fool appears to have stolen Hannibal's iconic device. We presume that Mr. T's B.A. Baracus (not pictured) pities him.

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When cellphones were hideous —

It's no iPhone. In this image from 1989, Allan Z. Loren, then-president of Apple Computer USA, talks on a mobile phone as cyclists ride past.

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When cellphones were hideous —

The Motorola MicroTAC Classic was released in 1991 and modeled after 1989's MicroTAC 9800x, which sold for up to $3,495.

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