Phones
This exhibit showcases the array of advancements in phone technology and design, from the early switchboard operated systems of the late 1800s, to integrated phone calculators, magnetic memory based auto-dialing systems, and even live video calling over standard home phone lines.
Strowger Switch (Working)
In 1889, a frustrated Undertaker in Kansas City first invented a way to automate the process of connecting a phone call. Prior to this, for many years the telephone operator would, by means of a physical plug switchboard, physically connect your call as requested.
This invention, which used a complex series of electro-mechanical switches, would go on to revolutionize the way people used the telephone in the 20th century. Our own example is fully functioning and even dialable on your modern mobile phone!
Bell System Teletrainer Control Unit
This clever device, produced by Robco for Bell System, was a simple means of educating people on the basics of telephone operation, being capable of simulating busy signals, dial tones, and ring signals for two connected phones simultaneously.
AT&T VideoPhone 2500
In 1992, the idea of a video phone was for most still the realm of science fiction. The same year, AT&T released the first color videophone system that could transmit over standard telephone lines.
Although expensive, the VideoPhone cleverly used digital compression methods to reduce the bandwidth necessary for video transmission. Depending on the quality of the phone line, the 2500 could transmit at either 16.8 or 19.2 kBps.