The First Text Message Was Sent 25 Years Ago

Megalith

Megalith

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The first text message is 25 years old. Engineer Neil Papworth sent the first SMS on December 3rd, 1992, when he wrote "merry Christmas" on a computer and sent it to the cellphone of Vodafone director Richard Jarvis. It was a modest start, but it ultimately changed technology and even social norms.

Papworth said that Jarvis was unable to reply, because at that time it was not possible to send text messages from mobile phones, only to receive them. According to Sky, in 2007 the U.K. was sending 66 billion text messages per year and by 2012 that had increased to 151 billion for SMS and MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service).
 
The history of technology is the history of humanity. All social change follows directly from scientific progress.
 
The first text message I got was "Stop for milk".

I have received that message many, many times, but that was the first.
 
We're regressing.
We first invented the telegraph, then the phone with voice, then video, and now back to texting, ie telegraphing?
 
Don't worry...we'll be back to carrier pigeon soon enough, then smoke signals.
 
This is not (entirely) true. Motorola working with IBM created the ARDIS radio network in 1983 using the Motorola KDT800 Portable Terminal (otherwise known as "The Brick" since it weighed 2.5 lbs) for IBM service personnel to use as their communication device to manage service calls, order parts, and to communicate with one another. (which included the ability to broadcast to a group of radios) The Motorola/IBM P.T. remained the primary tool for IBM field service reps until the mid 90's. No, it was not SMS, and no, it was not made public (until 1990) but IBM'ers were text messaging long before 1992.
 
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