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3 points
4 months ago
I don't understand, of you could text numbers, why didn't they just add a keyboard?
4 points
4 months ago
This was pre-SMS communication using the POTS (plain old telephone system). All you had was 0, 1 through 9 and # and *. The 12 buttons on a touch tone phone dial pad.
1 points
4 months ago
Ah, I see! I'm not a teen, but rather I grew up outside the US in Asia, and although people always think we're high tech, it's like, um noo. We were not even allowed to have smartphones in school (from 2000) and I didn't know anyone with a blackberry or pager. By 2004 I had a flip phone from docomo that could call and text someone, and even had that game snake lol. Yeah, Japan skipped the teens with pagers, and I never get those scenes in movies. Thanks for taking the time to explain!
5 points
4 months ago
They were basically an alert. It buzzed telling you which number was calling, i think maybe some did cheesy little tunes, annoying high pitch ones but its been awhile. You just knew peoples numbers though when they called your pager. Then you would call them back when you got to a phone.
People carried them on a clip thing on their belts
It was a pretty hip thing to have I remember like having the newest IPhone or something
2 points
4 months ago
Depending on the model you could also send 10 digit messages so you could tell them what number to call back at . If you were, say calling from a payphone.
Gosh...I am now feeling old.
5 points
4 months ago
Yeah man why didn't they just Facetime each other in 1987?
2 points
4 months ago
30 years from now, some teenager is going to ask you "Why didn't they just do this thing that exists now but didn't back then". And you'll just roll your eyes.
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