Manufacturer | Motorola |
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Compatible networks | AMPS, cdmaOne, TDMA, GSM |
First released | January 3, 1996 |
Predecessor | Motorola MicroTAC series |
Successor | Motorola RAZR[1] |
Dimensions | 94 mm × 55 mm × 19 mm (130) |
Weight | 88 g |
Display | Digital: LCD AMPS (analog): Segment LED, Alphanumeric LED |
The StarTAC is a series of mobile phones released by Motorola starting in 1996. It is the successor of the MicroTAC, a semi-clamshell design first launched in 1989.[2] Whereas the MicroTAC's flip folded down from below the keypad, the StarTAC folded up from above the display. The StarTAC was among the first mobile phones to gain widespread consumer adoption; approximately 60 million StarTACs were sold.
The StarTAC was the first Clamshell/flip phone to gain widespread commercial use, although other less successful models had been in circulation as early as 1991,[3][4][5] and an early precursor of this form factor, the Grillo, was designed as early as 1965.[6][7]
In 2005, PC World named the StarTAC as the 6th Greatest Gadget of the Past 50 Years (out of a list of fifty).[3] The StarTAC brand was revived in 2004 and 2007 for a series of flip phones exclusive to some Asian markets, and again for a cordless phone model.