Qualcomm’s San Diego headquarters features a museum that may be a time capsule of the cell phone business. The corporate, based in 1985, grew over the many years to develop early satellite tv for pc communication gadgets, the CDMA cell know-how protocol that powered 3G cellphone networks, and extra lately the Snapdragon line of processors seen in telephones just like the Samsung Galaxy S23.
The museum is open on weekdays, however requires an appointment with a purpose to go to. So throughout a current go to to the headquarters, we took a dive into the museum to see the telecommunications gadgets of the previous on show. You’ll be able to take a look at the highlights within the gallery embedded right here.
Inside Qualcomm HQ’s Appointment-Solely Museum Stuffed With Retro Telephones
These embody the the Omnitracs, an early texting and GPS machine constructed for the trucking business that used satellite-based know-how to permit for communication in distant areas. The museum additionally reveals off the primary digicam cellphone — which is a flip cellphone that makes use of an attachable exterior digicam to take images. And the museum reveals a number of displays on the event of the CDMA know-how, which was lately phased out when Verizon shut down its 3G networks on the finish of 2022
Qualcomm additionally had a hand in satellite tv for pc communications for the Nationwide Safety Company (NSA), and the museum consists of an instance of a satellite tv for pc cellphone used for the presidential limousine.Â
