IBM introduced the first smartphone, the IBM Simon, in 1994. The device combined a cellular telephone with PDA functions, including faxing, email, a calendar, an address book, a notepad and a touchscreen.
IBM engineer Frank Canova developed the early concept, code-named Angler, and demonstrated a prototype at the 1992 COMDEX trade show. The commercial Simon was designed by IBM but manufactured by Mitsubishi Electric and sold by BellSouth Cellular in the United States beginning August 16, 1994.
The Simon was advanced but bulky, expensive and limited by analog mobile networks and short battery life. It sold about 50,000 units before being discontinued in 1995. The word “smartphone” was not yet common, so historians apply the label retrospectively.
A common mix-up is crediting Apple or Motorola because their later smartphones were far more influential. Apple’s iPhone arrived in 2007; IBM’s Simon preceded it by 13 years.