
In sweet home Chicago on September 25, 1928 brothers Paul and Joseph Galvin incorporated Motorola's founding company, Galvin Manufacturing Corporation, with only one product and five employees. Flash forward through #90yearsmotorola and there's no doubt we have transformed the tech industry. Join us as we travel back through 90 years of innovation and technological breakthroughs to see how we have changed from then to now.
1.) We said goodbye to Galvin and hello to Motorola
Galvin Manufacturing introduced the Motorola car radio in 1930. The Motorola brand name became so popular that in 1947 Galvin Manufacturing Corporation changed its name to Motorola Incorporated. A short eight years later in 1955 the iconic Motorola batwing was born.
2.) Our 1st product fixed 1920s battery life probs, our latest solves today's need for speed
Our first-ever product was designed in 1928 to address a problem that continues to exist today: battery life. The Galvin Manufacturing battery eliminator allowed battery powered radios to run on household electricity. True to our DNA, we've never stopped delivering what matters most to you. One of our most recent products, the 5G moto modTM, will bring you speeds 10x faster than today's wireless technology and the increased connectivity you're looking for.1
Did you know that on a 5G network, you can download the latest season of your favorite show in HD in the time it takes to board a plane?
3.) From radio to millimeter, we've definitely made some waves
Galvin Manufacturing produced the world's first FM portable two-way radio in 1943. Since then we've brought the world's first commercial high-power transistor, commercial handheld cellular phone and two-way pager to name just a few. Most recently, we released the world's first 5G upgradable cell phone: the moto z3 and an accompanying 5G moto modTM so you can connect to Verizon's 5G network when it launches.1
Did you know at 2 lbs. and 10 in. long the world's first commercial handheld cellular phone, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000x, was the size of a brick and weighed as much as a pineapple?
4.) We went from pocket-size pagers to RAZR thin flip phones
In 1982 the Motorola Sensar pager had a unique pen-sized design that looked radically different from any other pager on the market. It was only 2 ounces and conveniently fit into a pocket. In 2004, the innovative Motorola RAZR V3 changed the cell phone design game. With the thinnest profile on a clamshell cell phone of that time and an aluminum body, the RAZR was the first cell phone that doubled as a fashion accessory. The RAZR's V3 model sold more than 130 million units and was the best-selling clamshell phone in the world.
5.) We've transformed from modest mods to modern mods
Why carry a cell phone and a pager? In 1995, the Motorola RSVP numeric pager fit on the back of any MicroTAC to create a pager, cell phone combo! Today, we continue to push mobile phone limits with moto z and moto modsTM. Debuting in 2016, the moto z is more than just a smartphone snap on a moto modTM and transform it into a projector, photo printer, speaker and more.
6.) From Mount Everest to the moon, we've been everywhere
Over the past 90 years, we've been all over the globe and beyond! In 1969, a Motorola radio transponder aboard the Apollo 11 lunar module relayed the first words from the moon to Earth. In 2007, 30 years later, mountaineer Rod Bader climbed the highest peak of Mount Everest and used a Motorola MOTORIZR Z8 to make the highest-ever land-based portable phone call and text message.
7.) From the 1900s to the 2000s, we've never stopped creating bestsellers
In 1986, we introduced the world's best selling pager, the Bravo. The numeric pager could store five 24-character messages that was a lot back then! In the new millennium, the Motorola V60 became available in all three cellular technologies-GSM, TDMA and CDMA-and quickly became a worldwide best seller with internet access, text messaging and voice-activated dialing.
8.) Getting our start in Chicago's windy city, a global presence was only a few years away
While Motorola has always called Chicago home it didn't take long for us to build a global presence. In 1952 Motorola's first international subsidiary opened in Toronto, Canada, producing radios and televisions. Since then, Motorola has continued growing, with a strong presence in various countries in Europe, Latin America, Asia Pacific and China.
Did you know the first recorded sale of a Motorola-branded product outside the United States took place in June of 1930 with the sale of two Motorola car radios to W. Oldenburger in Mexico City?
9.) The best is yet to come
MOTOROLA, Stylized M Logo, MOTO and the MOTO family of marks are trademarks of Motorola Trademark Holdings, LLC.
Disclaimers
1 5G connectivity available with 5G moto mod (sold separately, coming early 2019) and 5G network coverage (launching in select areas in 2019; expanding after that). See www.verizon.com/about/our-company/5g for details.
Most recent headlines
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
15/06/2025
July 2025 in Dublin, Berlin, Amsterdam & London
Photo: Thea Martre
Music Production for Women (MPW) have announced that they will be running a series of fo...
15/06/2025
Composer/producer launches free virtual instruments
Sulcata Sound is the latest venture of Jason Graves, a two-time British Academy Award-winnning composer,...
14/06/2025
NEW YORK Pluto TV and the All Womens Sports Network have launched a free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) AWSN channel in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and the Nor...
14/06/2025
NEW YORK and CINCINNATI E.W. Scripps has announced a new, multiyear agreement with the WNBA that will continue Ions regular-season coverage of the league on Fri...
14/06/2025
WASHINGTON The National Association of Broadcasters highlighted the hidden importance of spectrum in the production of major sporting events and described wha...
14/06/2025
WASHINGTON Sunsetting ATSC 1.0, expanding business opportunities for NextGen Broadcast and increasing international adoption of the ATSC 3.0 standard were top o...
14/06/2025
SAN FRANCISCO Samba TV and Acxiom have announced that they will dramatically expand their longstanding relationship....
14/06/2025
July 2025 in Dublin, Berlin, Amsterdam & London
Photo: Thea Martre
Music Production for Women (MPW) have announced that they will be running a series of fo...
14/06/2025
San Francisco State University's School of Cinema Uses Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton June 13, 2025
0 Comments
More than 40 Blackmagic Design came...
14/06/2025
Boris FX Mocha Pro Adds New AI Tools To Tackle VFX Tasks Fast
Jessie Electa Petrov June 13, 2025
0 Comments
The 2025.5 release helps artists work more...
14/06/2025
AJA Debuts DRM2-Plus Mini-Converter Frame at InfoComm 2025
Brie Clayton June 13, 2025
0 Comments
Next-gen frame addresses diverse rackmount needs wit...
13/06/2025
(L-R) Lindsay Utz, Michelle Walshe, and The Right Honourable Dame Jacinda Ardern attend the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Prime Minister at Eccles T...
13/06/2025
Photo credit: Atsushi Nishijima
If you're a true lover of rom-coms, chances...
13/06/2025
Pure Drama and Fierce Rivalries set to dominate the world's most iconic spor...
13/06/2025
Johannesburg, 12 June 2025 - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an a...
13/06/2025
ABILENE. Texas A severe storm knocked down the tower and severely damaged the news studio and main facility of Sinclair-owned KTXS here on Sunday, June 8....
13/06/2025
Berklee's Music Business/Management Department Recognized by the Music Biz A...
13/06/2025
WASHINGTON The ATSC, the Broadcast Standards Association, honored veteran technologist Aldo Cugnini and Clarence Hau, Senior Vice President of Standards, Policy...
13/06/2025
(Editor's note: The 2025 UFL Championship Game between the D.C. Defenders and Michigan Panthers kicks off Saturday, June 14, at 8 p.m. Eastern. The game wil...
13/06/2025
New iPad/iPhone synth App announced
Following on from last year's release of Gradient Synth - which reached #6 on the App Store's Paid Music charts ...
13/06/2025
LONDON Warner Bros. Discovery has announced that HBO Max will launch direct-to-consumer in multiple new countries this July as the streamer becomes available in...
13/06/2025
AI voice transcription and captioning platform Verbit has added a new feature to its Captivate ASR solution the ability to identify specific features in automat...
13/06/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission member Anna Gomez has wrapped up two weeks in California visiting broadcasters, television studio executives, enter...
13/06/2025
WASHINGTON The U.S. House of Representatives voted mostly along party lines to approve a rescission package that would cancel $9.4 billion in previously approve...
13/06/2025
At InfoComm 2025, AJA Video Systems announced DRM2-Plus, an intuitive, high-capacity 3RU frame that can neatly house up to 24 AJA Mini-Converters. Tailored to s...
13/06/2025
Cinema advertising leader to leverage AOS and suite of AI-enabled solutions to optimize forecasting, yield management, and streamlined ad sales and operations a...
13/06/2025
Manfrotto has launched the ONE Hybrid Tripod, a new support system designed specifically for professional content creators working with mirrorless cameras acros...
13/06/2025
Leading video software provider, Synamedia, today announced that its Media Edge Gateway (MEG), an ATSC 3.0 software-based IRD, now supports Device Security requ...
13/06/2025
LiveU, the global leader in live IP-video contribution, production and distribution solutions, is deepening its commitment to the German-speaking market with th...
13/06/2025
Chaos, the leader in architectural visualisation software, today announces Chaos Corona 13, giving archviz designers new ways to add eye-catching style and flai...
13/06/2025
PALI's Nena Music Video Shot with Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton June 12, 2025
0 Comments
Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K and DaVinci Resolve Studio b...
13/06/2025
OddBeast Powers Up iRobot's Newest Roombas with Suite of CGI Launch Assets
Brie Clayton June 12, 2025
0 Comments
The motion design and production ...
13/06/2025
On Chick Coreas Birthday, a Newly Uncovered Archival Release The Visitors, composed by Corea and performed by vibraphonist Gary Burton and pianist Kirill Gers...
13/06/2025
In fulfilment of a recommendation by the Government's Expert Advisory Commit...
13/06/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Backblaze's Gleb Budman Talks Products, Partnerships, and the ...
13/06/2025
SVG Sit-Down: DAZN's Walker Jacobs Calls Streaming the FIFA Club World Cup ...
13/06/2025
New Sponsor Spotlight: Vecima Networks' Paul Strickland on How Improving QoE...
13/06/2025
Pitch Perspective: Where's Next for Specialty Cameras in Soccer? Leaders from Sky Austria and ACS discuss the possibilities of camera placement pitchside B...
13/06/2025
Premiership Rugby Final 2025: Vintage clash between Bath and Leicester gets full...
13/06/2025
Premiership Rugby Final 2025: TNT Sports gears up for Bath vs Leicester battle w...
13/06/2025
NCAA Men's College World Series: ESPN Adds Two-Point SupraCam, Invests in Ne...
13/06/2025
New FSWX signal and spectrum analyzer with novel architecture overcomes limits o...
13/06/2025
Apple today announced the addition of iPad to Self Service Repair, providing iPad owners with access to repair manuals, genuine Apple parts, Apple Diagnostics t...
13/06/2025
CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA Apple today previewed iOS 26, a major update that brings a beautiful new design, intelligent experiences, and improvements to the apps use...
13/06/2025
At Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple unveiled Apple Games, an all-new destination designed to help players jump back into the games they...
13/06/2025
Industrial AI isn't slowing down. Germany is ready.
Following London Tech Week and GTC Paris at VivaTech, NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang's Europea...
12/06/2025
In 2018, Spotify launched Heart & Soul, a mental health initiative developed to ...
12/06/2025
50 Years Strong: SBS and NITV Supercharge NAIDOC Week 2025 in a joint 50th celeb...