Vodafone - VM1
Vodafone - VM1
Vodafone - VM1
Vodafone - VM1

Vodafone
VM1

Announced
1984

Features

The Vodafone VM1 was the first mobile phone that Vodafone sold, although the term “mobile” can only be used loosely with this specific model. It was a phone designed to be installed in a car and was a branded version of a Panasonic-manufactured device. The bulky receiver (typically in the boot/trunk of a car) was connected via a cable to a Vodafone-Racal branded handset mounted near the driver. There was also an antenna which would be mounted on the outside of the car to aid reception. The Vodafone VM1 was a Class 1 device with an output of 10 watts. When it was first launched it cost £1,275, which went up to £1,350 once the hands-free kit was available. The installation cost of £100 rose to £125 with the hands-free kit. The initial connection to the network was £50. The first unit was sold by salesman Ivan Donn to his friend Mungo Park who paid £1,200 for the device. Mungo’s phone was installed in a Mercedes 450 SEL 6.9L. Vodafone mainly favoured hole-mount antennas so drilled holes in the roofs and wings of hundreds of thousands of luxury cars in the early years. Glass-mount antennas eventually took over when coverage improved sufficiently to tolerate their slightly poorer performance. Front image: Vodafone

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