History of the Personal Digital Assistant

The personal digital assistant has changed greatly in its short history.

The earliest personal digital assistants (PDAs) were used to maintain calendars, store contact data and keep notes. PDAs today offer added functions, including phone services and GPS tracking.

Early PDAs

One of the earliest PDAs was the Casio Business Organizer Scheduling System, which debuted in 1989. It offered basic functions, including handling appointment scheduling and storing contact information. Apple's Newton was a huge leap forward for PDAs and was the first machine labeled "personal digital assistant." It was able to learn and recognize handwriting and could synch to a computer.

Palm PDAs

In the 1990s, the Palm Pilot became virtually synonymous with the idea of the personal digital assistant. Palms had rechargeable batteries and greater memory capacity than previous PDAs.

The Blackberry

The Blackberry, made by Research in Motion, became so widely used and seemingly addictive that fans began to call the devices "crackberries." Blackberries are both cell phones and PDAs, with email and instant message capability as well as the standard calendar and data-storage functions.

The iPhone

Apple's iPhone, released in 2007, introduced touchscreen technology to the PDA, and the ability to display full web pages onscreen. It is also a full iPod in addition to its phone and PDA functions.

References

• Newsweek: History of the Personal Digital Assistant
• BBC: History of the Personal Data Assistant