atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums Wiring - Telecom Carriers - Trunks & Services Telecom Service & Providers Brick Cell Phones

Greetings,

I recall someone mentioning a company that is retrofitting old analog brick cell phones to digital. If this is the case, could someone give me a lead on where to find them?
Thanks.

The company's website is https://www.retrobrick.com/. It's pretty much a one man operation somewhere over in the U.K. I inquired about International shipping, and was told that it wasn't a problem.

What does seem to be a problem is that he has a really hard time keeping the good stuff in stock. Now if you're simply a collector, there are lots of Motorola "brick" phones in original condition (and some with original packaging as well on eBay .

Thanks Dagwood, I do a lot of hunting in northern Maine and my trusted bag phone never let me down with reception (albeit sometimes off a Canadian tower). Not the same with my digital cell phone - go figure.

Check out the Motorola M800. I know it is available on Alltel, but is also probably available on some other CDMA carriers also. From what I've read, it seems to be a nice, solid bag phone.

https://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?threadid=880754

I'm not familiar with the term "bag phone". But judging from the picture of the Motorola M800, it looks like you're talking about (what we used to call) a transportable. Transportable cellular telephones traditionally had better reception due to 3 Watt transcievers, whereas handhelds used half that power.

As cell tower strength deceases with distance, it's up to the mobile device to step up to the plate to keep the connection alive. Although battery technology has changed dramatically over the years for the handhelds, transportables tended to have enormous batteries that were capable of sustaining weak connections over longer periods of time.

"Bag Phone" is my personal term. I've got an old Motorola analog phone that came in a zip up bag about 10"x14"x4". It had a 3-watt battery on 1 side and the handset on the other. It plugs into my cigarette lighter and has a small twist up antenna, but could also be connected to a larger antenna with a cable. Sorry I don't have all the proper terms as I'm not a cell phone guru by any means.

Sounds like a transportable. Those were the bomb. The reception was so good, it was pretty much indistinguishable from a land line call. The guys at that website are selling them! Take a look over here and here .

However, I like the reference that jcbailey gave the best.

BTW, it looks like the M800 is only 325mW in analog mode. A far cry form 3W of the old bag phones. Although it seems you can get a connection at 40mi with 325mW.

Also, there is the M900 which is the GSM version of the phone..

More reading material:
https://boxcarcabin.com/m800bp.htm

Man, I remember the bag phones from when I was a kid. My dad, grandfather, and 2 uncles all had them in their cars. I must have been 4 or 5 then...

My friend’s dad had a bag phone up until last week. Verizon sent him a new phone and told him they don’t support the bag phone anymore. He can’t stand the new one, way too small.