Why Pagers Were Invented

Perhaps you remember the old days before cell phones, answering machines, e-mail and pagers were invented. What did you do when you wanted to get a hold of someone but couldn’t? You just had to wait.

However, in our fast-paced, high-tech society, who has the patience for that? We want instant access to everyone who have a desire to talk to at a given time. Which is the reason why pagers were invented. A person can put off answering an e-mail, or let messages blink away on his or her answering machine. He or she can even turn off the cell phone once in a while. But the pager finds you wherever you are, and if you feel annoyed by its constant beeping, you can understand why pagers were invented; because there are a lot of people who want to talk to you.

One reason why pagers were invented is that it is cheaper than a cell-phone and it is a good option for someone who does not mind using a public phone (if such a dinosaur can still be found), but does not want to miss a call. A pager gives you the number of the person who called and the time. However, you cannot use a pager to make a phone call.

If pagers are so limited, one may wonder why pagers were invented. As mentioned above, they are a good option for a person who cannot afford a cell phone, but they are not used so frequently these days, because more and more people own cell phones. A better question than “Why pagers were invented?” are “Why pagers are still around” because portable PCs and cell phones have made pagers virtually obsolete. They are a good back up device if nothing else is available, but few people want to call a pager if they know there is no chance of an immediate response to their call. Although pagers served a very valuable function, they are quickly becoming a thing of the past.