NTT Docomo, one of Japan’s big-three cell-phone providers, recently showcased all the models of its cell phones dating back to 1987 at Tokyo Design Week 2012. DesignBoom’s coverage of the event, “Evolution of the Mobile Phone by Docomo,” includes photos of the exhibition, a video of the evolution of the phones, and close-ups of body and case designs through the years.

Timeline of cell phones 2000-2003 from the exhibition. Image edited by designboom.

I find it interesting that my first (American) cell phone, a Nokia “candy-bar” style model from 2004, more closely resembles the Docomo models from the 1980s than those from the early ’00s! I also remember how Japanese cell phones were the height of technology until the iPhone came around. Even though the smart phone has homogenized cell-phone design to some extent, the designs and colors available for phone bodies and cases are still quite varied here, as you can see in the later photos.

What was your first Japanese cell phone?

[Via Hikosaemon, via Gizmodo.]