The fact that the StarTac looked similar to the communicators used on Star Trek was just icing on the cake for a phone chock-full of firsts. Not only was the StarTac the first clamshell mobile phone, it was also the first with a vibrate option. At 3.7 in. by 2.1 in. by 0.75 in. and 3.1 oz., it was the smallest and lightest cell phone yet when it was released in 1996.
TIME technology editor Peter Ha picks the 100 greatest and most influential gadgets from 1923 to the present