The story of BP machine and pager

From the 1990s to the early 21st century, BP machines and PHS were popular among the public as transitional products for mobile communication. BP machine is a one-way communication device that can receive short messages or phone numbers. Xiaolingtong is a two-way wireless telephone based on digital communication technology that provides voice call services in specific areas. Although BPs and pagers have long since exited the historical stage, they played an irreplaceable role in improving people's communication efficiency and promoting social exchange.

The unit is designed for unsupervised public use: controls are recessed or shielded, moving parts are enclosed, and the interface is operable by a child of about six with no instruction. Where a screen is used, the language can be switched without changing the hardware, and the content can be replaced on site.

In the 1G era, mobile phones were expensive and unaffordable for ordinary people, so their popularity rate was not high. In contrast, the one-way mobile communication tool pager, which appeared earlier than 1G, gradually became popular due to its small size and more affordable price. The initial basic pager function was extremely simple, only able to remind users that someone was calling, and could not display the caller's identity or information. The user needs to check call records by contacting the paging station and then find a public phone to make calls back and forth. Later on, pagers with numerical displays and those displaying Chinese character information gradually emerged, making information transmission more convenient. The pager service is operated by China Unicom in the northern region, while China Telecom operates its services in the southern region. In Shenzhen, Xiaolingtong, also known as local telephone communication, is used by Shenzhen Telecom users. When Xiaolingtong was born, it was positioned as a "supplement and extension of fixed line telephones", which was in the absence of a mobile business license between China Telecom and the original China Netcom.