As of 2005, Palm with its PDAs (Personal Digital Assistant) and BlackBerry were the best expressions of  the smartphone concept  that was making its way, although the classic cell phone was still preferred by most users. This changed with the arrival of the iPhone 3G in 2008.

It was the second 2G generation of the device launched a year earlier and unlike that one it added support for 3G networks, which provided fast internet access, and debuted the App Store opening up a whole world of device customization that has defined the industry ever since.