| Name | Prototype L&G Comet 12 |
| Date | c. 2000 The Comet was also used in Ireland. |
| Manufacturer | Landis & Gyr |
Information and images with special thanks to Peter Van Almelo
Development of the Landis & Gyr Comet 12
The Landis & Gyr Comet 12 was an advanced electronic payphone developed by the Swiss engineering company Landis & Gyr during the mid to late 1990s. Designed as a successor to earlier electromechanical models, it featured a microprocessor-controlled operating system, electronic coin validation, an LCD display, modular internal components and programmable tariffs. These innovations made the Comet 12 easier to maintain and adaptable to the differing requirements of telephone operators around the world.
The example shown here is particularly significant because it appears to be a prototype or evaluation unit used in South Africa. Although the front panel retains Spanish-language instructions (“Introducción de Monedas” and “Devolución de Monedas”), the interior contains electronics associated with Paradyne, a company involved in Telkom South Africa’s public telephone network during the 1990s. This combination suggests the telephone was adapted from a standard export model for field testing rather than mass production.
Internally, the Comet 12 is highly modular, with separate assemblies for the coin validator, keypad, display and control electronics. This simplified servicing and allowed upgrades without replacing the entire telephone. The clean industrial design and electronic architecture reflect the transition from traditional coin-operated telephones to the sophisticated digital public telephones that became common before prepaid card and mobile technologies led to the decline of public payphones. Today, surviving Comet 12 prototypes are exceptionally rare and represent an important stage in the evolution of modern public telephony.
Leave a Reply