| Name | Landis & Gyr Comet Cardphone |
| Date | C. 1995 |
| Manufacturer | Landis & Gyr |
Development of the Landis & Gyr Comet Cardphone
The Landis & Gyr Comet was a sophisticated card-operated payphone introduced into Ireland by Telecom Éireann in the mid-1990s. Unlike the earlier Schlumberger Access 110, the Comet could accept credit cards as well as telephone cards, allowing calls to be charged directly to a bank card. This made it particularly suitable for travellers and higher-volume public locations.
Telecom Éireann’s Comets were distinctive blue wall-mounted units, generally installed indoors in supervised railway stations, airports, hotels, museums and shopping centres. They do not appear to have received a significant outdoor deployment, possibly because the comparatively sophisticated card-reading equipment and casing were less suitable for exposed or vandal-prone locations. Three examples were notably installed at the Nassau Street entrance to Trinity College Dublin.
Landis & Gyr of Switzerland was already one of the world’s major payphone manufacturers, supplying cardphone technology to numerous telecommunications administrations. Its earlier optical-card system was particularly successful in Britain, where BT operated tens of thousands of Landis & Gyr cardphones.
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