ANALOG

Analog in the cellular world normally refers to analog cellular.  The first cellular telephone radios were actually a form of FM radio, and in fact, operated not much differently in many aspects than the FM radio that you might use in your house or car.

Different cellular conversations were at different frequencies - much as radio stations we listen to are at different radio frequencies.  The mobile telephones would signal on a given calling channel (frequency) and after connection was made, they would be sent to their own conversation channel (a different and separate frequency from the calling channel and from all other cellular conversations) for the remainder of the conversation.

The first mobile telephones made operated at VHF and UHF frequency bands, and therefore somewhat competed with television for frequency space.  Not so surprisingly, television often won and not many mobile telephone calls were allowed to be in use.  When Cellular originated in about 1983 and the frequency was closer to 800 or 900 MHz, now mobile telephone frequency was much higher than television (about twice the frequency of UHF).  Now more customers could use cellular and make telephone calls.