New digital kiosks with 55-inch screens have sprouted across the city of Newark that will allow passers-by to make free phone calls, connect to public Wifi or charge their mobile devices.

Newark is the first in New Jersey to launch the LinkNWK sidewalk kiosks created by Intersection, a New York-based technology company. New York City was the first to roll out the technology in 2016 and Philadelphia will install the kiosks later this fall.

On Tuesday, officials debuted the newly-installed kiosks across from the Prudential Center on Broad Street. A total of 45 kiosks will be in operation in the city -- with at least one in every ward. So far, two are up and running.

"Newark is once again defining itself to the state, nation, and world as a cutting-edge, high-tech city," Mayor Ras Baraka said. "These kiosks will enable residents and visitors alike to gain immediate information about Newark, ranging from upcoming cultural events to emergency service response."

The kiosks, which Intersection installed at no cost to the city, display information on city services, fun facts about Newark, upcoming events and advertisements.

The ad revenue will go to the company and be shared with the city as well.

Representatives at Intersection said this time, the kiosks will not allow internet browsing. When the devices were first installed in New York City people used the kiosks to watch pornography, according to reports at the time.

LinkNWK kiosk on Broad Street. Oct. 16, 2018. (Courtesy: City of Newark)

The company has not announced plans to install kiosks in any other New Jersey cities.

The Newark kiosks will be the first to roll out with a Wifi app that allows users to connect to the LinkNWK network and pull up a map to find the nearest kiosk.

NJIT has also partnered with Intersection to find creative ways of using the devices to benefit the community.

"Newark is a rising star in the tech economy, and we are proud that LinkNWK will only add to this momentum," said Jen Hensley, President of Link at Intersection.

A minority investor in Intersection is Sidewalk Labs, which was created by Alphabet, the parent company of Google.

Karen Yi may be reached at kyi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @karen_yi or on Facebook.