Nokia GEM – Touchscreen All Over
The Nokia GEM is the latest gift from the Nokia Research Center, the concept behind the phone is that it’s totally customisable with touch screens on every surface of the phone. Essentially, the phone is one big touchscreen device. The shape of the phone is more reminiscent of the old school Nokia phones, rather than the iPhone/HTCesque phones of late. Though clearly some time away , it does indicate the exciting possibilities to come!
This isn’t Nokia’s first innovative/crazy phone idea. It also showcased the Nokia Kinetic bendy concept phone at Nokia World 2011.
New spin on the mobile phone – how simple is too simple?
This phone was designed by the Dutch creative agency John Doe in Amsterdam. It is therefore aptly named John’s Phone, and it is touted as the world’s simplest phone. There are no frills, the only feature available is calling, no text, no camera and no choice of ringtones! The idea behind it is that the use of the phone would be simple and intuitive, requiring no explanation whatsoever.
The phone is available in 5 different colours, and it comes unlocked thereby allowing any sim-card to be accepted. The phone is priced at €79.99, and has a standby battery life of over 3 weeks.
The phone seems to be targeted at senior citizens, children and people who just can’t handle the technology overload and complexity of many phones today. I for one would never be able to use such a phone, what with my iPhone 4 permanently glued to my palm. Although, I’m interested to know whether other people would actually find such a phone useful, would you?
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Nokia Unik Customisable Phone
Targeting the global market, French designer Clement Logereau has designed a unique mobile handset that lets users modify its back made of 152 customizable small squares. Entitled the “UNIK,” the Nokia concept becomes a fashion accessory for trendy users, as they can get additional squares in different colors and materials, including metal, transparent and rubber, from Nokia shops. The artistic cellphone lets users play with their imagination as they can match the texture with their mood or personality.
[ Article Source: Design Blog ]
Morse Code LEDs Transmit Data to Phones
I’m not really sure if this is good or bad news for end consumers, but a couple of Japanese companies have developed a technology that makes it possible to transmit information from blinking LEDs fixed on advertisements to cell phones – using only light. The companies involved in the development include some big names such as Toshiba or NEC.
With this new system, Japanese cell phone users don’t have to scan the ubiquitous QR codes anymore to access more information on a certain product or to get coupons but can obtain the data without being physically close to the ads. If you have an ad measuring 1sqm and place LEDs on it, for example, the target user can stand as far as five meters away (the distance can be longer in the case of larger ads). If the users are interested in what’s being offered, it’s enough to point the cell phone to the ad to instantly view the information on the screen.
The LEDs blink about four million times per second and (obviously) require the use of a light-receiving handset (sorry for the silly picture – there are no official photos of the LED system yet). Advertisers can change the blinking frequency to change the content of the information they send to their potential customers.
The technology is on track to be commercialized by 2013.
Via Nikkei [registration required, paid subscription]
Phone calls from your Fingers – the Wireless Chat Rings
Inspired by the gestural language depicting the use of the phone, the color rings by BCK design team, including Javier Bertani, Ezequiel Castro and Vera Kade, are an accessory for your mobile phones that apart from making your chatter more natural and comfortable also turns your flamboyant fashion accessory in to a functional device. The color rings are intended to be worn in the thumb and little finger that works as a microphone and headset, while connecting wirelessly to your mobile phone. All you need to do is to point your thumb and little finger towards your ear and mouth respectively to make or receive a call, thanks to the built-in distance sensors.
The question is, if you’re using your hand, why don’t you just hold the phone itself? This is not the new handsfree mobile phone solution, but a tech-fashion accessory.
[ Article Source : the Design Blog ]
WakeUpPhone – the phone that wants to be an Alarm Clock
With the growing popularity of mobile phones among the masses, watches or clocks are having a tough time, if not breathing their last. For the cellphone has emerged as a functional device that not only tells time but also works as an alarm clock to wake you up in the morning. Enhancing the time and alarm functions of the mobile phone, Swedish designer Carl Hagerling has come up with an innovative phone that features a tilted display, in the alarm position, to give a better view of the time even while lying on the bed. The WakeUpPhone, as the designer calls his phone, generates power from two AAA batteries and comes integrated with a Walkman, camera and the power button. So, there is no point in spending extra on an alarm clock, PMP and camera, if you have the WakeUpPhone at your disposal.
[ Article source : CrunchGear ]
Solar Powered Bluetooth Speaker Phone
Scoschse, has just released a new solar powered gadget, the solCHAT solar powered Bluetooth speaker phone. The device is designed to be used while driving your car, so you can chat with anyone you like without breaking the law. The speaker phone comes with an integrated Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery provided with a solar panel, but we don’t know whether it’s efficient or not, because the solar-powered gadgets that we had the chance to see so far weren’t successful in terms of efficiency.
In addition, if there’s no sun on the sky, then you can recharge the Bluetooth speaker phone via USB. This means your car must be equipped with USB ports. You can purchase this green gadget from Scosche, for $99.99.
QuickOffice for iPhone
iPhone users will soon be able to view, edit, and share Microsoft Word and Excel files on their iPhones. Announced at this week’s CTIA Wireless 2009 tradeshow and conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, Quickoffice for iPhone promises a broad range of editing and file-management features.
Since at least last October, Dataviz has promised a similar app for the iPhone as part of its Documents to Go line for other handhelds, but it’s not yet ready for release, and DataViz didn’t immediately answer our query as to when it would appear. Long-time Mac developer Mariner Software offers an Excel-on-iPhone app, the $9.99 Mariner Calc (iTunes link), but not a Word-editing app. Quickoffice for iPhone’s Word-document editing capabilities will include font formatting, text selection, bulleting, and cut, copy, and paste within Word documents. Excel-spreadsheet features will include math and stat functions, cell editing, the ability to recalculate entries, and to insert and resize rows and columns.
More info: Quickoffice.com
Teco Skype Phone
If you have had the chance to work in an office environment, the initial impression that the Teco Skype Phone has may not be appealing. But take a look closer and you may discover that to operate this phone, your home network will be needed to place a call.
As we all know, a number of Skype devices have come out since it carries a better way of making calls anywhere cheaper. And the latest device to adhere to the Skype technology is this phone which may seem sophisticated to use but really easy to handle with some loose ends.
Although the phone is pretty easy to use, it does seem to inherit some of Skype’s annoying qualities. For example, the phone refuses to accept perfectly valid Skype contacts. Pricing for SkypeOut is rather costly, considering most BT-to-BT calls are free these days.
source: Cnet.co.uk