From Wire Dispatchers:
Navigation, speech tools displayed at show
BARCELONA, Spain -- A cellular telephone that lets users dictate text messages...another delivers breath-test results... Mobile handset makers put their most eye-catching gadgets on display at last week's wireless industry conference.
A ton of new handsets were unveiled at the 3GSM wireless conference, many sporting radical new designs and capabilities.
The main theme of this year's show was the integration of programs such as instant messaging, blogs and mapping to blur the line between the computer and phone.
Some of the big topics included bringing more video to hand-held devices.
During his address, Nokia Chief Executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo unveiled the N77, a multimedia device with a 2.4-inch screen that he said would speed up the acceptance and use of mobile television services based on DVB-H, or digital video broadcast-handheld. That platform has been embraced by a growing number of wireless operators that already use the globally dominant GSM technology standard for their phone networks.
Kallasvuo predicted the DVB-H market would reach 10 million units sold by the end of 2008 and double that in '09.
The N77's features include stereo sound, alerts for when a show starts and a program guide that shows listings.
But some offerings targeted simpler needs.
Spain's Imaginarium showed off a small cell phone with just six buttons, all of them in bright green, red, blue and orange. The "Mo1" is aimed at children. There's no numerical keypad because all calls are restricted to the phone numbers a parent has programmed in. Plus, it can't be used for text messages other than to receive them from preapproved contacts or to send a simple note to a parent or guardian telling them where the child and the phone are.
U.S.-based Nuance Communications displayed mobile applications of its speech recognition technology, Dragon's Naturally Speaking, with which users can press a single button and use voice commands to get news, sports and other information. Another feature lets a person dictate a text message and send it on its way. A user also can request directions from a navigation program, or tell the phone's MP3 player what song to play.
"With more than 2.5 billion cell phones in use, and about 5 percent using speech recognition, we see an enormous untapped market," said Steve Chambers, the company's president.
One of the more unusual devices came from Japan's NTT DoCoMo. It is a phone that delivers the results of a breath test for alcoholwith real-time video of a driver. The analyzer links up to a handset that sends video of the person taking the test to a bus or taxi company's office to ensure there's no drunk driving.
Monday, February 19, 2007
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