October 5, 2009 11:11 PM PDT

Fujitsu's futuristic phones

by Erica Ogg
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Fujitsu concept phone

The winning design, titled 'Gesture.'

(Credit: Scott Ard/CNET)

CHIBA, Japan--Out of 2,000 design concepts for mobile phones of the future, the winning entry in Fujitsu's Mobile Phone Design competition was not the flashiest or most forward-thinking. Instead, the grand prize was awarded to one that featured the most intuitive interface for users. What a concept.

Jin-Gwon Go, a South Korean college student studying design won the equivalent of about $20,000 for his mobile phone concept titled "Gesture." Of all the finalists, Go's design was probably the one that took the form of what most people would expect of a mobile phone. Fujitsu said his design stood out because of the gesture-based commands and touchable icons used to operate the phone using only one hand.

Back in May, Fujitsu asked for some input on phone design from anyone who was interested. Roughly 2,000 submissions and four months later, the company unveiled nine finalists on Tuesday here at Ceatec 2009, including Go's Gesture.

Ceatec is a treasure trove of mobile phone design, thanks to the sophisticated cell phone culture here in Japan. Tuesday is the first day of the show, so be sure to check back throughout the week for more. And for the rest of the finalists, click on the gallery above.

Erica Ogg is a CNET News reporter who covers Apple, HP, Dell, and other PC makers, as well as the consumer electronics industry. She's also one of the hosts of CNET News' Daily Podcast. In her non-work life, she's a history geek, a loyal Dodgers fan, and a mac-and-cheese connoisseur. E-mail Erica.
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by gerrrg October 6, 2009 12:03 AM PDT
Eww.
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by sundance808 October 6, 2009 2:06 AM PDT
what an ugly phone
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by Speiler9 October 6, 2009 2:12 AM PDT
They should have given that $20K to earthquake relief instead...this thing is hideous!
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by dissent3125 October 6, 2009 3:21 AM PDT
L2Read, the award went to the software developer and not the physical designer, and seeing as it is basically a rectangular touchscreen it can be adapted to any other similar device.
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by TechDawn October 6, 2009 9:02 AM PDT
The phone gesture is beautiful. Do you people have no common style sense?
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by Money2themax October 6, 2009 1:25 PM PDT
This junk is a little out there honestly i just want the damn thing to work style is for the obscenely rich and vain or suckers
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by play7 October 7, 2009 1:43 AM PDT
They make great lasting phones. I had mine for along time before it I broke it............A great phone maker
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by chinaphones October 18, 2009 8:56 PM PDT
I LIKE it
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The Circuit Breaker will keep you plugged into the world of consumer electronics and PC makers, with close attention to Apple, ever the trend-setter. Erica Ogg will try to make sense of the constant stream of new and increasingly connected devices we find in our homes, cars, and backpacks, as well as the companies that make them. Based in San Francisco, Erica is partial to gadgets that allow her to search for the best mac-and-cheese recipes, read grammar blogs, and watch "Mad Men" and the Los Angeles Dodgers whenever she wants.

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