LG's Wristwatch Prototype would make Dick Tracy proud
(Credit: Kevin Ho)Like moths to a flame, CES attendees were drawn to LG's prototype of Dick Tracy's wristwatch cell phone updated (of course).
LG's Wristwatch Phone
Like moths to a flame.
Assessment: The watch phone would be coveted (if the crowds even near closing time were indicative) but the downside is that you'd definitely have to use a Bluetooth headset if you were out and about. This may not be a downside for you, but it's a deal breaker for me.
View complete CES 2008 coverage from CNET.
Cell phone/PDAs or other iterations of what you want to call the convergence of handheld devices are featured prominently at the Consumer Electronics Show, no doubt. Whether these devices from Motorola or Samsung overtly claim to be iPhone killers is beside the point. The point is that most devices feature cleaner user interfaces and better bundles of applications that access more and more content. Nearly all of these gadgets are touch-based. Nearly all the devices, though, still don't come close in terms of usability and elegance to the iPhone's user interface. You can check out all the performance reviews of the upcoming phones here, but more interesting is the convergence of high-end couture brands with traditionally utilitarian brands like Samsung on display at CES.
From carrying cases to the actual device itself, incorporating couture elements is on the rise. From Case Logic, for example, comes a leather case for an iPod Touch that arguably pays homage to Hermes orange. Case Logic's other designs range from basic to quasi-personal, if you can achieve such a thing on a mass scale, to highlight your own personality.
Does Case Logic's case pay homage to Hermes?
(Credit: Kevin Ho)Other designers, while not at CES but otherwise available in Las Vegas, are offering high-end phones/PDAs or MP3 carrying cases. (Louis Vuitton's cigarette case, for example, is the perfect iPod Classic carrier.)
As for the devices themselves, Samsung has partnered with Georgio Armani to release a Samsung-made phone only available in Europe. Meanwhile, Bang & Olufsen collaborated with Samsung and has released an updated phone that is GSM-based (AT&T and T-Mobile only). I'm reminded of T-Mobile's attempt to sell a D&G phone or Prada's foray into the cell phone market. Using the B&O phone, however, was not easy. An actual metal click wheel got dirty quick (the clerk at the booth kept wiping it down) and I would question how the sound quality is to be superior given that you're often victim to your network provider.
Armani your phone.
(Credit: Kevin Ho)
B&O's phone comes with a real click
wheel that turns.
While brand fixation and loyalty have been a delight to marketers since time immemorial, it seems that this trend of buying into a brand's exclusivity (the B&O phone retails for $1,600) is on the rise. High-end consumer products from high-end designers are nothing new, either. Increased demand for high-end couture in a credit crunch era, while unwise, is not surprising as many people may be buying into the idea and image of being successful as represented by branded possessions. Combining the designer brands with a utilitarian gadget may not be the newest thing, but, if any indication can be gleaned by the crowds ogling these blinged-out couture cell phones, it appears to be phenomenon here to stay.
View complete CES 2008 coverage from CNET.
As already noted, I'm a big proponent of the SMS text message. So much so that I was willing to pay $.50 a text sent from Australia! But on a more serious note, there was a 5.6 earthquake here in the Bay Area on Tuesday night. I was at dinner and I thought my dinner date was shaking the table or that there was a washing machine somewhere that went awry. But no, it was a bona fide earthquake. While there was no damage and it was minor, we both got text messages from our friends as soon as it happened:
"Earthquake?!"
"Did you feel that?"
And so on. I found out the next day that a lot of people had tried to call me that night, but they said my phone was off. My phone is never off. So I thought it odd. Usually the iPhone will pick up a call right away, when you're browsing, texting, and call-waiting is particularly good - a call will usually get through. No, it was only with this article that it occurred to me that the Bay Area cellphone networks were all jammed up.
The distressing thing is that there are news reports that landlines were also jammed despite being touted as being more robust in times of emergency. I seem to recall that because SMS texts are very small chunks or packets of data, they are easier to push across cell networks than calls are. This is a good thing when a lot of people are attempting to communicate, especially true for concerts, street parties, and, well, earthquakes. But, when I saw my friend try to text on his Sony cell phone last night it took him too long. Big contrast to the SMS features on the iPhone. His word find and unintelligent UI was distressing to see. What would he do in a bind?
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