This is pretty amazing stuff . . .

[Preacherman]

Nokia has asked a bunch of students to come up with new designs - "paradigms", if you will - for mobile phones.  Some of the results are in a BBC photographic montage at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/06/magazine_future_of_mobile/html/1.stm - highly recommended for some really intuitive, "outside-the-box" thinking on the part of the designers.

[griz]

It's interesting to me how much peoples ideas of a device or object are tied to what it looks like instead of what it does or what they want it to do.  I suppose our brains are just wired that way.

To me it seems cell phones will continue to shrink until they are just an earpiece with some way to load in your contact list.  It already startles me when I see someone with a near invisible phone in a public place seemingly talking to themselves.  I'm sure the newer phones will drive me nuts, or even more nuts if you listen to my friends.

[K Frame]

Representational BEADS? Hi, Tommy! I'm giving you my bead, but I'm NOT giving one to Amy. She's a Poopie Head!

The equivilent of Little Tykes design your own cell phone? Did Mattel suddenly merge their Transformers and cell phone manufacturing divisions or something?

Smell-a-phone? Does it automatically dial someone else and blame them for its farts?

My favorite? The nagging Jewish Mother Green Phone. Turn out that light so I can sit here in the dark and go blind!

But let's not forget the cell phone that can express anger FOR you. HOW will it express that anger? Hunt down the person who made you angry and do a drive by on his/her emotionphone? Would that emotionphone be showing fear, then?

About the only one that I think actually shows a modicum of creativity (instead of just being a pot and/or alcohol fueled wet dream) is the adaptive technology use.


Sorry, Preach, color me scratching my head and going "what the EFF?"

[griz]

Maybe phones will be built into other tools.  Imagine a handgun the same size as one you own today.  It will have a camera built into the grip much like a lazer grip.  When you push the switch, a built in phone will call 911, broadcast your location, and provide the operater with a video of your attacker and his actions before he was shot.  For better or worse we are headed toward that technology.

[mtnbkr]

I want a phone that is simply a good phone.  I don't want a camera, mp3 player, or blender in my phone.  An integrated PIM that can sync with your PC might be nice, but ONLY after the phone is as good as it can be.

Oh, and the cellphone companies are close to excluding a portion of their current market, those who can't have cameras in the workplace due to security concerns.  The number of quality phones without cameras is shrinking.

Chris

[Lo.Com.Denom]

I'm with Mike on this. Who the hell is going to buy a 'phone that moans at you to "go green" all the time? How would it know that you didn't really recycle that beer can, anyway?

Smelly-phone? Beads?!? I'm all for people thinking outside the box. Just as long as they're aware that there is a box.

Imagine a handgun the same size as one you own today.  It will have a camera built into the grip much like a lazer grip.  When you push the switch, a built in phone will call 911, broadcast your location, and provide the operater with a video of your attacker and his actions before he was shot.

Can I have one that comes with a handy shovel and helps me dye my hair in a service-station restroom, instead?

[crt360]

I want a phone that shoots small tranquilizer darts and has a built-in, 100% accurate, lie detector.

I'd also like it to be waterproof, have easy to use buttons, and sound better than most current phones.

[Nathaniel Firethorn]

I want a phone that shoots small tranquilizer darts and has a built-in, 100% accurate, lie detector.

I'd also like it to be waterproof, have easy to use buttons, and sound better than most current phones.

And I want it to remind me not to leave it in my room when I go out, count my calories, balance my checkbook, be my best friend, remove stubborn grease stains, and project the BatSignal.

- NF

[crt360]

Those students were definitely thinking out-of-the-box (the box of reality & usefulness).  Nokia should be talking to us - we've already got all kinds of useful input here.

It already startles me when I see someone with a near invisible phone in a public place seemingly talking to themselves.

I hate it when I get on the elevator and some girl with a little hidden earpiece says, "So, what are you doing later?"  I'm like, "I don't know, you want to go across the street and have a drink?"  Hell, I'm the only other person here.  She must be talking to me, right?  Wrong.  Now she's got that why-are-you-talking-to-me--you perv look on her face.  I shrink silently into my corner of the elevator and wait for the awkward moment to pass.

People who use those little earpieces around others need to have a large blinking red light on their head so the rest of us will know not to communicate with them.

[Iain]

I want a phone that is simply a good phone.  I don't want a camera, mp3 player, or blender in my phone.  An integrated PIM that can sync with your PC might be nice, but ONLY after the phone is as good as it can be.

Yep. My criteria are:

- Room for a couple of hundred contacts (in case I make a friend or take up stalking) that can easily be transferred on to a computer.
- Room for a goodly number of text messages. Again able to be transferred to a computer.
- A useable number pad, not a keyboard that is rubbish.
- Small, but I don't want to accidentally swallow it. Like my old Nokia 8210, but perhaps thinner.
- Standby time of about a month. That would be great.

If someone makes that phone I'll buy it. Until then I'll stick to taking good 'old' phones off people who just 'have' to buy a new one.

[Guest]

Good Grief Margo!

My Zippo lighter is bigger than some of them ideas, plus my Zippo  works everytime, everywhere !

I do not own a Cell Phone.
Thank goodness the ones I am handed are bigger, have buttons one can see and feel, are simple to use [I think] and tough enough to withstand being tossed in my glove box, behind the seat of the truck or truck tool box - because that is exactly where they go.

Seeing them "ideas" - Mom needed new Portable Phones, and I was fussing about them the other day.

These are also getting smaller, smaller odd shaped buttons and too much on the screen.  Sales "Associate" - I got socks older than this guy...my first young cute "Associate" had to leave - I think she was the only person who actually knew how to give change back...

"it has all these cool features"
"I do not want cool features, I want a phone she can see the buttons, and be real nice if the buttons were in a grid like they used to be instead of some spaced out geometric design."
"it has "
"I appreciate all that, the deal is she is 76 years old, wears bifocals, arthritis and cannot hear well. She wants to answer a call, and place a call".


I finally found the "lesser of evils" and all. Still I cannot wait for this these whippersnappers to get to wearing glasses, cannot hear, and arthritis kicks in...

"You do not have a cell phone?"
"No"
"How do you survive ?"

"Oh I was raised and learned stuff like how to fool  around in picture show  balconies and drive in picture shows and not get caught".

"what is a balcony?"
"what is a picture show?


Mom is visiting with a elderly friend that at least has the good sense to just buy gift certificates for grandkids.
"Does your kids, grandkids call " ask my mom

"Heck if we know, we keep the ringer turned off and do not own a cell phone. They can email , we raised them and finally got our lives back".

Makes sense to me.

"honey there is a noise in your truck toolbox"
"Yeah mom, just the signals from all these damn cell phones bouncing off the thing...it will stop in a second..."

[jefnvk]

So, in the future are phones actually going to be phones?  I don't see a problem with my phone functioning as a communication device, and nothing more.

The thing that makes me mad right now is the camera craze.  Looking in the Alltel store with my roommate the other day, I don't know what happens when I need a new one.  Not a single phone in that store that wasn't a camera, a PDA, a game system or some combination of those.

I want a phone that has nothign but a keypad and a screen.  the only feature that is nice is a phone book, because I can't carry those with me.

[AJ Dual]

The phone of the future will be a chip in your head so you can hear it, and a chip in your eye so you can see information.

If it's got FAX capability... I don't wanna know.

[USP45usp]

I agree, get the dang things to work right, you know, where you can talk, hear without odd background noises or cutting off or just not working at all (no signal).  

I have one for emergencies and to get hold of my mom (funny, now since she is "old", I want to know where she is at all the time instead of the other way around).  They are also good when making long distance personal calls from work (you know, ordering gun stuff, books, etc..).

Mine is a camera phone and has come in useful.  Took pictures of my firebird when this kid backed into me right at the scene, used it to take pictures "covertly" of the tags of the vehicles that were over at the house across the street and sending them to the Sheriff.  Took a picture of the guy I was having problems with and gave to the Sheriff (who then recongized him and arrested because he had a warrent), etc..

I don't play games on mine, barely text message and it's small enough to be comfortable and not too small.  I do have an earpiece that I use and I don't talk on it as I'm strolling around the store, etc..  If I get a call and it's important I go to a secluded place so I don't bother others.

Wayne

[doczinn]

It's interesting to me how much peoples ideas of a device or object are tied to what it looks like instead of what it does or what they want it to do.

Design is much much more than what something looks like. Good design makes a device more functional. With a cell phone it would be about speed of accessing numbers, shock resistance, and a thousand other things that make it work better, not just look better to some.

My wife has one of the latest cell phones, which she loves, and it has a button on the side to access the camera function, and you can't lock the keys because it's a flip phone and they figured that wouldn't be necessary. That's just one example, but it illustrates the importance of such things.

The necklace idea would actually be very practical for anyone who very frequently calls a lot of different people. Faster than scrolling through a list, and more reliable than voice recognition.

I want a phone that is simply a good phone.  I don't want a camera, mp3 player, or blender in my phone.

I'm with you on that. I want to (1) make calls, (2) receive calls, and (3) store phone numbers. I also require a few small features such as a locking keypad, but all the bells and whistles are a waste of time and money.