Teen Phone Facts
From a study by the University of Tampere
(Finland): |
Who buys? The
average purchase age is 14-15, but kids as young as seven have wireless
phones.
Who talks?
Females use their phones most often to communicate with friends. Males
describe their phones as status symbols and symbols of belonging.
What style?
Teenagers like phones that are small and have "customizable" features like
a choice of rings and colors.
What next? A
teenager's first phone is usually basic, but is then replaced within 6-12
months by a much more sophisticated model, often paid for in full or in
part by the teenager.
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Teen Phone
Etiquette
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Simple rule of the road: be considerate. Don't talk about anything that you
wouldn't want to be on the front page of your school newspaper.
Not cool To
have your wireless phone on in places like classrooms, restaurants,
churches or movie theaters.
Cool If you
forget to turn off your phone and it rings - putting you in an embarrassing
situation - say "excuse me" and turn it off.
Cool If you're
with family or friends, talk in a low voice and keep your conversation
brief.
Cool If you're
seated next to others in a public place, ask if they mind that you make a
call.
Cool Be
careful about sharing confidential information.
Cool If
someone is speaking on a wireless phone too loud, slip a note
saying, "could you lower your voice?" or make the "shush" sign over your
lips, nicely.
Cool In an
emergency, use your wireless phone to call for help, for yourself or for
others.
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Communicate
with Gen10.com
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Generation10.com and 10Meters.com want to hear from you. Are you a consumer
who has a favorite wireless wonder to share with the world? Are you an
industry type, with a product or technology to share.
Give us a ring via email: GadgetGuy
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Guess What? Teens Love Gadgets
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No surprise to anyone, young or old: teens rule when it comes to wireless
technology, thanks in large part to Finland's Nokia, which helped spread the frenzy with flashy colored phones and rings that run the gamut from Tarzan's yell to the strains of William Tell.
Nokia's lead is being followed: seems everyone is looking to attract the
teen market. Here's a sampling of some groovy gadgets:
On the Road and Jammin' Download music from the Internet and take it with you via
I-Jam's IJ-50 MP3 digital audio player. Features include electronic
volume control, skip-free operation, simple controls. I-Jam uses Compact
Flash Memory cards for storing MP3 files and comes with one 8 MB card.
There's a USB Compact Flash Jam Station for easy file transfer between it
and a PC or Macintosh. Due out in July: Win-Jam Digital Music Player, the
first device to exclusively support the Microsoft Windows Media Format.
More info: www.ijamworld.com.
Music for Nomads Creative Labs' Nomad II comes with both an FM
tuner that can store 20 presets and a voice recorder. Other features
include: backlit LCD screen, USB support, sports headphones, four hours of
voice recording and user-friendly device management software. Best of all:
It comes with an ultra-small wire remote that lets you control your player
while running or biking. Nomad II supports multiple digital audio formats,
including MP3, Microsoft Windows Media or CD music downloaded from a PC.
Coming this summer: Nomad Jukebox, with 6 GB of storage capacity as well as
nifty features like 4-channel surround sound and environmental sound effect
settings. More information: www.nomadworld.com.
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Just Like a Chameleon Ericsson's most colorful mobile phone up to date, the
A2618, offers everything from simple, practical voice communications to WAP
over SMS. Available this summer in Europe, the A2618 is being dubbed the
"people's Wap phone." Reason: a price tag that makes it affordable to the
consumer, not just the professional. The Ericsson Snap-on Covers encase
both the front and back of the phone and are exchangeable. They come in an
array of colors and patterns, some of which are pictured here.
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Handspring's Visor Leaps Forward
The Handspring Visor is going where no
handheld has gone before: straight-on against Palm. At one point this
spring, one line of Visors actually beat out a comparable Palm in number of
sales. One reason: Visor's substantially lower price. Also noted by
analysts: Visor's hip styling and colors. The Visor runs on the Palm OS but
with advanced features including a USB connection that speeds up
handheld-to-PC synching.
Also part of Visor: the plug-and-play Springboard expansion slot that
allows users to add an MP3 player, a pager, a modem, a GPS receiver or
video game module. Says Handspring of Springboard: "Now your Visor is more
than an organizer, it's an entirely new device!"
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Teens In Japan Don't Go Without DoCoMo
DoCoMo's i-mode phone and service is the red-hot choice for wireless
communication in Japan. I-mode, the "i" is for information, is being touted
as the next big thing to come out of the land of Walkman, Game Boy and
Play Station.
The trend in Tokyo: teenage girls, with bleached gray hair, white
eyeshadow and platform sandals, walking down the street talking on their
i-modes. The phones, tiny, ultralight, and in a variety of metallic colors,
can be personalized with downloaded animations - Hello Kitty is a
popular choice - for their 3-by-5 centimeter screens.
Also downloadable and charged to a user's monthly service bill: pop
melodies to signal incoming calls. While i-mode is only available in Japan,
NTT DoCoMo said it will add English content to its portal site on July 3,
offering a variety of services including news, travel information, database
and entertainment.
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Stylin' with Nokia > Lifestyle is the keyword being used by Nokia for
its 8210 line of stylish phones. The line was launched last year during
the Paris fashion week, which is one reason Nokia says this is "a phone you
wear." Helping with the accessorizing: a collection of Changeable Xpress-on
covers. The 8210 is light, small and slim enough to fit in the palm of your
hand. It features voice dialing, picture messaging, and streamlined text
input for SMS. Available in Europe, Asia and Asia Pacific. More
information: Nokia
8210.
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Music Game: Tag, You're It The idea behind Xenote iTag: Hear a song on the
radio you like? Then "tag" it by clicking on the device's button. Later,
upload tags to a PC and go to Xenote's Web site, where tags are presented
with the artist, song, and CD title. Also possible: purchasing music,
tickets and special offers related to advertisements tagged. Service
available via selected U.S. radio stations in San Francisco, St. Louis,
Houston, Washington D.C., Phoenix and Chicago. The iTag is about the
size of a car alarm remote - with a single button that works in
conjunction with a personalized, private Xenote Web service. The device is
free for an introductory time to consumers, and easily fits on a key chain
or in a purse. More information:
www.xenote.com.
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Talking the Talk
Talkabout, Motorola's two-way radios – released a couple of years ago – are still a cool way to stay in touch with friends and family at places like the beach, mall and amusement park. Ranging in price, frequency and distance, the Talkabout radio line offers connection ranges up to two miles - all without phone bills or connection fees. More info: Motorola.
Clickin' With Friends, Surfin' the Net
It's about the size of a pack of gum, comes in Opaque Black, Mystic Blue, Aqua Ice, and Razberry Ice, and combines the benefits of email, the Net and paging all in one. It's the Talkabout T900 personal interactive communicator from Motorola and it offers all of the above as well as the ability to customizable information from the Internet via wireless carriers. Exchanging text messages and wireless e-mail is as easy as flipping open the T900, navigating through the menu and sending a message from the full QWERTY keyboard. More info: Motorola
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Move Over Game Boy
Cybiko's new wireless "inter-tainment" system is here with wireless
chat, friend finder, personal planner and Internet connectivity. Designed
specifically for teens, Cybiko offers multi-player interactive gaming and
free games and applications from its Web Site. Cool Note: Users can create
their own games to be posted to www.Cybiko.com for others to download.
Available in four translucent colors, Cybiko has a full QWERTY keyboard
with a stylus stored in the top of the unit to compose messages, LCD
display, 1 MB memory (expandable to 16MB), a high frequency transmitter and
Vibration Alert feature. The specs: 5.7 x 2.8-inches and weighs under four
ounces making it light, thin and small enough to carry in a book bag, purse
or shirt pocket. Nifty feature: a calculator for all the math homework.
More information: Cybiko
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