Kids Get Phone of their own

I’ve just been sent a copy of the NTT DoCoMo press release. Oh joy – they’ve designed a mobile especially for the ankle-biters.

Before you start the rant they’re aiming it at the “child in an emergency” situation to help parents part with their hard-earned and quite convincingly I might add.  Have a read of this.

In an emergency, the child can quickly switch on the phone’s 100-decibel alarm, which produces two types of noise alternately. When the alarm is activated, the phone also emits a bright light (high-intensity LED) that is easily visible to people in the surrounding area.

The phone can be set to automatically notify loved ones when the alarm is activated, and provide the handset’s current location as well. Computer-generated phone calls can be placed to up to three registered numbers and messages can be sent to registered individuals who subscribe to the i-modeâ„¢ location service called imadoco searchâ„¢. In addition, the child can discreetly message their location to a registered imadoco search user by simply pushing a button on the side of the phone

An amulet-style remote controller worn by the child can be used to make a misplaced phone beep if within a range of about 10 meters (may vary with usage environment). If the user moves even farther from the handset, the phone can automatically lock (requires presetting). If the handset remains out of the amulet’s range for more than five minutes, a message can be sent automatically to a registered DoCoMo phone.

I can’t knock these features really and, as with most Japanese devices, has been carefully designed not only to be ergonomic for the youngsters but the……..

…. soft-rectangle shape and round speaker grille enclosed by a ring-shape LED were conceived by renowned designer Kashiwa Sato to symbolize safety, peace of mind, creativity and the future.

Although I haven’t found a price, and the fact that it’s probably only available in Japan, I think this is the most credible kiddyphone that I’ve seen so far and it seems to have been quite well thought out, designed and executed.