Molecularist

Uh, I think this kind of toy should have been built by a phone company who can make amazing phones. Gosh, Nokia really was sleeping here. I know we could make a better WiFi phone.

And this Skype phone is ugly.

But, it’s flying off the shelves. I think Christensen would say this is due to non-consumption – putting up with something crummy because it fills a burning burning need.

Link: Sales of PC-free Skype handsets take off | InfoWorld | News | 2006-12-06 | By Dan Nystedt, IDG News Service.

The Wi-Fi mobile phones are rousing interest for two reasons: the low cost of using Skype services to make calls, and because people can use them more like a traditional mobile phone, without the aid of a PC. Skype is offering the WSKP100 by SMC Networks in a package on its Web site that includes the handset, a Wi-Fi router, 500 minutes of calls to regular mobile phones and landlines (SkypeOut) and 12 months of Skype voicemail for just £99 ($196).

And let’s hope he means it when he says it’s more than low-cost handsets. I think it would be insulting to think the first step is to just get phones in people’s hands. I think everyone in emerging markets is well aware of what the rest of the Hyperconnected World is doing with mobile devices. I don’t expect them to desire any less.

That’s the next hop of the leapfrogging.

Link: Motorola’s Zander: Future is in emerging markets | InfoWorld | News | 2006-12-07 | By Sumner Lemon, IDG News Service.

The future of the mobile communications industry lies in emerging high-growth markets, like China and India, and companies ignore the opportunities in these countries at their own peril, Motorola’s top executive said.

 

"It’s where the future is, not only for low-end handsets but for mobile communications," said Ed Zander, Motorola’s chief executive officer, during an interview at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecom World 2006 conference and exhibition in Hong Kong.

Eh, his math is off, too. I mean, some of those ‘next 4 billion’, Ed, are babies.