MOTOFONE Global Debut

Motorola this morning officially released its handset for the developing world, the MOTOFONE, to the international market. The phone was previously announced this year and is designed to reach communities where such devices were previously impractical. A high-contrast, plastic e-paper display consumes little power, is easy to read in daylight, and resists the cracks or dust likely to affect more fragile LCDs, Motorola says. The interface also avoids using text, relying instead on audio, icons, and numbers that allow even the illiterate to use the MOTOFONE properly. Simultaneously, however, the phone retains Motorola's more recent ultra-thin design and is intended to provide a sense of style even to poorer regions, according to the company.

Two versions of the phone are scheduled for launch. Debuting today is the F3, a black GSM-based model that ships to India immediately and to other countries within the next few weeks; the F3c (pictured), a silver CDMA phone, is expected by the end of 2006. Motorola has not specified which countries are likely to receive the phone next, but has not ruled out a North American release.

By Electronista Staff