Hello, Dick Tracy: A Wristwatch Cell Phone at Last
Gadget will cost about $200
The phone is a sure conversation-starter.
A cell-phone watch shown off this week at the wireless convention is an eyecatching big boy.
If you're old enough to remember Dick Tracy, then you probably remember his walkie-talkie wristwatch. The W Watchphone being marketed at the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association may look cartoonish, but its technology is not.
The W is manufactured by the San Diego-based Kempler & Strauss, the same folks who brought you the Slim Data USB (a credit-card-sized memory stick you can carry in your wallet) and the Billionaire-6 and -7 phones.
The Bluetooth-enabled W has a micro-SD slot and is tricked out with a stereo MP3 player, camera, video recorder and player, and games. It also has a touch-screen interface that's pretty nifty for sending text messages and e-mail, and making calls, and the watch face is customizable, as are its ringtones, alarms and shortcuts.
While it's a cool gadget, it's hard to take K&S's claim seriously that it's "elegantly designed." In fact, it's a big, blocky thing sure to elicit "What the hell is that?" type questioning.
The W will go on sale next year and cost about 200 bucks.
Over and out.
Posted Friday, Oct 9, 2009 - 3:54 PM PST
