Motorola announces six WAP phones

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February 25, 2000
Web posted at: 3:24 p.m. EST (2024 GMT)

by Douglas F. Gray

HANOVER, Germany (IDG) -- Motorola is here at CeBIT showing six new WAP (wireless application protocol) phones, which will be available beginning next quarter, executives said.

The WAP announcements cross Motorola's three core consumer brands, TalkAbout, Timeport and V. Series, executives from the company said in a press conference.

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The Motorola TalkAbout T2288 is the most basic of the three. It will be available in three colors, and have a full matrix graphic screen that can display up to five lines of text and icons. The phone also features standard mobile phone features, such as call divert, a dedicated voicemail key, and the ability to send and receive short text messages.

Motorola also launched its V. series phone, the V.2288, aimed at the youth market. The V.2288 phone has a built-in FM radio, voice activated dialing, and a digital voice recorder so users can leave memos and reminders on their phone. The phone can also flash different colors when it rings, and colors can be linked to different groups of callers. For example, the user can have the phone flash red when anyone from a selected group of people call.

The company released three phones in its Timeport series of WAP-enabled GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) phones. The Timeport P7389 is a tri-band GSM (Global Systems for Mobile Communications) phone which uses type-ahead technology, voice activation, a digital voice recorder and a vibrating alert.

The Timeport P7389e e-commerce phone allows users to shop from their digital handset using a bank smart card initially, although the company will offer alternative methods such as virtual wallets in geographic areas where the smart cards are not widely in use. Users will also be able to send e-mail and other text messages from the phone. The phone will support English, German, French, Italian and Spanish languages. The phone will also include a headset and a vibrating alert option.

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The Timeport P1088 smart phone will include a dual-mode browser handset with an HTML browser, as well as a WAP-enabled browser. It features a large touch screen and allows users to surf the Internet, send and receive e-mails and text messages, as well as send faxes.

Each line of phones will eventually have its own portal associated with it as well, said Rick Darnaby, senior vice president and general manager of Motorola's personal communications sector, EMEA. "We will be delivering the pocket Internet into the palm of your hand," he said.

Timeport will be the first line to have a portal, called mytimeport.com. It will launch with 19 content providers, including sports.com, amazon.co.uk and thestreet.com. Using their bank card, users will be able to purchase goods online using their phone.

Pricing information and specific launch details will be decided in cooperation with service providers and announced at a later date.

Douglas F. Gray writes for the IDG News Service in London.

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