The MoPR Blog

IA Technology, a UK company known to develop ejector seats and other protection equipment for the military, invited a camera crew from the BBC in to its “top secret” facility where 40 employees were shown working away on likewise top secret technologies. The crew was there to get the scoop on what IA Technology is calling “the world’s first truly hands-free mobile phone.”

Watch the BBC video report where the reporter details the top secret mobile phone. She says she can’t show us how it works (that part is still a secret) but she can tell us about it.”

The device is called the Zumba, and the Hereford-based technology company believes it will fully revolutionize the mobile industry.

According to the IA site, “Zumba connects people by fusing the worlds of telephony and web-based networking, and presents a potent combination of consumer benefits with true mass-market potential.”

The hands-free design for the Zumba is based around what IA calls the “world’s first fully accurate voice recognition system for mobile phones.” The device is the size of a credit card with an earpiece that pops off to fit over your ear.

To place calls or send a text, one simply touches a button on the earpiece, which calls up a secure website portal – called Zumba Lumba (seriously, that is what they are calling it) – where your contacts are listed and allows you to place the call or text using only your voice to navigate. According to the IA site, “ZumbaLumba is a ‘Natural Connections’ website that taps into our real life circle of contacts held on our phones and allows us to interact with them in new and purposeful ways. It allows users to manage their contacts, availability and communication, whilst enabling closer connections. ZumbaLumba ‘Natural Connections’ brings the virtual world of networking into the real world of connecting to solve real problems that affect all of us.”

Launched last year, New Jersey-based RENTOBILE brings the Netflix model to cell phones, joining a long list of companies that have already brought it to toys, books and snacks, among other goods.

The company recognizes that in the fast-paced world of telecommunication technologies, mobile devices come and go like last week’s gossip. Mobile devices are not merely for convenience anymore; they make up a large part of today’s fashion accessories. To provide fashion-lovers and trendsetters a way to satisfy their techie needs, RENTOBILE lets you get your hands on the latest cell phones without shoveling out loads of cash each time a new ‘must try’ phone is released.

You typically have to wait for your contract to expire or have to pay full price for a new phone to try out something new, but with RENTOBILE you can sample a huge variety of mobiles on your whim for a set monthly rental fee.

The first step is deciding whether you want to rent phones as a RENTOBILE member, or as a guest. Membership rates begin at $5 per month, and members get a break in rental fees, along with other privileges.

When you are ready to pick out your new phone you browse RENTOBILE ’s collection—including sections for AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon as well as unlocked models—and choose which device you’d like to try out first. Your rented mobile device will be carefully packaged and delivered to you in like-new condition.

Rental rates start at about $15/month, plus a $9.95 round trip shipping charge (per device). You can rent for as little as a month or as long as you want. When you’re done and ready for a new phone you simply return the item for free and tell RENTOBILE what to send you next.

Members can request specific devices, even though all the hottest ‘must have’ phones from Apple, Blackberry, HTC, Palm, LG, Motorola, Nokia and more are already available.

The fickle yet fashion conscious gadget-aholics who would use this service are the same group of consumers that myriad mobile app developers want to reach. I wonder how long it will be until we see third party mobile apps, browsers, and other software pre-loaded on these devices for consumers to try out. No, the phones wouldn’t be “like new” if RENTOBILE pre-loaded the extra bells and whistles on them, but these gadget loving phone-fashionistas would probably really enjoy the extras!