Slashdot Mirror

You're thinking of hop-on... they've been making vaporware and press releases for years, and it seems like the only phones they've been selling have been non-disposable. But the at this year's CES, they showed their new disposable phone without a screen, but still no price point. I don't know if I should hold my breath again this year...

You're thinking of hop-on... they've been making vaporware and press releases for years, and it seems like the only phones they've been selling have been non-disposable. But the at this year's CES, they showed their new disposable phone without a screen, but still no price point. I don't know if I should hold my breath again this year...

You're thinking of hop-on... they've been making vaporware and press releases for years, and it seems like the only phones they've been selling have been non-disposable. But the at this year's CES, they showed their new disposable phone without a screen, but still no price point. I don't know if I should hold my breath again this year...

Not trying to be rude, but they're still in business. The article you posted is from 2001. And it looks like they actually have product.

What is the point here?

I'm still waiting on the disposable cell-phone .....

Gee...

"Hop-on has secured multiple disposable-cell-phone patents from the STX patent collection. These patents have an effective filing date back to December 1995, which we believe predates all other patents directed to disposable cell phone technology. These patents include very broad claims directed to a method of operating a disposable cell phone with pre-programmed minutes.The patents further strengthen our competitive advantage, barring entry into the market by other companies." From: http://www.hop-on.com/technology.html

Everyone's favorite use of a patent!

Its vapourware and IMO it will never be anything but. If you look at some of the financial articles on Hop-on they come to the conclusion that Hop-on is just a way to get money from investors. They haven't produced anything and probably never will.

This snippet from their website (this page, specifically) would support your assertion...have a look:

Patented Technology

Hop-on has secured multiple disposable-cell-phone patents from the STX patent collection. These patents have an effective filing date back to December 1995, which we believe predates all other patents directed to disposable cell phone technology. These patents include very broad claims directed to a method of operating a disposable cell phone with pre-programmed minutes.The patents further strengthen our competitive advantage, barring entry into the market by other companies.

They thought this was important enough that they made it their second bullet point. They smell like they could be another Rambus in the making, except that nobody's buying into their scheme.

$40 dollars is alot for a throw-away phone that only allows you to talk for one hour.

Go ahead, try to buy one! You can't. Offer them some investment money... they'll take it!

Did nobody notice that all images of the "phone" are virtual mockups?

How many promos/how much hype for this have I seen in the past three years?

Hmm, BusinessWeek mag was persuadade that they were available back in 1999 and claimed to have tested one.

It was later shown (by opening the case) that Hop-On's "disposable phones" were really Nokia phones with their own plastic casing put around them. ... and costing WAY more than $30 for the parts.

There were some delays admitted-to long after the 1999 "demo", in June 2002

There was a bit of a problem with a Universal Studios tie-in back in 2001:
"In November 2001, Hop-On announced that it would partner with Universal Studios Home Video to give away a limited number of the disposable phone to purchasers of the "Jurassic Park III" DVD/ home video. The "winners" would get a free Hop-On phone if their copy of the video contained a special coupon. The promotion was cancelled when Hop-On failed to deliver the phones... Universal has advised Stock Patrol that it is sending all of those winners - about 1000 in all - $30 checks (the supposed cost of a Hop-On phone) and a free DVD. "

See also http://www.wirelessreview.com/ar/wireless_cutting_ room_floor_2/

and oh, oopsie!!!!
Disposable Cell Phone Company Hop-On Wireless CEO Indicted For Fraud (April 18, 2003 -- for ANOTHER venture of his, not Hop On, but it looks like a familiar tale)

Last year we had the story of how it looked like disposable cell phone company Hop-On Wireless was a scam. Since then, I've seen the company highly touted in many news stories, talking about how it was this great invention... but which no one seemed to be selling. Now, the CEO of Hop-On has been arrested for fraud, relating to work he did on an earlier company - but which brings up many parallels to Hop-On. The earlier company was an online gambling site, which he raised a lot of money for. However, they did so by showing software that was really someone else's software "cosmetically altered" to look like their own. Hop-On's "disposable phones" were really Nokia phones with their own plastic casing put around them.

From the hop-on website:
Q. When will I be able to buy the Hop-on phone?
A. The release date of our Hop-on phone is contingent on a variety of factors. We are doing everything we can to get our phones into the hands of all those who want and need them as soon as possible. If you like, you can e-mail us your contact information, and we'll let you know as soon as our phone is available in your area.

It sounds like the only thing disposable is the company.

According to stockpatrol, the former CEO was arrested for defrauding investors.

Their 2002 Audited Financials, shows over 98 MILLION shares and lifetime sales of just $4,283 (at an expense of $29,576). The company has moved from online gambling (1998-2000), to DSL provider (2000), to wireless phones(2001-). The audit claims: "[...] the Company has sustained operating losses and expects such losses to continue to the forseeable future. The Company has not generated any significant revenues or product sales [...]". It also mentions that the company currently has two lawsuits against it for unpaid fees.

http://www.hop-on.com/technology.html

"Hop-on has secured multiple disposable-cell-phone patents from the STX patent collection. These patents have an effective filing date back to December 1995, which we believe predates all other patents directed to disposable cell phone technology. These patents include very broad claims directed to a method of operating a disposable cell phone with pre-programmed minutes.The patents further strengthen our competitive advantage, barring entry into the market by other companies."

I just hope they haven't actually patented the very concept of a disposable cell phone. The part about "very broad claims" disturbs me.

Thanks for the ground work AC. Looks like Hop-on is actually making a go of it and has actual product on some of the shelves. News stories from this year even! Also look like DTC Products (the orignal link I was thinking of has given up the ghost.

I for one wouldn't mind having an ultra cheap paper cell phone that I could keep in the car, and maybe one for the kids to keep in their backpacks for emergencies. At prices between $5 and $40, even the working class can get these. Cell phones in happy meals?

It looks on their website as if the product is actually going to market, although this image looks remarkably fake.

Also, if you google for Hop-On in association with any of their apparent partners (Walgreens, Qualcomm, Viasystems), you will only find results from Hop-On and its press release. Funny how there's nothing at all from anyone else...

It looks on their website as if the product is actually going to market, although this image looks remarkably fake.

Also, if you google for Hop-On in association with any of their apparent partners (Walgreens, Qualcomm, Viasystems), you will only find results from Hop-On and its press release. Funny how there's nothing at all from anyone else...

Does the disposible count?

Well the BBC seem to think that the disposible phone will turn up with the next month or so. Hop-on's web site has more info and they seem to imply that disposible mobiles are already available. Of course slashdot has gone down this route many times. This links to a few of them.

How could CNN print this crap without checking into the history of this company? Surely someone there remembers that this same company has pulled this scam before. Hop-On keeps issuing press releases every month or so touting how close they are to product release, and how succesful they are even though no one has seen one of their phones.

According to all of their press releases they will have CDMA, TDMA, and GSM phones. Quite an engineering and desgin feat for a company that employs 15 people.

What really surprises me is how similar the Hop-On website is to the known scam education website that the US Securities and Exchange Commission is using to educate people about website investment scams.

http://hop-on.com/

I don't get it. Is the SEC still doing that thing with the fake investment pages to educate the public? This is so obviously a scam.

I think I found another fake investment site from the SEC at hop-on.com.

Even in the prepaid cellular world, Hop-On is overpriced. You can buy a prepaid phone at a 7-11 for $79.95. Other vendors are even cheaper. If you're willing to overpay for minutes, there are places that will sell you a prepaid, no-contract Nokia cell phone with AT&T service for $39.95. And that's before rebates. You end up paying around $0.25 per minute, which is high, but half the price of Hop-On.

You think that they'd be embarassed to have this Web site up. Did you notice...

- The "mock-up" phone on their front page is actually just a peice of Photoshop handiwork?

- The bogus Time article. While I don't doubt that they made Time (it's amazing what $$ can buy you), their fake "page curl" effect that shows their product on page 3 is a bit much.

- I love how, in the article, they credit the Hop-On CEO as the "inventor". Inventor of what? I'm sure he's hardly the first to think of a disposable cell phone. The technology is obviously not his, nor is it Hop-On's. What did he invent?

- Is that Scooby-Doo rip-off kangaroo thing missing her lower jaw? Or is she just as dazed as the investors? Her joey looks pretty stunned by the whole mess.

- Check out this page. Look at the "models" on the bottom left. It looks like they Photoshop'ed the phones into their hands.

- I couldn't help but think, the "Our Future" link at the top should have lead to here.

I wonder if this was the charity that they were referring to when telling me where my two old Nokii were going. Of course, they did say something about battered women...maybe they misunderstood what was meant by "Hop On"... oh well...

It features simple two-button (CALL / END) operation and employs the very latest automated voice-recognition technology, making number entry both easy and mistake proof.

Actually, Hop-On Wireless, the first company rolling these out, claims to encourage recycling of them on their product page. You get refunded a deposit if you return the phone to a retailer instead of tossing it. Whether people will do this is anyone's guess.

Still, I like the product concept here. It definitely fills a niche. For instance, my parents live in a very rural area, so if their car breaks down, they could be stuck there for a long while before someone comes along. They're retired and don't want to pay for cell service, but they really could use one for emergencies. This would suit them nicely. They could keep it in the car and only use it for an emergency.

But to return to the original point of the article, I think it brings to the surface a crucial issue in our society: whether people have a right to communicate anonymously. I think they do. The government has no right to expect every one of our utterances to be tagged and logged for its perusal. The small amount of security that may only possibly be gained is far outweighed by the loss of freedom. Not a direct loss in the sense of criminalizing speech, but an indirect loss brought on by a chilling effect that will set in when people decline to say unpopular things because of a fear of who might be listening. Even if such information wasn't used in a legal proceeding, there is a greater risk that it would be used to indimidate, embarrass, and blackmail. It's been done many times before, and it will most certainly be done again.