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Handy Wristwatch Phone

femto writes "ABC is reporting that Japanese researchers have demonstrated a wristwatch phone that uses the wearer's finger as an ear piece. To make a call, you put your finger in your ear and speak into the watch on your wrist. " Finally a phone that makes side talking look cool.

211 comments

  1. Oh no she din't! by Dancin_Santa · · Score: 5, Funny

    Talk to the hand!

    1. Re:Oh no she din't! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      Stop kicking that dead horse until it's less recognizable than the goatman's ass.

      When trolling, be original.

      That is all.

    2. Re:Oh no she din't! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How about if I give you the FINGER and you give me my PHONE CALL

    3. Re:Oh no she din't! by lightsaber1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      and get that finger out of your ear! You don't know where it's been!

  2. Version 2.0 by Empiric · · Score: 1, Funny

    Due to the superior acoustical properties involved, the next version of the phone will be interfacing with the nasal cavity. Company officials tout this version as having intrinsically greater privacy effects, as well.

    --
    ~ Whence do you come, slayer of men, or where are you going, conqueror of space?
    1. Re:Version 2.0 by rf0 · · Score: 4, Funny

      I just want to see the fax machine version..

      Rus

    2. Re:Version 2.0 by SiaFhir · · Score: 1

      Already been done in a way. Not in the form of a phone, but of a tape recorder. Monty Python showcased a man with a tape recorder up his nose. And with the help of a tape recorder up his brother's nose, can play music in stereo.

  3. Cool by thekat_70 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Now you can pretend to be an undercover agent without talking to yourself.

  4. Great... by pdbaby · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now we have absolutely *no* way of telling who's crazy and who's just talking to their friend on their phone. Thanks a lot!

    --
    Global symbol "$deity" requires explicit package name at line 2. - If only $scripture started "use strict;"
    1. Re:Great... by JamesTRexx · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Imagine how security and bodyguards around vip's will feel when half the crowd is walking around with their fingers in their ears...
      Will they make it mandatory for people to keep their hands down when a president passes by?

      --
      home
    2. Re:Great... by October_30th · · Score: 1
      What do you mean?

      It's been like that for a few years already with the earpiece cellphone speakers?

      --
      The owls are not what they seem
    3. Re:Great... by pdbaby · · Score: 1

      There's people that look like they're talking to themselves on trains... then there are people who stick their fingers in their ears and start having a lively conversation. The mental institutions will either overflow or empty ("I was just talking on my phone, doctor... honest!")

      --
      Global symbol "$deity" requires explicit package name at line 2. - If only $scripture started "use strict;"
    4. Re:Great... by AKnightCowboy · · Score: 1
      It's been like that for a few years already with the earpiece cellphone speakers?

      Not just earpiece cellphones, but even my landline phone headset at work (easier to type with a headset). I love when people just come in and start talking to you. You try to ignore them thinking maybe they'll get the farking point, but they keep going on and on for minutes. Until you look at them like they're a moron, point to the obvious headset and shoo them away. What, do they think I'm Judy the Time Life operator just sitting around all day with a headset on. I'm farking talking on the god damn phone (or a telecon). Now I get to hold my finger in my ear all day? I'll just stick to a bluetooth headset instead, thanks anyway Japs.

    5. Re:Great... by SiaFhir · · Score: 1

      I read a story a while ago about British(?) inventors who created a phone in the form of a tooth. You graft the "tooth phone" in your mouth, and the vibrations in your skull act as both earpiece and microphone. You have a hard time telling who's crazy now... wait until people don't have to stick their finger in their earwax! OH! And remember not to be eating anything while you're talking. Brings new meaning to "don't talk with your mouth full".

    6. Re:Great... by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "Now we have absolutely *no* way of telling who's crazy and who's just talking to their friend on their phone. Thanks a lot!"

      Funny you should mention that. Just saw a guy yelling at himself the other day. I think his name was Al.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    7. Re:Great... by strike2867 · · Score: 1

      Well the next time I see someone walking down the street with a finger in their ear, while sucking on their thumb, Im punching them out.

      --

      Vote for new mod!!! Score:-2,Imbecile
  5. this is so old news. by ultrapenguin · · Score: 4, Informative

    This was covered LONG time ago. Here, for example. Old, old news. 03:00 AM Oct. 16, 2000 PT - the date.

    1. Re:this is so old news. by DaveLatham · · Score: 1

      And covered by slashdot three years ago:
      http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/10/11/142523 8

    2. Re:this is so old news. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You think that's old; Dick Tracy used to have something rather like this AGES ago in his cartoon... :P

    3. Re:this is so old news. by loose+electron · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Minor detail - look at the wire going off "somewhere else" - Present battery technology (even the best Li-Ion/Polymer/Something stuff out there.) will not support the power needed to transmit from a cell phone. A GSM cell phone sucks an amp of current at 35dbm (max power) output. It is impressive that the present battery sizes can support this now. Maybe when fuel cells replace batteries? Or maybe if people don't mind only 2 minutes of "talk" time before they have to recharge? Smaller is not always better...

      --
      www.effectiveelectrons.com "chips that work" Analog, RF, Mixed Signal
  6. I'm still waiting for by Lawrence_Bird · · Score: 2, Funny

    the shoe phone!

    1. Re:I'm still waiting for by Yuioup · · Score: 1

      This is something you can do at home:

      STEP 1: Take off your shoe.
      STEP 2: After waking up, grab your mobile phone.
      STEP 3: Stick your mobile phone in your shoe.
      STEP 4: Use voice recognition to dial and talk.

      Revolutionary!

      Yuioup

    2. Re:I'm still waiting for by geeber · · Score: 1

      Yeah right... Try explaining to airport security that, really, its just a "phone" in your shoe. No Thanks!

  7. erm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    ill stick with a regular cell phone.

    how stupid would you look, expecilly those people who are always on their cell phones, holding their hands as if to say "call me" or "Ill call you", look like a bloody idiot.

  8. Appearance by rf0 · · Score: 1, Funny

    Well least with this the next time someone is listening to Brinty Spears and you put your fingers in your ears you can just say you are making a phone call

    Rus

    1. Re:Appearance by prash_n_rao · · Score: 1

      Why would anyone want to pretend that they like her 'music' but are busy elsewhere? I think this is more useful for people who like her 'music'.... they can listen to her stuff and pretend they are on the phone with someone.

      --
      This is not my sig.
  9. A question... by wardomon · · Score: 1, Redundant

    Where do you put your finger to dial?

    --

    - - - If the sun is a star, why can't I see it at night?
    1. Re:A question... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      an earlier model worked with tapping rythmically on the wristwatch, now it has voice recoginition.

    2. Re:A question... by Mad+Marlin · · Score: 1

      You can easily fit an entire phone keyboard onto a wristwatch. I can't possibly be the only person to have ever owned a wristwatch calculator.

  10. Looks cool? by winkydink · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Sticking your finger in your ear and talking into your wrist makes you look cool? I guess if you never want to get laid again, it might.

    Maybe they could figure out a way to put the mouthpiece on a pinky wring. Then you could stick your thumb in your ear and extend your pinky to use the phone. You'd still look dorky as hell, but at least people would know what you were doing.

    --

    "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

    1. Re:Looks cool? by mikecron · · Score: 1, Funny

      Yeah, then when you've finished your call, you should have to touch your pinky and thumb against a table, to hang up. Now *that* would look really silly! ;-)

    2. Re:Looks cool? by paulhar · · Score: 1

      I'm not sure I'd want to be near people who are showing their pinky rings...

    3. Re:Looks cool? by SiO2 · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      I guess if you never want to get laid again, it might.

      This is the slashdot crowd you're talking about. We're not getting laid anyway. ; )

      SiO2

    4. Re:Looks cool? by Rostin · · Score: 0

      And once again, the subtle art of sarcasm is lost not only on the parent, but on everyone who modded him as insightful..

    5. Re:Looks cool? by Anonymous+Custard · · Score: 1

      Maybe they could figure out a way to put the mouthpiece on a pinky wring. Then you could stick your thumb in your ear and extend your pinky to use the phone.

      That would be AWESOME! I would seriously buy one of those, just cause it'd be so weird.

    6. Re:Looks cool? by Ben+Hutchings · · Score: 1

      No, it's so uncool that it makes sidetalking look cool by comparison.

      Karma: whore

    7. Re:Looks cool? by SSJ2+Labsuit · · Score: 1

      Then you could stick your thumb in your ear and extend your pinky to use the phone. You'd still look dorky as hell, but at least people would know what you were doing.

      Either that, or you'd get a bunch of wisenheimers asking what Dr. Klaw's latest scheme is.

    8. Re:Looks cool? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They have something like that in Japan already. I've seen wristwatches (presumably with cell phones in them, but they might be something like FRS instead) with two green cables, one of which goes to a speaker on the tip of your thumb and the other goes to a mic on the tip of your pinky. It's really an interesting design.

    9. Re:Looks cool? by Jaysyn · · Score: 1

      A pinky wring would hurt quite a bit.

      Jaysyn

      --
      There is a war going on for your mind.
    10. Re:Looks cool? by winkydink · · Score: 1
      No, sarcasm is not lost on me at all. The term "sidetalking" without a link to the URL is meaningless (unless you really have so much time on your hands that looking for dorky web sites is how you spend it).

      Now if it said sidetalking then that would have been sarcastic.

      Now, if one were referring to sidetalking as speaking as if in an aside, let me say to the rest of the readers, "Is this guy a dick or what?"

      --

      "I'd rather be a lightning rod than a seismometer." -Ken Kesey

    11. Re:Looks cool? by strike2867 · · Score: 1

      Yea, and then you put your middle finger in your nose (for the antenna).

      --

      Vote for new mod!!! Score:-2,Imbecile
    12. Re:Looks cool? by dcmeserve · · Score: 2, Funny
      I guess if you never want to get laid again, it might.

      Hello -- it makes your finger vibrate. Think about it!

      --
      "Orthodoxy is unconsciousness" - Orwell
  11. Spy evidence phonewatch by Maxhrk · · Score: 0

    imagine that you exploit SCO with that by spy at them and dial to local newspaper to make headline.

    SCO: oh my god, we are compromised!

    Da ta. harrah.

    Sorry, i think that enough of fantasy stuff I am talking about. Har Har

  12. Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by laetus · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yeah, I want to be sticking my finger in my ear all day. Even more, I want to be shaking hands with people who've had their fingers in their ears all day.

    I'll pass.

    --

    "We're sorry, but the website you're trying to reach has been disconnected."
  13. Wonderful by JamesD_UK · · Score: 1

    .. because walking around, semi-distracted, with your finger stuck in your ear is such a wise idea! Can you imagine the mess when someone trips and their finger slips a little depper? Ouch.

  14. Whoa! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That sure beats the old calculator wristwatch as a nerd indicator!

    On the bright side, it does not require ont to sitck a finger up one's nose, so it's not so bad :)

  15. How to look a fool in public by DrXym · · Score: 1, Funny

    Another japanese technological miracle. Stick one finger in your ear and talk to another and look like a complete twat to everyone within close proximity.

    1. Re:How to look a fool in public by prash_n_rao · · Score: 1

      "Another japanese technological miracle. Stick one finger in your ear and talk to another and look like a complete twat to everyone within close proximity."

      Right... especially if your friend with you wants to borrow your phone for a minute to make an urgent phone call... with yor finger in his ear!

      --
      This is not my sig.
  16. wow by unclefungus · · Score: 0

    now I finally have a reason to want a phone, but people will still be able to call me, then i'll still have to go through all the trouble of hanging up!

  17. First anime porn joke! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Re-defines "wrist action"

  18. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by SuperBanana · · Score: 1
    Yeah, I want to be sticking my finger in my ear all day

    I bet Q-tip is thrilled- and talking to the phone sanitizer wipe companies about new vertical markets!

  19. babel fish by tronicum · · Score: 2, Interesting
    This is the first step toward a babel fish device, talkig to you from your ear.

    useful for translating and making phone calls....

  20. Go Go Gadget Phone... by Falcon5798 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Hey, it worked for Inspector Gadget. He totally had this before anyone else!

  21. Am I the only one by DaEMoN128 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Am I the only one that had the inspector gadget theam song go charging rampantly through my head while readint the little blurb?

    --
    Stop signs are only Suggestions
    1. Re:Am I the only one by pete-classic · · Score: 1

      Actually I thought of Dick Tracy. "I'm on my way!"

      -Peter

    2. Re:Am I the only one by se_jeta · · Score: 1

      No, you were definately not alone. I tuned to the themesong in my playlist after reading it. Yes, it's in my playlist.

      --
      Some are wise -- and some are Otherwise
    3. Re:Am I the only one by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Am I the only one who didn't?

  22. Does it come with.. by adeyadey · · Score: 2, Funny

    a tinfoil hat, so you can look *really* cool when using it?

    --
    "You lied to me! There is a Swansea!"
  23. But why? by Aneurysm · · Score: 0, Redundant

    I don't understand why anyone would think that people would like to walk around with their fingers in their ears. Especially when discrete ear phones have been around for years, they're more hygenic, more discrete

  24. quantum newclear powered communications systems by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    that's just a c'mon. you won't need any physical device to be able to sense/protect yOUR environment.

    from previous comment:

    unprecedented evile disabled by newclear power

    (Score:mynuts won, moronic)
    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 06, @08:05AM (#7406009)

    initiative.

    from a comment alternatively titled:

    bounty for corepirate nazi felons increased

    that's right. we'll see your phonie ?pr? scams, & raise you a private communications system based on the creators' newclear power mandate. gooed luck?

    they think everything's always just about payper monIE.

    that's not the case here, as yOUR entire planet/population is in crisis mode, due to the confused thinking/poor training of a handful of stock markup fraud execrable.

    there's a real risk of overheating (peacing off) the main processor. you don't want that?

    consultations are in order.

  25. Vibration Injuries? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I know there's been a lot of research done into vibration injuries among people who use powertools on a regular basis. There's even some new evidence that Playstation vibrating controllers can cause these kinds of injuries.

    Ok, so the vibrations put out by this device may be tiny, but surely there's going to be a risk of deadening nerves etc. etc. if you use the phone for long periods of time?

  26. Geeze... by jcostantino · · Score: 1

    I'll wait for the Fingers Free Adapter to come out! My arm already hurts from holding a phone up to my ear. I don't want to know what pain will come from awkwardly holding my whole arm to my head!

    --
    Reviews with a twist! http://www.sardonicbastard.com
  27. So... by sprdelfin · · Score: 1, Funny

    Apparently my uncle that thought his bones were talking to him wasnt crazy, he was just ahead of his time.

  28. Re:Nose phone? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It went the same way as the previous prototype which left you with a brown and smelly pinkie..

  29. I can see it now... by aaaurgh · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Take your hands off me! No... stop... I'm on the phone. No, I'm not talking to voices in my head. No, I don't want a new jacket with extra long sleeves!"

    --

    Go permanent? In your dreams and my worst nightmares.
  30. looks by koekepeer · · Score: 1

    so what does it actually look like? i can't find any pictures in the linked page

    1. Re:looks by Dylan2000 · · Score: 1, Funny

      It's about three inches long, with a joint (or "knuckle") about halfway down and another one 3/4 of the way down, a hard, shell-like section of about 1 square cm at the end which you need to cut every week or two and it's kind of "flesh" coloured.

      And it hurts like hell if you get it trapped in a door.

      --
      Build your own website - full service homepage system your m
    2. Re:looks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Perhaps you need more links but I can't be bothered linking - here's some info. There's a cute clipart at http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/E3ABA93B-6B E8-49B6-86B8-68535D8598E6.htm. The Sun has a comment on the way phones will look http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2003512104,00 .html (no pic)

      Also see The Age http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/06/10680 13327804.html for a silly comic. I think it looks kinda like a watch. I get the feeling they haven't picked a colour yet but I'm hoping for pink. The handsfree version might look like a little earpiece thing, which will be SWEET!

  31. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You probably mean Q-Tips, and not Q-Tip. At least I hope so. ;)

  32. Call forwarding by jole · · Score: 0

    Dave, this is for you, should I put my finger into your ear?

    --
    Vaadin - the best open source framework for building web applications in Java - no plug
  33. Just a little more research, by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And you can have a Codec: "Hey Otakon, what's up?"

  34. Now it hits me. by illuminata · · Score: 0, Funny

    So, all this time when Tony was talking to Danny, Danny wasn't really clairvoyant. He was just using his finger phone.

    Well, The Shining just doesn't seem as good anymore. Stanley Kubrick was just a product pushing whore I guess.

    --


    Until Slashdot fixes the funny modifier, use insightful or interesting. The poster knows your intentions.
  35. Serious inquiry by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can you wear the phone on other parts of your body?

  36. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by TGK · · Score: 0, Funny

    No, those companies are on an interstellar space craft headed for the a remote spiral arm of the galaxy.

    Something about a giant goat....

    --
    Killfile(TGK)
    No trees were killed in the creation of this post. However, many electrons were inconvenienced.
  37. Go Go Gadget Phone! by Otis2222222 · · Score: 1, Funny

    Hello, Chief? You're where?

    1. Re:Go Go Gadget Phone! by SoulSkorpion · · Score: 1

      Gah. The first rule of Slashdot: anything you could possibly have thought of has already been thought of, and posted as a comment :P

  38. UK TV "Rise" Quote by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Brekfast time TV "Rise:" the presenter said something along the lines of...

    "This is seriously going to impact my late night calls to those chat lines"

  39. I bet it might just..... by shri · · Score: 2, Funny

    stop people from picking their noses in public. :)

  40. That'll never work! by nunofgs · · Score: 1

    I mean, what if you want to give the phone to the person next to you to speak? do you just give them your finger? what if you're driving?

    1. Re:That'll never work! by Bobulusman · · Score: 1

      Well, it's a watch, right? Just take the watch off and hand it to them.

      Although that might be too logical.

      --
      Cogito ergo sum in Slashdot.
  41. Previously covered on Slashdot also by Rescate · · Score: 3, Informative

    DoCoMos Finger Phone
    On October 11th, 2000 with 164 comments

    1. Re:Previously covered on Slashdot also by natefanaro · · Score: 0

      wow, i'm not crazy. I knew this was a dupe from a while ago but can never use the search to find anything.

  42. Fun with telemarketers... by PSaltyDS · · Score: 1

    ...now when I blow a whistle into the phone I can shatter their ear drums AND their wrists!!!

    Any technology distinguishable from magic is not suficiently advanced.

    --
    Any technology distinguishable from magic is insufficiently advanced. - Geek's corollary to Clarke's law
  43. Problems by wickedj · · Score: 2, Interesting

    1. Still doesn't eliminate the use of your hand (obviously). So if you are driving (which you shouldn't be anyway), or cooking or whatever, you're SOL.

    2. It's hard to pass the phone around. If you are with a friend and another friend calls and wants to speak to your friend, what do you do? Stick your finger in their ear? You better be really good friends.

    Anyways, the novelty of the idea is interesting but the practicality seems to be almost nonexistent.

    1. Re:Problems by JamesP · · Score: 1

      1. Still doesn't eliminate the use of your hand (obviously). So if you are driving (which you shouldn't be anyway), or cooking or whatever, you're SOL.

      Imagine how you are going to look driving with a finger in your ear.

      You're going to be arrested by driving under the influence...

      --
      how long until /. fixes commenting on Chrome?
  44. They'd better put... by John+Courtland · · Score: 1

    ..Mr Game and Watch on there. Or else it's just another gimmick :).

    --
    Slashdot is proof that Sturgeon's Law applies to mankind.
  45. Just make sure... by bodgit · · Score: 1


    ...you don't phone anyone who happens to be called Kit, especially if you're fond of referring to them as 'buddy' a lot. Could be embarassing...

  46. Wristwatch Atomic Clock by shoppa · · Score: 2, Funny
    Much more useful, and way more geeky: a Real Atomic Clock Wristwatch. No, this is not one of those wimply radio-receiver watches that are mislabeled as "Atomic Clocks". This is the Real Deal:

    First Atomic Clock Wristwatch

    1. Re:Wristwatch Atomic Clock by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why bother?

      Any level of accuracy that would worry about the propogation delay from the radio transmitter to the watch would have to account for the relativistic effects of shipping the watch around. You don't need that kind of accuracy on a wrist watch, you can't perceive that kind of accuracy with your eyes, and you don't need a minor radiation source on your wrist.

  47. I have a television like this... by Epistax · · Score: 1

    But people think it's rude to put my finger there...

  48. One serious problem with this... by ksp · · Score: 1

    ..."Its for you"...

    --
    What is the sound of one hand clapping?
    cat /dev/null > /dev/audio
  49. business opportunity by martin-boundary · · Score: 2, Funny

    I can already see the next business opportunity: fake cell phone handsets which clip on to your hand so you can "hold" them while sticking your finger in your ear and making a call on your watch. Other people don't need to know your phone handset is fake! $19.95 + s/h.

    1. Re:business opportunity by RocketSHE · · Score: 1

      Except it would be $1.00 in the toy section of the dollar store and all the kids would buy it. Ugh, kids ears are dirty enough as it is.

      --
      ~==>RocketSHE
  50. Save water by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    So typical.

    Ever heard about water shortage? The world is running out of fresh water and showering daily is not going to help it.

    You don't need to wash every day. It is, in fact, unnatural, wastes water and, with the common use of irritating detergents, a cause of many skin diseases and allergies.

    So, keep on driving your SUVs and showering ten times a day with even bothering to install a water saving nozzle in your shower. Your children will curse you for it.

    1. Re:Save water by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And how exactly can you "run out" of a resource that you never truly "consume". Water is never consumed - it is simply rendered non-potable (washing your car, showering, drinking and then urinating, watering your lawn, etc.) The water is then returned to a facility to be reprocessed into a potable state once again by either evaporation/rain or sewage runoff.

      In the end you recycle water by its very nature. Areas in the United States that have water issues don't have them because the water is being consumed - they have them because the consumption rate of the local inhabitants is greater than the reprocessing rate of the local purification facility or because the amount of available water (potable and non-potable) is insufficient for the local populace. Conservation is not going to bring more water into the area, it will only bring daily usage to level commensurate with the reprocessing capability of the local water purification facility.

      Most areas of the United States (mine included) have no water issues whatsoever. Conserving it isn't going to mean more water for those in drier areas, nor will it affect the future in any way insofar as fresh water availability is concerned.

      As for the "fat American thing" - well I am not fat - I'm 170lbs of twisted steel and sex appeal and figure that if we did run out of water we'll just come over to Europe/Asia and take your fucking water - right after we shove France up Germany's ass and toss that whole quivering anal-gored mess right down China's throat.

      You fucking Euroturds sure talk a lot of shit. I've ported in a lot of European cities and invariably the locals wanna barfight the American Marines and invariably we'd mop the fucking floor with them. The only two places I've ported where the locals were a decent fight was Ireland and Australia - now there's a few countries worth their salt. The rest of you Rousseauian/Marxist faggots can suck the corn outta our shit and maybe we'll let y'all nibble the zits off of our asses.

      Let us know if you'd like stop talking smack and start something up - I'd like a few French slave whore bitches for myself. I'd even make them bathe every day and shave their fucking pits - get 'em some boob jobs and slather their faces every day with some special skin care sauce we Marines create.

      In short, you fucking EuroGoatses, YOU FAIL IT! All your bitches are belong to us!!

    2. Re:Save water by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      well I am not fat - I'm 170lbs of twisted steel and sex appeal

      That's what the star wars kid must have been thinking too :D

  51. Don Pardo would love it! by cpopin · · Score: 1

    "This is Don Pardo signing off!"

    --
    -=- Many seek good nights and lose good days.
  52. Re:"tell it to my ass" by armando_wall · · Score: 0


    "stick finger in ass"

    Models with vibracall will be so popular!

  53. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by Anne_Nonymous · · Score: 2, Funny

    Could be worse... It could be a nasal finger phone.

    "Kad dou hear be dow?"

  54. How about... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Funny

    ...I give you the finger, and you can take my damn phone call!

  55. They say cell phones... by I-R-Baboon · · Score: 1

    Push enough RF to induce cancer, well given where my watch usually rests close to when typing on a keyboard all day or hanging down resting when standing...Homey Don't Play that.

    --
    -1 Overrated (Too many big words for me to comprehend)
  56. VibraCall by FelixCat · · Score: 1

    This feature has already been invented in this previously posted parody.

  57. pinky and the thumb by TheTimoo · · Score: 3, Informative

    There's a picture here.
    And why didn't they make it like the "real" hand phone, where you listen to your thumb and speak into your pinky?
    That would have been cool! Like this it just looks stupid.

    --
    "Be careful or be roadkill" - Calvin
  58. So when someone wants to borrow your phone... by Channard · · Score: 1

    .. you can tell them to pull your finger?

  59. Lots of links - including (small) picture by Maddog+Batty · · Score: 4, Informative

    Yep. This is old news. The oldest reference I have come across is 1999 (near the bottom).

    Small picture in second page of pdf file.

    Bit more info

    Paper writen on technology used (reg required)

    The same guy has also been involved in wearable keyboards which uses finger rings to detect finger movement and 10Mb indoor network that uses human bodies as portable ethernet cables. Masaaki Fukumoto is a busy man.

    --
    wot no sig
    1. Re:Lots of links - including (small) picture by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In the PDF, there is an artist's rendition of the phone, complete with the ring-actuator on the middle finger.

      I guess it gives a new meaning to "flip phone".

  60. Re:Version 2.1 by AdrianG · · Score: 2, Funny

    An alternate version will soon be announced that will provide even greater privacy through subvocalization. To make this work, the user will have to stick the thumb of his other hand in his mouth. Look for the official annoucement in 1st Quarter 2004.

    Adrian

  61. Picture Link by Maddog+Batty · · Score: 1

    Small picture on second page of pdf file.

    --
    wot no sig
  62. Pass the finger please by AndroidCat · · Score: 1
    "He said what? Here, give me that phone!"

    (And I thought dirty telephones were bad. Do you know where that finger has been? Do you really want to know?)

    --
    One line blog. I hear that they're called Twitters now.
  63. Secret Service Conspiration by philipx · · Score: 1

    This thing it's the product of a conspiracy of the Secret Service. Now the president won't have a clue if there's a security detail problem or the agents are simply talking to their girlfriends.

    Come to thing about, I don't think GW ever figured it out :)

    --
    __________
    Don't belong. Never join. Think for yourself. Peace!
  64. Doiesn't sound to be a big hit... by Gago · · Score: 1

    Imagine breaking you arm; how dou you phone then ?

    Imagine being on a date with the girl of your dreams; a common friend calls you on the phone and wants to speak to her, you stand up and plug your finger in the girl's hear ?

    How does the phne recognize a touch of the finger to the thumb that says that you want to activate the phone from a "regular" touch ? (hint : touch fo the thumb by the finger is basically the advantage of having opposable thumbs, so you're likely to record numerous such events on any primate).

    What effect do audible-frenquency daily vibrations do to your articulations ? It's not that I'm very conversative or paranoid, but I'm a pianist as well and I wouldn't like to mess with arthrose too much...

    1. Re:Doiesn't sound to be a big hit... by MImeKillEr · · Score: 1

      Better yet, say you're on a date with said girl.

      You go back to her place, things get hot and heavy.

      You end up slipping a couple of digits into her.

      Your phone rings.

      Hilarity ensues.

      --
      Cruising the internet on my TI-99/4A @ a whopping 300 baud!
  65. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by mennucc1 · · Score: 0

    japanese people do not shake hands. It all fits.

  66. What will they think of next? by Bagarre · · Score: 1

    Reminds me of an old joke that ended with the guy recieving a FAX.

    --
    Never multiply an equation without necessity.
  67. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get bone damage by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I wonder how healthy it is for the bones to be hit/stirred/shaken continiously.

    Some people worry about the effect on the human body, that a longtime journey in outer space will have due to the change of gravity. Perhaps using small human earth quakes and radiation from mobile devices, the human bone structure will evolve with a greater pace, than it has from the neanderthals till today.

    rambling.. mod me down. I know.

  68. They got this from Inspector Gadget! by FortissimoWily · · Score: 2, Funny

    Wow, now I can finally look like my hero, Inspector Gadget!!

    "Go Go, Gadget Phone!"

  69. A question by zungu · · Score: 0

    Will this mean that if I touch a person next to me who is using the finger-in-ear phone then I will be able to over hear his conversation. Kind of touch-crosstalk?

  70. (mod down) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Oops - accidentally modded the parent "insightful" rather than "Troll." This should undo that - I hope.

  71. ATT Wrist Phone by Traicovn · · Score: 1

    This sounds more and more like the 'wrist phone' prototype that ATT talked about in the early and mid 1990's. It was featured in one of their 'you will' ads, and a "working" (can't remember how well) prototype was on display at their pavillion at Epcot Center.

    I don't have any links or pictures, but if anybody else has them, feel free to post them.

    --

    [Something witty and intelligent should have appeared here.]
    {Traicovn}
  72. Why? by YanceyAI · · Score: 1

    Why not just make a lapel pin for men and a necklace for women so that you don't have to walk around with your damn finger in your ear. Who thinks people will do this?

    --
    Can I bum a sig?
    1. Re:Why? by anagama · · Score: 1


      The lapel pin and necklace would work great for microphones - but I'd appreciate an explanation of how these will get the sound INTO your ear.

      --
      What changed under Obama? Nothing Good
    2. Re:Why? by YanceyAI · · Score: 1

      any number of ways including earrings , small clips on glasses, or even a small hook that fits around the back side of the ear.

      --
      Can I bum a sig?
  73. Re:Version 2.0 Dictaphone by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No-one done the Dic-ta-phone joke yet? No? Don't look at me, I'm just an anonymous coward.... :-)

  74. carpal tunnel? by jcoy42 · · Score: 2, Interesting
    From the article:
    The New Scientist magazine says the prototype gadget consists of a wristband that converts digital signals into vibrations that are then transmitted into the bones of the hand.

    I thought it had been proven that one of the leading causes of carpal tunnel was excessive vibrations of the wrist. Now if this thing attaches as a wrist watch, and operates by vibrating your bones enough that you can hear the resonance through your finger, it seems it would be one of the last things any rational thinking person would want.

    Personally, I try to avoid carpal tunnel, and this sounds like it was designed to cause it.

    I'll pass.

    --
    Never trust an atom. They make up everything.
  75. Hey by ExCEPTION · · Score: 0

    Hey! I love sidetalking

  76. Great for Mechanics by Ridgelift · · Score: 1

    The user puts his finger into his ear for the vibrations to be picked up by the eardrum, which then transcribes them back into sound signals for the brain.

    I can't wait to see my mechanic use one of these while working on my car.

    "Just a sec...Hello th...AWWW! MAN! I'VE GOT GREASE IN MY EAR!"

    1. Re:Great for Mechanics by Simonetta · · Score: 1

      The user puts his finger into his ear for the vibrations to be picked up by the eardrum, which then transcribes them back into sound signals for the brain.
      I can't wait to see my mechanic use one of these while working on my car.


      Or hubby calls when mummy is changing the babie's diaper.

      This whole story shows that while the Japanese have the technology, they need to start smoking a whole lot better brand of weed if they're going to get creative in the commercial application of all this high-tech.
      The really great thing about weed that its detractors never seem to understand is that it enables the free association between vastly different concepts that wouldn't be made otherwise. The weed suppression people argue that even if that were so, it doesn't matter because only one in a thousand ideas generated under the influence has any relevance to the real world, while all the other are just embarrassingly stupid.
      It doesn't matter, just apply the scientific method to the vast stream of intoxicant-generated weirdness to seperate the gems from the sand.

      I'm writing a screenplay about two guys who spend their days scheming to rob Tiffany's, but open a bar instead. It's called "Jewels and Gin".

  77. Imagine this by hqm · · Score: 3, Funny

    when someone answers their finger phone and then says "it's for you..."

    1. Re:Imagine this by dr_dank · · Score: 1

      I just shudder to think of people with their pants around the ankles, receiving a fax...

      --
      Where does the school board find them and why do they keep sending them to ME?
    2. Re:Imagine this by bugnuts · · Score: 1

      even worse, having your phone ring and having to say "I'm sorry, you got the wrong orifice."

  78. I have one thing to say - by Orlando · · Score: 1

    Kitt! I need ya!

    orlando...

    --
    -= This is a self-referential sig =-
  79. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by freeze128 · · Score: 1

    Yeah, but that would only be a problem if you shake hands with someone whose finger was in his ear up to his wrist.

  80. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get bone damage by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

    Your bones are already hit/stirred/shaken continuously; by your movement, by the movement of conveyances in which you travel, and by any sound wave substantial enough to pass through the meaty bag of water which constitutes your body.

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  81. I don't get it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't get it.

    1. Re:I don't get it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I think he was talking about www.goatse.cx

      *WARNING* the above site is NOT workplace friendly, nor friendly in any way. in fact, its just plain disgusting.

  82. Let's not forget that /. covered this 3 years ago. by MURL · · Score: 1

    DoCoMos Finger Phone
    On October 11th, 2000 with 164 comments
    A reader writes: "DoCoMo has done it again. This time they have a phone where the speaker is your finger. Put your finger in your ear and listen as you speak...

    http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/10/11/142523 8&mode=thread&tid=126

    --
    --- Have you seen MURL?
  83. Thing I least want to hear ... by Ktistec+Machine · · Score: 3, Funny
    The thing I least want to hear from someone using one of these:

    "Hello. Oh, OK. Here, it's for you.".

    Blech!

    1. Re:Thing I least want to hear ... by Urkki · · Score: 1

      Well, that would depend on who's phone and finger it is... I can imagine several persons who I wouldn't mind holding their hand to my cheeck, and rubbing my ear with their finger... :-)

  84. Er... by Ibanez · · Score: 1

    DoCoMo had a concept of this that I remember reading about almost two, maybe three years ago! On here even!

    Blake

  85. Then consider the 'New' antenna. by LifesABeach · · Score: 0

    One merely extends the thumb, and forfinger, then press your 'antenna' hand to your forehead.

  86. We believe you. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Oh yes we do.

  87. Better artcile on this topic by pkunzipper · · Score: 1
    Here is a better article on this topic.

    Are there any long-term heatlh hazards here? A derivative of carpel-tunnel?

  88. Next step by pkunzipper · · Score: 2, Funny

    So to activate bluetooth, do I grab my balls?

  89. Pictures Please! by nrlightfoot · · Score: 1

    Now all I need to see is a picture of some Japanese guy walking around with his finger stuck in his ear talking to no one and my life will be complete.

    --
    what sig?
  90. Fat Fingers by pkunzipper · · Score: 1

    I wonder if the sound quality gets beter or worse for those people with fat fingers? Reminisce back to theSimpsons episode on Homer...

  91. That's it ... (~120 words article) by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yeah it's the melody to funky town... "Want to take me down to funky town.."

    I'll believe it when i see it. Now to get back to my cold fusion reactor right here.. ;-)

  92. Oops - Wrong again... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well you called that wrong you corn filled pile of Eurocommie hawg shit. I was honourably discharged from the corps 12 years ago, now I make a very nice six digit salary - enough to fly my ass to Europe when I feel like it (wich I rarely do). Which brings me to my next point - post ur address ya jizz belching cock gobbler... I'll fly over and you can see for yourself how inbred, fat and gay I am.

    In fact - I'd be proud to let my first gay act be with your Goatse sized asshole - specifically sticking my foot so far in your ass that I'll kick the hamster outta your mouth and toefuck your eyesocket.

    you're such a tree hugging piece of yak shit. I'd bet I could stick a dolphin up your ass and you'd shit a baby seal - and I'd promptly club its fucking brains out, rip your head off and shit down your throat.

    You fuckers are all alike - talk a lot of shit and tuck your fucking tails when the shit hits the fan. No balls, no guts. Fuck you. At least I don't have to invent reasons to be proud to be an American, and unlike you - I am perfectly willing to stand up for my pride and sing our national anthem while I kick your fucking ass for background music.

    Eat shit pig dick... we own you....

    1. Re:Oops - Wrong again... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Are you one of these troll-bots I heard of?

  93. So those cool Balinese dancers by Gwobl · · Score: 1

    Are actually taking long distance calls.

  94. Phone Sex by mach_5 · · Score: 1

    Is it just me, or can you see the phone sex industry salivating over this one?

  95. I'd own one if... by StressGuy · · Score: 1

    It also had a headset so I could use in while I was on my bicycle. Small size, voice operated dialing, and easily accessable while on my road bike would be a plus. Not only that, but standing in a airport with your finger in your ear talking to yourself would tend to make people leave you alone, that would be a *BIG* plus.

    --
    A goal is a dream with a deadline
  96. Pres. Bush meets w/Japanese dignitary... by CheapScott · · Score: 2, Funny

    Dignitary: I'd shake your hand, but I just made a phone call with my finger in my ear.

    Bush: Oh, that's okay, the last three years I've had my thumb up my @$$.

  97. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Personally, I wear my watch on my left hand and shake with my right. Problem solved.

  98. Natural Selection...... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This will weed the stupid sheeple out of the gene
    pool who are so mindless that they will be duped
    into using this device, thinking it's "cool".
    Upon being seen like that, they will be virgins
    for the rest of their lives.

  99. Old joke... by Spudley · · Score: 2, Funny

    Old joke -

    "Did you know you've got your finger in your ear?"

    "I'm sorry, you'll have to speak up - I've got my finger in my ear..."

    --
    (Spudley Strikes Again!)
  100. 4 words... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    KITT - I NEED YA!

  101. Another conspiracy by override11 · · Score: 1

    Its the ear doctors really inventing this phone... now everyone will have ear infections all the time and they will make a ton!

    1 Become an ear doctor
    2 Make a phone where users stick finger in ear
    3 Profit!

    --
    No I didnt spell check this post...
  102. Listen up, people... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't want to see anyone driving with their finger in their ear.

  103. i could see alot of accidental by seelet · · Score: 0

    wet willies in the world if this ever catches on. or does this just give a new new meaning to "talk to the hand" ?

  104. http://www.nttdocomo.com/corebiz/ubiquity/ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The wrist-worn terminal
    This revolutionary "wristwatch" style innovation actually makes the human hand become part of the phone. A microphone located near the wrist captures the users voice, while incoming audio is converted into vibrations which are conveyed through the bones of the hand to the tip of the index finger, which is inserted into the ear canal to allow clear reception even in noisy conditions.

    The wearable keyboard
    This keyboard can be comfortably worn 24 hours a day. It makes use of ring-shaped accelerometers attached to each finger to track the movements of the fingers and detect intended key depressions on any surface, such as a desktop, or even your knee. The system also makes use of simultaneous and sequential typing methods in order to support speedy typing at rates of up to 200 characters per minute.

    Imparting a realistic experience
    Another area in which we are working is related to imparting a realistic experience to the user through the advanced use of voice, sound, and images. For example, we are developing a system that will allow distant objects to feel like extensions of the human body. To achieve this, we are making advances in the use of biological data relating to the senses, intelligence, and kinetics.

    Embracing nanotechnology to provide objects with communicative ability
    True ubiquitous access necessitates communication between objects everywhere. To facilitate this, we are embracing nanotechnology to develop communications chips that can be easily embedded into objects of any size without hindering their primary functions. Once accomplished, such activities will enable an amazing array of services that were previously beyond our imaginations.

    Our scientists and researchers have a clear vision of the future. A vision uniting all of the advances explained above and many more to create an exciting world where people can come together.

  105. -1, Redundant by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What did you idiot mods think "from the cuz-the-face-ain't-listening dept" meant?

  106. Matrix by Espectr0 · · Score: 1

    Agent 1: There he is. The anomaly.

    Agent 2: Do we proceed?

    Agent 1: Yes!

    Agent 3: Only human...

  107. I'm geting a fax... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Wasnt there a joke like this, about 3 guys talking about high tech gadgets, each trying to out do the other.

  108. what about those of us with arm pains by Adler · · Score: 1

    as a tendonitits suffer i cant hold up a phone to my ear for very long sometimes, this kind of technology for phones doesnt help me, nothign but the hands free headset does, adn at least i look like im paying attention to the road. remember: "its the next best thign to payign attention to the road."

    --

    Everybody denies I am a genius--but nobody ever called me one!

  109. how will i drive? by scotnt73 · · Score: 1

    how will i drive? j/k officer

  110. Another great idea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How about using the dictophone... no wait, that's already been done...

  111. Works good by butane_bob2003 · · Score: 1

    When I used to do raves we would sometimes have to communicate by sticking our fingers in eacho ther's ears. The vibrations from speech would travel up your arm and vibrate directly in the listener's ear. We could carry on pretty detailed conversations that way, which is important when your trying to manage an event with 20k+ people and a sound system that is causing earthquakes on the other side of the globe. It's a little muddy, kind of like speaking through liquid, but it is much better than having someone shout full volume into your ear. Most people find it funny to see two people talking with their finger's in each others ears.

    --


    TallGreen CMS hosting
  112. Re:Great. Answer the phone, get an ear infection. by swordfishBob · · Score: 1

    Hey, I got a call for you. um, here....

    --
    -- All your bass are below two Hz
  113. The modorator hates me by WildCode · · Score: 1

    I submitted this story early yesterday and it got rejected ... oh well, I must need to to submit more stories before they start getting accepted

  114. Re:Your sig by Mad+Marlin · · Score: 1
    Your sig: Well, thanks to the Internet, I'm now bored with sex. Is there a place on the web that panders to my lust for violence?

    This might do the trick.

  115. Re:rotten.com by Anonymous+Custard · · Score: 1

    My company filters that site out, it must be good!

    Actually my sig is a futurama quote, but thanks for the link :-)

  116. Just a prelude to the butt-phone by Walt+Dismal · · Score: 1

    You think this is bad? Just wait til the Nakamichi Buttphone emerges onto the market. Wait. ..Unfortunate choice of words there...

  117. So who ... by Gwobl · · Score: 1

    do you talk to with your finger up your nose? Probably not your Momma!

  118. Inspector Gadget by BitwizeGHC · · Score: 1

    "Is that you Chief? ... You're where? ... I'll be right there!" *heads on over to the wastebasket or toilet, where Chief Quimby was conveniently hiding*

    --
    N4st0r, trixx0r h0bb1tz0rz! Th3y st0l3 0ur pr3c10uzz!
  119. A little short eh guys? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    what's the point of linking to an article when the slashdot summary is longer than the article itself???? I mean really, they didn't have much to say.

  120. Honey, it's Jeff. He wants to talk to you... by keith.bronstrup.com · · Score: 0

    Okay, give me the finger!

    --
    Error 666 - SCO source has been found in your Linux kernel. Please remove it.
    Formerly kdsolutions
  121. YES!!! by ChrisZuma · · Score: 0

    THE FUTURE IS NOW!!! i dont care how much it costs, or how hard it is to get, i'm buying one
    now, when i talk into my hand, people can hear it!!!

    --


    ~Chris Hammond
  122. Old Joke by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can I put my finger phone in your navel?
    Sure.
    Hey, that's not my navel!
    That's not my finger, either.

    Can you hear me now? Gooood.....

  123. Obscure Airplane! quote by grumling · · Score: 1
    Rex Cramer (to an air traffic controller): ...And get that finger out of your ear. You don't know where it's been!

    --
    "Well, good luck finding a judge that doesn't run a bestiality site."
  124. If I'm not mistaken... by digid · · Score: 1

    I read about this on slashdot a couple of years ago