Fujitsu has developed a prototype wireless Internet
Protocol (IP) telephone handset that can also be used with
conventional cellular telephone networks.
"The design of all mobile phones is dependent on the carrier,"
said Hideki Mitsunobu, of Fujitsu Laboratories, who was
demonstrating the handset at the Fujitsu Solution Forum event in
Tokyo last week.
"We can't use any software or any service because the carrier
has to guard the security of its network but with this handset we
can use anything easily."
The secret of the handset is a Compact Flash card slot in the
top of the device into which various cellular network cards can be
inserted. A GSM module can be inserted and the handset will work on
GSM networks, a Personal handyphone system module inserted and it
will work on Japan's PHS network, for example. Wireless Lan support
is built into the handset and so is always available.
Because the mobile network interface is in a card that's already
been approved by the carrier or relevant authorities, the rest of
the handset requires no special approval and so can be customised
or loaded with whatever software the user requires. The base
operating system of the prototype is Windows CE .net version
4.2.
"It's basically a phone-shaped PDA," said Mitsunobu.
It was jointly developed by Fujitsu with Net-2Com, a venture
company started from Fujitsu in 2000. It is likely to be offered
first by Net-2Com and will be targeted at corporations for use in
association with a Fujitsu-developed telephone system, said
Noriyuki Fukuyama, a senior researcher in Fujitsu's Information
Technology Core Laboratories.
Martyn Williams writes for IDG News
Service