Mobile candy for the next generation

IN STORE

If you think that “mobiles for the youth” isn’t a significant segment, think again. By 2012 (only four years away), 500 million Indian youth will own a mobile phone. So if you see phone manufacturers and mobile operators making a beeline for younger people, you know why.

The industry is bolstered by estimates that suggest 10 per cent of a young person’s disposable income is spent on mobile products and services. Meanwhile, here are a few (affordable) phones targeted at the youth:

A simple candy bar

Intex IN3333: For those who want a simple phone with no complicated controls, this could be the answer. A simple candy-bar phone that embeds a 1.3 megapixel camera, the IN3333 also doubles up as an integrated webcam and can be used as an USB PC webcam.

The phone’s USB port is also useful as a pen drive to store data that can take in as many as 300 messages. Priced at just Rs 5,000, the phone is as simple to operate as a gadget can get.

The Ramayan phone

If you think that a celestial theme is cool, the Sagem’s Bleu466x is the answer. The phone comes in a Ramayan-themed box, which includes a spiritually-inclined user’s manual!

With this hand-set, Bleu has successfully blended technology with spirituality. In fact, the company has bagged exclusive rights for Ramanand Sagar’s popular TV serial. The phone is priced at Rs 4,199 and a 512 MB card is bundled along.

The phone not only has Ramayan wallpapers but also incorporates one hour and 15 minutes of the mobile version of the Ramayan teleserial video, more than two hours of songs, shlokas, animations, and a power-boosting Hanuman Chalisa!

Sleek and trendy

Virgin vSleek: Virgin Mobile, the mobile service brand by Tata Teleservices targeted at the youth, has launched vSleek, loaded with camera, MP3, memory card.

Virgin Mobile users will also be able to avail lifetime validity vouchers and 2,000 minutes of free local calls to any network. Yes, you have to buy a new CDMA connection. The phone supports 64K polyphonic ringtones.

For an affordable Rs 4,799. There’s also the vTrendy, weighing 65 g, FM-enabled, colour handset. Features include one touch access to Vbytes — Virgin Mobile’s data portal, speaker phone, organiser and a phonebook memory of 500 contacts. A “no compromise” deal.