Falling birth rates? NTT DoCoMo has the answer

by Chris Ziegler posted Oct 30th 2006 at 2:43PM

If there's two thing we know Japan has, it's a steadily declining birth rate and insanely advanced mobile technology. Doesn't it seem like one could be used to solve the other? (No?) Leave it to the good folks at NTT DoCoMo to have a crack at it, releasing the new D702iF FOMA clamshell from Mitsubishi. It seems innocent enough, but a few keystrokes allows the user to track his or her (hopefully her) menstrual cycle and be notified during the most fertile times of the month. The somewhat unusual function, along with the phone's bullet-shaped design and pastel colors, are the brainchild of Japanese designer Momoko Ikuta. The decidedly feminine phone also features a built-in recipe database (which we hear features a mean white bean chicken chili) and a "camouflage melody" function -- a fancy way of describing a fake ring for those times when you want to completely ignore the people around you.

[Via CNET]

Filed under: Handsets, Others, NTT DoCoMo, UMTS

Tags: baby, cycle, d702if, fertile, fertility, foma, menstrual, mitsubishi, ntt docomo, NttDocomo

Subscribe to these comments

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

Serge @ Oct 30th 2006 3:16PM

And it also vibrated at an amazing 95,000 pulses per minute.

Neutral

Brent @ Oct 30th 2006 4:48PM

In other news DoCoMo has republished their warranty guidelines, highlighting the fact that damage due to moisture of ANY KIND is NOT covered by the warranty.

Honestly, if Japan is so far ahead how come it's taken them this long to match the SonyEricsson t62u in this manner of 'convergence'?

Neutral

Fuchsia Moose @ Oct 30th 2006 10:18PM

Last spring, one of the Japanese news weeklies carried an article on which cellies made for the best marital aids, at least on the basis of OL recommendations. It probably came out of SPA! or AREA, since I had a few of those lying around back then...

Anyway, I guess docomo get's some press out of this, but somehow I don't think the problem with the plummeting birthrate in Japan has to do with women knowing their precise fertility cycle. Now, if they could release a phone that'd get the husbands home from work at a reasonable time (and sober), reserve a nice restaurant and love hotel, and bring the Barry White, I'd say it has a chance.

Neutral

eldermike @ Aug 16th 2007 9:15PM

Geez, we have cell phones that check blood sugar, check your fertility and now when you are going to get your period. Next thing we will have a cell phone with a built in hemmoroid cream applicator, or how about a new cell phone that sends an alert when you need to fart so your friends can hide. All thoughtful ideas, but folks lets remember it a cell phone.

Add your comments

Your comments:

Remember me

E-Mail me when someone replies to this comment

Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.

When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link to confirm your comment, and a password. To leave another comment, just use that password.

To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make it a live link for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.