Yesterday kicked off the press events at the big Consumer Electronics Show, ground zero for everything new and cool in tech that’s about to come your way. Last night, “The Unveiling” gave me access to more than 100 sneak previews, and oddly enough, one of the items that’s really sticking with me the day after is a phone. A regular old landline phone. Only there’s nothing regular or old about it.
I’m crossing my fingers for French couple Herve and Catherine Artus who’ve developed the absolutely wonderful UrbanHello.
(And how cute is that name?)
Check out their Kickstarter page so you
can help fund this because honestly, even if you’ve ditched your landline it could make you change your mind about it.
It’s
a gorgeous, simple ergonomic shape with a 360-speaker at the flared
bottom. Lift it up and it’s a regular phone, but prop it upright in the
wooden base (or anywhere really–the base is just to keep it clean) and
you can have great sound without having to touch it. Super handy in the
kitchen particularly, when your cousins keep calling on Thanksgiving
morning and you’re elbow-deep in turkey.
It’s also a great option for parents who are getting wary of kids and cell phone radiation–or
hey, adults and cell phone radiation–and want a more traditional
option when possible. Especially for all those conference calls with the
grandparents. It claims to reduce electromagnetic waves by 99% so not
to be alarmist…but yeah, there’s that. And because of the 360
speakers, you don’t even have to cram the kid all together on a single
couch cushion to fill them in on every single detail of the last Dora Saves the Ponies episode.
As
far as design, well obviously it’s pretty gorgeous. I happen to love the white
“smart metal” version at top, but there are also options with blue, red or
lime speakers. Really, it comes down to your decor. And I especially dig the intuitive, streamlined button interface at the base, and the simple LCD readout at top
that only activates when the phone is in use to save electricity and
keep those glowing devices to a minimum.
Retail will be about
$130 US, but if you back it with a $85 donation really soon, you’ll get
one free. And trust me, you’ll want one. –Liz
Learn more about UrbanHello on their website or check out their UrbanHello Kickstarter page to help fund the project.They’ve got a pretty big goal, but I bet they’ll get there.
