Futiro's cuuurvy Skype phones now available in the EU & UK Skype store...
By
Stephen Pinches on March 12, 2007 in Futiro, Plug-in handsets.
There is a tendency for phones to be, well, a bit too phone-like: all boxy and eighties-looking. Futiro are an Irish-based company who specialise in making phones that break the mould: curvy lines, minimalist button layouts, shiny surfaces...oooh you could just eat them!
Whilst all of their phones are currently "corded phones" (ie not cordless), that's kind of missing the point. The range currently consists of three phones: the Solo, Terra and Luna. Let's look at them one-by-one:
First up: the Solo. Designed for travelling, the Solo has a unique cable management system, is around the size of a regular computer mouse and has a simple button layout for picking up and ending calls. It's designed to be small enough to (just about) slip into a top pocket or laptop bag, and comes with it's own carry case:
The Terra, on the other hand, is designed to grace a home office or living room, being larger in size and design to be freestanding. It also adds a loudspeaker and conference calling.
Finally, the Luna, at the top of the range, adds a full keypad, meaning that calls can be dialled straight from the handset without having to resort to your PC's keyboard.
All three phones share on-device volume controls, as well as echo-reduction technology and a set of unique ringtones. I'm sold on the photos: more once Skypegear gets a chance to take these through their paces in the flesh. All three phones are now available in the Skype store, the Solo priced at E60/ £30, the Terra at £33.95 / E50, and the Luna at £47.95 / E70. According to Futiro's website, all three phones are also available for shipping to the US for $65 (Solo), $55 (Terra), and $75 (Luna), those US prices excluding tax and shipping.




