A Phone That Knows Where You Are

Forbes via Yahoo ^ | 10/01/01 | Arik Hesseldahl

[Lanman]

Monday October 1, 10:00 am Eastern Time

Forbes.com
A Phone That Knows Where You Are
By Arik Hesseldahl

Starting today, new mobile phones will know where you are. And when you call for help, they'll be able to share that information with authorities looking for you.

Korea's Samsung , in conjunction with Sprint PCS , are debuting a phone, the SPH-300, that will use the global positioning system (GPS) network of satellites to pinpoint your precise location. The phone is intended to meet a federal mandate known as Enhanced 911 (E911) that is being phased in through the end of next year--ultimately requiring all new phones to be able to transmit its location when a caller dials 911. There are a handful of ways that mobile phone service providers and phone manufacturers can accomplish this, and using GPS is just one method.

Privacy advocates have worried about the potential for abuse: Could law enforcement agencies use the technology to track people without their knowledge? Perhaps, but the intent of the requirement is to shorten the time it takes to find someone who needs help.

And since the phone has GPS technology built into it, there's a handful of potentially useful services coming down the pike that will make it useful in other ways. They're called "location-based services" and they range from being able to find restaurants that are close to you to sending and receiving driving directions from one place to another using the phones. You might also be able to get traffic and weather updates keyed to your precise location.

As yet, none of these services are available. But now that phones able to support them are coming to market, you can expect the wireless companies to start thinking about how they should put those GPS chipsets to work.

Nor is it a given that E911 service even works in your area, so you'll have to check with public safety agencies in your city or county. The local authorities that run the 911 calling center in your area first need to ask the wireless companies in the area to support it, which they're required to do within six months of the request. You can expect this service to become standard throughout the country over the next few years.

Other than the GPS capability, it's a pretty standard phone with wireless Internet capability, voice-activated dialing, personal information manager software and a phone book function that stores up to 199 numbers. It's battery will run for 3.8 hours of talk time and 192 hours of standby time. The phone will be available at Sprint PCS stores for about $150.