Screen Phones Can Make E-Mail
Easier
Date: 5/12/98
Author: Michael Lyster
It's a question that's probably come to mind as you twiddle
your thumbs waiting for your computer to boot up just so you
can check your electronic mail.
Isn't there a quicker, easier way?
A few companies think they have the answer - screen phones.
These are telephones with a small display screen that let you
access e-mail and phone directories, as well as receive news
and other data. Some models offer limited Web browsing.
Screen phones require an Internet account or a subscription to
a specialized online service.
''These are great gift items for computer users to give to
non-computer-using relatives,'' said Sean Kaldor, an analyst
with Framingham, Mass., market researcher International
Data Corp. If they do, Kaldor says, they can say, ''Now I can
send e-mail to Mom and Dad.''
Screen phones with e-mail were introduced last year and are
starting to sell in larger numbers this year. About 1 million
screen phones are expected to be shipped in the U.S. in '98,
Kaldor says. By 2002, the number is expected to grow to 6
million, with consumers accounting for about 85%.
Brampton, Ontario- based Northern Telecom Ltd. has
jumped to an early lead and holds about 75% of the world
screen-phone market, IDC says. Other screen- phone makers
include Tokyo-based Casio Computer Co., Morgan Hill,
Calif.-based Cidco Inc., Herndon, Va.-based InteliData
Technologies Corp. and Tokyo- based Uniden Corp.
Screen phones typically display four lines of text with about
30 characters per line. They feature a small keyboard for
typing in short messages. Other features can be accessed by
using the phone's dial pad.
With a subscription to an online screen- phone service, you
can get sports scores, stock quotes, banking services and
weather updates. Caller identification and call forwarding also
are common screen-phone features.
Prices range from $150 for Casio's Phonemate screen phone
to $500 for Cidco's IPhone.
You'll need access to the Internet to use a screen phone.
Companies like Stamford, Conn.-based SmartServ Online
Inc. offer Internet access tailored to screen phones for $5 to
$10 a month. Services like SmartServ's work like
slimmed-down versions of America Online, offering e-mail,
stocks, horoscopes and even Federal Express package
tracking.
Your alternative to an online screen-phone service is an
Internet service provider geared mainly to PCs. That way
you'll be able to access e-mail on your screen phone, but you
may not get all of the data features offered by online service
packages, like SmartServe Online. At about $20 a month,
though, an Internet account may prove too costly for just
accessing e-mail on a screen phone.
But if you already have an Internet account for your personal
computer, you should be able to use it to access e-mail on a
screen phone at no extra charge, says IDC's Kaldor.
Analysts give screen phones good marks for ease of use. To
install one, start by plugging it into an electrical outlet and
connecting it to a phone line. Then a series of on-screen or
voice instructions will walk you through the set-up process.
Most functions, like retrieving e-mail, are accessed with the
touch of a single button.
For computer novices, screen phones could be a good way to
send and receive e-mail without the cost or complexity of a
personal computer. Experienced computer users may find
screen phones a convenient way to access e-mail on the fly.
Within businesses, screen phones could be used for paging or
sending interoffice messages.
The appeal of the product is simplicity, says Burt Fletcher, a
Northern Telecom senior marketing manager.
''People aren't afraid of it,'' he said. ''It looks like a telephone.
People don't see a problem with it sitting in their kitchen or
mounted on a wall. Since people are comfortable with the
device, the interactive part becomes incremental, as opposed
to mounting a Pentium II (computer) on your wall.''
But with prices of computers falling to new lows, analysts say
screen- phone prices need to come down to be competitive.
The devices also are competing with relatively inexpensive
Internet set-top boxes like Microsoft Corp.'s WebTV, which
have had only limited success with consumers.
''You've got to wonder: If people won't pay $250 for a
WebTV, why would they buy a screen phone?'' asked
Kimball Brown, an analyst with San Jose, Calif., market
researcher Dataquest Inc.
Northern Telecom's Fletcher sees screen-phone prices coming
down. Nortel's PowerTouch product sells for about $200. He
also sees more features being added to screen phones, like
integrated messaging. That allows for e-mail and voice
messages to be bundled together in the same in-box.
Of course, screen phones have their drawbacks. The small
screens aren't suited for longer e-mail messages. Some
screen-phone online services may not allow you to check
e-mail accounts on other systems.
And the devices' small keyboards make for awkward,
one-finger typing. Although you may be able to check your
bank account balances with a screen phone, you probably
wouldn't want to balance your checkbook on one, Nortel's
Fletcher says.
(C) Copyright 1998 Investors Business Daily, Inc.
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