Mobile Phones Do Much More Than Make Calls
Children in in Debre Zeit, Ethiopia play with a phone in 2008.
Children in in Debre Zeit, Ethiopia play with a phone in 2008.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images For The Clinton Foundation
An Egyptian policeman on a camel uses his mobile phone during the 11th Pan Arab Games in Cairo in 2007.
An Egyptian policeman on a camel uses his mobile phone during the 11th Pan Arab Games in Cairo in 2007.
Karim Jaafar/AFP/Getty Images
A woman presents the T-Mobile G1 (R) mobile device by Deutsche Telekom and the i-Phone 3G by Apple in March 2009 at the world's biggest high-tech fair, CeBIT in Hanover, central Germany.
A woman presents the T-Mobile G1 (R) mobile device by Deutsche Telekom and the i-Phone 3G by Apple in March 2009 at the world's biggest high-tech fair, CeBIT in Hanover, central Germany.
Jens Schlueter/AFP/Getty ImagesIn Asia, Africa, Europe and elsewhere, cell phone technology has always been way ahead of what's available in the states. Around the world, people use their phones in innovative, creative ways.
For example, mobile phones help rural farmers gather information about crop prices, and bargain shoppers download coupons on the fly.
At the recent Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, LG unveiled a touch phone in a watch, and Sony Ericsson's new mobile phone (codenamed 'Idou') with a built-in 12.1 megapixel camera got plenty of attention.
Also in Barcelona, Samsung showed its Blue Earth touchscreen phone. It's made from recycled water bottles, and has a solar panel that charges the battery.
For this Talk of the World program, we're especially interested in hearing from our listeners abroad. If you live outside the U.S., tell us: In what innovative ways do you use your cellular phone?
Guests:
Natasha Elkington, journalist for Reuters. She uses her mobile phone to pay her farm manager in Kenya.
Amy Webb, principal for Webbmedia Group
Alieu Conteh, founder of Vodacom, a cell phone company in Congo
Hiram Enriquez, independent consultant focusing on mobile technologies and digital media strategy
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