Anshin-Navi GPS phones for the kiddies

Japan’s second largest mobile operator AU KDDI announced 3 new phones this morning, but we are more interested in their upgraded service “Anshin-Navi”. The Sanyo A5525SA and Sweets Cute phones are targeted to young kids. Their parents can subscribe to the Anshin-Navi service which automatically detects the phone’s location by GPS, and check it on their phones or PCs. What’s more is that even when the kid’s phone is off, the GPS tracing is still on, and the real-time location data can be retrieved remotely by the parents. The most sci-fi bit is that the phone camera can automatically take photos every minute and send them to your parents. These “emergency” functions can be activated upon request, or likewise they can be activated automatically when the phone’s boozer alarm is on (to scare away pickpockets and pedophiles). The kid can also use this phone to check the relative position of his parents, but that might take some intellectual ability. Sounds like ResidenceEvil in real life eh? These new phones together with the new service will be available in late January. — Sam Chan

Press Release  [AU KDDI]