Fujitsu Limited is planning its first major smartphone move outside Japan with the STYLISTIC S01, a handset designed for senior users that’ll initially be available via Orange in France from June 2013. This is an Android-powered device with a 1.4GHz chip, a 4-inch screen and an 8.1-megapixel camera.
The STYLISTIC S01 will include touchscreen technology that requires users to press on-screen icons with the same force as they’d use for buttons on a keypad. It can also optimise audio frequencies based on a user’s age, making it easier to hear the person at the other end of a call, and can slow down the speech of callers to talk too quickly to be understood - without changing the pitch of their voice or making the conversation last longer.
In addition, the device displays large icons and has a similar user interface than other smartphones. It’s equipped with a personal security alarm as well.
Yves Maitre, Senior Vice President of Device & Mobile Multimedia at France Telecom-Orange, said “The senior customers within our customer base are just as hungry for smartphone technology and mobile internet services as anyone else. We are thrilled to be working together with Fujitsu to leverage our combined strengths to provide products for an emerging smartphone market segment in Europe.”
In Japan, the Fujitsu Raku-Raku Phone series for seniors has sold over 20 million units since launching in 2001.