A clip-on Apple Phone?

Link: An interesting take on the Apple Phone – aMobileME

Came across this on the excellent A Mobile Me blog — the comment below is authored by Jurgen:

The form factor. Hmmm. I’m going to go out on a bit of a limb here.

I think the new iPod phone will be a clip-on accessory for current generation iPods. It will feature number keys, pick-up and hang-up buttons, and an enhanced headphone jack that will allow for voice input. It clips on to the iPod in much the same way as the Nike or iPod radio does.

It’ll be cheap, too. Future iPods may have this functionality built in, but I think a cheap-ish clip-on device is just the kind of revolutionary idea that would appeal to Steve Jobs. Instantly convert the millions of iPod owners into potential phone carriers. That’s enough to cause the big phone companies a bit of a worry. Later on, there will be refinements – touch screens and virtual scroll wheels and stuff, smartphone features – but right now, I think they’re going to keep it simple with a clip-on.

First of all, I thought ‘rubbish — what sort of phone concept is that’….

Then two sentences later I began to think and I got the concept. A clip on phone would garner an instant audience of folk already kitted out with their iPods, especially if it was £55 or £99 or something like that. You just have to stand for 10 seconds in the Apple Store on Regent Street next to the HUGE accessories counter to understand that this could well be a wicked way ahead.

We shall see..