Subject: [NEXTEL-1] When A Cell Phone Just Won't Do

From: [email-masked]
Date: Sat, 20 Dec 2003 01:24:54 -0500

When A Cell Phone Just Won't Do

HONG KONG
Dec. 18, 2003

As if Hong Kong's 6.8 million mobile phones - one for every man, woman and
child - weren't enough, locals are suddenly swarming to embrace the original
means of talking while walking.

Fans say walkie-talkies are good for chatting up friends, making plans or
listening in on strangers. Some wear them like wristwatches, recalling the
old "Dick Tracy" comics, in the latest incarnation of gadget-crazed Hong
Kong's irresistible urge to stay continually connected.

The trend picked up early in the year, when the territory's government
relaxed controls on two-way radios, letting consumers use them within 2
miles without a license.

Forty-year-old financial analyst Andrew Lam recently bought his first
walkie-talkie for about $45 after his friends started using them. Lam bought
it primarily for hiking trips but admits he also gets a kick out of tuning
into other people's conversations.

"I was nosy and wanted to see what other people were talking about," Lam
said. "They usually talk about general stuff. People would ask, `Is somebody
here?' but I wouldn't respond."

Hong Kong-based walkie-talkie manufacturer Tsuen Shing Enterprises sold more
than 10,000 sets in October - five times as many in September, a spokeswoman
said.

The trend doesn't appear to be posing any threat to Hong Kong's ubiquitous
mobile phones. They still ring pretty much wherever you go.

Source: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/12/18/tech/printable589281.shtml

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