You can buy a real-life Barbie phone now, but it’s a brick costing £99
Barbie has had a phone for years, but until now it’s only been made of plastic, and you couldn’t actually make calls on it.
Now you can buy one to actually text and talk on, and even play the iconic mobile game Snake.
The much-hyped handset went on sale today, with a £99 price tag (which includes extra casing, a beaded strap, and stick-on gems to customise it).
Shoppers on the HMD website are asked, ‘go ahead and choose your colour’ and customers can have one painted any colour they want, as long as it is pink.
The flip phone has a keypad with hidden designs featuring palm trees, hearts and flamingos that light up in the dark.
But you won’t find Facebook, X, or Whatsapp on it, or a front-facing camera, though it does have a basic 5 megapixel camera.
The aim is to provide only key communication features without the distracting internet features which can cause screen addiction and compulsive scrolling.
It is made by HMD Global, which also makes Nokia phones, in connection with toymaker Mattel.
We’ll give them credit for sticking to the theme, with even the sounds and alarms on brand such as ‘DreamHouse’ and ‘Azure Barbie’.
Projections are that it could sell more than 400,000, driven by parents worried about their children’s use of screens.
It will be available through Vodafone and Argos, as well as HMD directly.
The launch coincides with the Barbie doll’s 65th birthday this year and follows the success of last year’s ‘Barbie’ film starring Margot Robbie.
Effects of smartphone addiction
A study in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry found that heavy smartphone users had increased risk of:
- Depression and anxiety
- Low self-esteem
- Impaired attention
- Reduced numerical processing capacity
- Increased impulsivity and hyperactivity
- Reduced sleep time and sleep quality
- Eye problems
- Lower muscle mass and higher fat mass
- Reduced physical activity
- Chronic neck pain
Ben Wood, chief analyst at research firm CCS Insight, said: ‘I’d imagine quite a few people will be tempted to buy it as a bit of fun, but in reality, everyone is so dependent on their smartphones that anything more than the odd day of detox will be a stretch.’
It comes amid high profile concerns about smartphone addiction, particularly for young people.
Earlier in the summer, Eton College announced smartphones would be banned for some age groups, saying Year Nine pupils would be given Nokia ‘brick’ phones instead.
And a committee of MPs said the government should consider banning smartphones all together for those under the age of 16.
Psychology professor Larry Rosen offered tips on how to counteract smartphone addiction in the Harvard Business Review.
He suggested designating areas where smartphones are not allowed, such as the dinner table, in restaurants, or watching TV.
Most crucially, he said they should stay out of bedrooms as they can interfere with getting a good night’s sleep, both from the blue light and compulsive scrolling.
Other ways of controlling use include deleting apps so you simply can’t keep refreshing them, setting time limits on how much you or children can use them, and taking regular, restorative breaks such as practising mindfulness or walking outside.
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