The HMD Barbie Phone, which we first heard about at the Mobile World Congress earlier this year, is now unveiled and is set to be launched in Australia next week.
HMD partnered with Mattel for this flip phone with a retro-inspired design that’s very pink (it even has a pink battery and a pink USB-A to USB Type-C charging cable), and which has a mirror in front for you to catch a glimpse of yourself whenever you choose to.
As a phone that is expected to target and appeal to a very specific demographic, the phone has two alternative cases: the brightly coloured swirls of the 1992’s iconic Totally Hair Barbie doll and a vintage ‘shooting heart’ design.
There’s a beaded phone strap that can be decorated with iconic Barbie phone charms including a tiny roller skate, and a Barbie doll-sized ice cream.
You can, if you want to, select sparkly gems and retro vintage Barbie stickers to decorate it too.
Flip the phone open to reveal the 2.7-inch screen and you will hear the familiar ‘Hi Barbie!’ boot up sound that plays when it is switched on, and a missed call from Ken that you can add to contacts.
It features a 0.3MP camera with a torch that adds to the phone’s retro vibes.
HMD is positioning the device as one with which you can “take a vacation from your smartphone.”
“This phone encourages you to ditch your smartphone in times when you just want less browsing and more fun, all with the help of a true cultural icon, Barbie. Barbie is as popular as she’s ever been, and feature phones are continuing to go from strength to strength – we’re bringing two brilliant things together,” said global chief marketing officer at Human Mobile Devices, Lars Silberbauer.
The HMD Barbie Phone has a retail price of A$199 and will be available in Australia from September 5 at retailers including JB Hi-Fi, The Good Guys and Harvey Norman, among others.
Starting today, another HMD device, its new mid-tier flagship Skyline, is available in Australia. The company has designed the phone to be relatively easy to repair by customers themselves when the need arises.
