China Looks to Crack into U.S. Cell Phone Market

I wondered what the Chinese were going to do with all their cell phones that had porn on them.

China is looking to crack into the very competitive U.S. cell phone market by introducing two of their more fashionable phones at the 2007 CTIA industry gathering.

U.S. consumers may know the name Haier as a leader in home appliances, but now this air conditioner making company will be introducing two handsets through an unusual sales channel.


The two handsets, named Elegance and Sterling, are compatible with the cellular networks operated by AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile USA but won't be sold by any service providers. Instead, they will be sold "unlocked" through retailers, meaning that customers of those companies will be able to remove the small "SIM" cards from the battery compartments of their current phones and then slip them into the Haier handsets.

Unlocked phones are common in Europe and other markets, and this tends to make these types of phones more expensive. Cell phones carriers in the U.S. tend to offer up front discounts on phones as along as the customer commits to a one or two year service contract.

The Elegance handset, 1.25 inches wide and 3.5 inches long with rounded edges, went on sale through certain retailers last week, priced at about $250. The Sterling, priced at about $280, is slated to arrive in June.

No further details have been issued about what these phones will be equipped with, but since China has been cracking down on porn usage by their users, one option may be free porn for people who are into that type of media.

Read more at Yahoo News