Vodafone 555 Blue Facebook phone heading to UK, at under £100
The Vodafone 555 Blue is a budget mobile aimed squarely at Facebook fans, with a dedicated button on the keyboard providing rapid access to the social network. It'll be in Blighty soon.
Love Facebook? Yeah, we're fond of it too, which is why we're moderately excited about the Vodafone 555 Blue. It's built around the social network and will cost under £100 when it lands in Blighty soon.
The budget phone sports a massive Qwerty keyboard for speedy status updates, and a 2.4-inch screen. In the corner of the keyboard, there's a button with the Facebook logo on it, reminiscent of the HTC ChaCha and Salsa's similarly dedicated button. Tap it and you'll be fired face-first into your Facebook feed.
We like the colour scheme too -- a demure silver hue with blue accents is quintessentially Facebook. If Zuckerberg's social network isn't your cup of tea, other sites can be accessed via the Opera Mini 5 Web browser.
There are some downsides, though. Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity are unavailable, so speedy Web connections will be out of the question. The screen isn't touch-sensitive either, so you'll have to navigate the phone using the mechanical keys.
The 555 doesn't run Android, so we're wondering whether it will be able to offer much over budget phones like the Orange San Francisco, which does run Google's operating system. Still, Android can feel rather geeky sometimes, so a really simple interface could be a big plus.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below, or spout your views on our Facebook page.