Let's say you have an ailing wireless carrier that's having trouble keeping customers. What can save you? Perhaps a dose of ... bootyliciousness?
That's what drew me and a gaggle of celebrity reporters to the launch of the new B'Phone, a special Beyonce-branded version of the Samsung Upstage music phone for Sprint today. What I didn't understand, of course, is that this wasn't really a phone launch, it was a celebrity appearance ... and celebrity appearances work on very different rules than phone launches.
Since this is a tech blog, let's get the tech out of the way. The B'Phone is a burgundy colored Samsung Upstage music phone with exclusive Beyonce-related content. Owners will get to download little video clips and photos of Beyonce going about her life and an audio recording of Beyonce at age 10, singing a little song she made up. The phone comes in a really cool case, which may be the best part of the whole thing - it looks like a CD case, but you open it up, and it isn't a CD, it's a phone. Get it? Music is going digital! Really.
Destroying all of Sprint's efforts to generate an upscale image, the B'Phone will only be sold in Wal-Mart stores of all the brick-and-mortar world. Because, you know, that's the lifestyle we all asipre to. It'll also be sold on Sprint's Web site. That said, I'm sure people will buy plenty of these things. Beyonce is pretty popular.
Personally, I found the dynamics of a Beyonce appearance as interesting as the phone itself. The room consisted of a bunch of celebrity journalists from outlets like OK! and InTouch, a huge crew of paparazzi whose cameras were each about as big as my torso, me, the incomparable hard-tech-news reporter Sinead Carew from Reuters and all-purpose quote-monger Avi Greengart of Current Analysis.
The diva herself showed up late, but here's the real fun: her PR people actually told the press which questions to ask and when! So we learned how she "wanted to let people get a feel for who I really am," and that "it's only on this phone that you can get so close to my life."
Avi still managed to slip in an unexpected question about how limited the B'Phone's limited release was, which Beyonce basically finessed and threw away.
Beyonce also said she'll be taking the phone on tour to India and China, which was an unusually astute technical comment. Sprint's CDMA phones don't roam to a lot of countries, but they *do* work in India and China. Beyonce probably won't mind the $2.50/minute roaming fee, either.
Want pics? I got pics.
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October 11, 2007 4:52 PM
Ack. I think the real question this boils down to is not so much whether Beyonce can save Spring, or not even whether Spring can save Beyonce, but whether the two of them will plummet over this. XD
October 11, 2007 5:39 PM
That woman sure knows how to pose.
October 11, 2007 10:08 PM
^^ What an idiotic statement.Beyonce plummett over a phone,that's laughable.This is the women who has one of the best selling tours of the summer.I already know many people that are buying the phone just because its Beyonce. It is a big Christmas get for teenage girls.
October 11, 2007 11:24 PM
That true Ashley
October 12, 2007 3:02 AM
The upstage has already plummeted once. As a phone, almost all of them were returned as incredibly poor. Half works on one side, the other half works the other. You could not do anything without being 'flipping' confused as to where you were. Poor camera picture management (six clicks to view a picture & no thumbnails), poor text messaging (no relevant dictionary) and (get this) a poor MP3 player... Oh the power cord stuck in your ear if you ran out of batteries!!!! Good luck Beyonce. You got sold a dud!!!
October 12, 2007 11:32 AM
Yeah. I don't understand why Sprint refuses to test phones before actually selling them.
Guess it's better to cover the fact that it's a piece of shit by having Beyonce endorse it.
October 15, 2007 5:21 PM
I think its dumb it looks like a plain pnone when u think of beyonce u think of sexyhot rhinestoned flashyness not burgandy and rectangle.It should have been made like a palm pilot but not as complicated .
October 22, 2007 1:27 PM
Beyonce I love your new cell phone, that phone is of the chain. You know gone have to come get over the summer so we can hang out. Info:110 Lottville rd
age:14, i am a nice person and easy to get along with. c ya
November 19, 2007 1:35 PM
Well i like beyonce. Not like an idol but shes beautiful,she can sing an she has style!!!! I got all her cds an not to day my boyfriend got the b phone for me for a christmas present!!! i love it!
November 20, 2007 3:56 PM
IT'S JUST TOO PLAIN!!!
November 26, 2007 12:09 PM
I think tha phone is awesome especially for me since i am still a teenager (18) and hopefully i will be getting the phone for christmas i realy want yes b/c its beyonce phone why b/c i look up to her alot so beyonce keep up tha good work make your money girl and don't worry what people may have to say that is negavtive toward you or your phone b/c it A-W-E-S-O-M-E
you go girl
TRULY YOUR # 1 FAN LAUREN
December 10, 2007 3:53 PM
go beyonce u my number #1
December 22, 2007 11:30 AM
I'M A PARENT THAT HAS A CHILD THAT IS A BEYONCE HARD CORE FAN OF THIS LADY AND PARENTS ARE SOMETIME NOT ABLE TO AFFORD THESE ITEMS THAT YOU ARE PROMOTING. WHY COULD YOU NOT HAVE A DRAWING OR GIVE 1,000 AWAY WITH THE QUICKNESS BECAUSE IT WANT HINDER YOU AT ALL TO DO SO, BUT WILL MAKE A LOT OF YOUR YOUNG FANS HAPPY., I DO WANT MY CHILD TO BE IN THAT 1,000. THANK YOU
December 24, 2007 2:24 PM
Why would they give them away? Even if they did, you would still have to get it activated at Sprint, since they don't have direct prepaid, and yuo still would have to pay a monthly bill.
June 23, 2009 1:26 PM
i love beyonceeee