Some people ([Zircon] for instance; see link) don't like phones, don't want people to contact them, and will manage just fine on a land line when they get home thank you - just like the olden days.

The Single Use Emergency Only Cellphone (SUE O'Phone) has only 2 buttons; ON and DIAL. It can use any of the networks available in whichever country (so O2, Vodafone, t-mobile and Orange in the UK). Pressing DIAL will connect to the Emergency Services. No other numbers can be dialled.

Buy it for a small amount (I'm imagining £10 or so) and store it safely. When you find yourself needing the emergency services (car crash, mountain-climbing accident, whatever) pull out the phone, switch it on and make the call.

It's non-rechargeable (hence single use) and holds enough charge for, say 30 minutes of talk time. When you've made your call, hand it in to the local Post Office for recycling and buy a new one. Possibly the Post Office could give a voucher for a small discount off the next one - this would encourage people not to just throw them in the bin.

With no way of making other calls, this phone is useless except for calling 999, so you won't be able to run the battery down talking to your friends before you go hill-walking.
-- kmlabs, Jan 17 2005

[Zircon]'s Numberless Cellphone Idea Numberless_20phone
Similar to this, but not quite so specialised [kmlabs, Jan 17 2005]

Single-purpose 911 cell phone. http://911phone.net/
Also mentions the 1997 FCC mandate requiring carriers to honor 911 calls regardless of account or carrier status of the caller's cell phone. [bristolz, Jan 17 2005]

(?) Cell phone/GNP increase http://people.corne...es/vp28/telecom.htm
Recently, US and developing countries productivity, therefore GNP, linked to computers, internet and cell phones. [mensmaximus, Jan 17 2005]

(?) A few listed here http://www.engadget...y/1234000320048655/
"Help, I've fallen..." [rhatta, Jul 02 2005]

Replace "throw it away" with "hand it in to the local Post Office for recycling" and you'll get my vote. Otherwise it's a terrible waste.
-- [ sctld ], Jan 17 2005


Consider it done, [ sctld]...
-- kmlabs, Jan 17 2005


"Get me Batman!"

Better keep it away from the kiddies.

"This phone will self-destruct in 15 seconds..."
-- RayfordSteele, Jan 17 2005


Did you know that, in the U.S. at least, cell phones can always connect to 911 whether or not they have an active account? We keep an old one in the glove boxes of our cars for emergencies along with one of those emergency battery chargers.
-- bristolz, Jan 17 2005


Many people live in emergency circumstances 24 - 7. Similar to ugly brown TV cable wires running through neighborhoods being the reason for legislating free public access to making free cable productions, all people should have access to cellphones at a basic free rate due to the possible health damages of cell phone technology. Mobile communications corporations need unlimited billions of dollars to advertise each new wave of their products. Bite elsewhere.

Thinking beyond the next five days, I don't see a world where one person has a year 2010 model cellphone and still others do not. I'll do a Google search to see if GNPs would go up if everyone had a cell phone.
-- mensmaximus, Jan 17 2005


Huh?
-- bristolz, Jan 17 2005


Many in the IT business plead the same word.
-- mensmaximus, Jan 17 2005


It'll be the "goodbye" wave of RFID.
-- reensure, Jan 17 2005


Given that you can buy a charged phone on ebay for £5-10 (older models) and a SIM card for around £5 that will dial 999 calls, I would consider this baked-ish.
-- wagster, Jan 17 2005


mens, hire an interpreter. I'm taking it on faith that there is sense in what you say.
-- david_scothern, Jan 18 2005


baked, i think it was in an old magazine (2000ish) and it had a large red button where the screen would be but i think the problem with it was that it was mainly for use on country roads and inter-state roads out in the middle of nowhere and it didnt actually tell you or anybody else where you were so people would ring the police/fire/ambulance and they wouldnt know where they were (which is bad)
-- andrew1, May 04 2005


um i just looked at the second link, theres a picture of the one i talked about there
-- andrew1, May 04 2005



random, halfbakery