DoCoMo pitches Wii-like handset controls

Japan’s biggest mobile operator, NTT DoCoMo, unveiled a handful of new 3G handsets on Monday, including one with motion sensitive controls.

Stealing an idea from Nintendo’s latest gaming console, the Wii, one of the 904i portfolio models will support ‘Chokkan Games’, which are played using intuitive motion, such as tracing a finger, tilting or waiving the handset.

This probably means players won’t be able to swing the handset around like a tennis racket or baseball bat – they would not be able to see the screen – but is more likely to mean a game of pinball will have a real ’tilting’ table.

Another device offers a “2in1” feature, which takes the capabilities of two phones and folds them into a single handset, so users can switch between Mode A and Mode B to use a different phone number, i-mode mail address, address book, mail box and call history.

The 2in1 feature may be a precursor to DoCoMo’s development of a dual operating system handset, first revealed last year. The proposition is based on a handset which includes an operator installed OS on one domain, with a second domain for a user installed OS.