Nokia to Offer Wave Messaging Option

Monday, June 7th 2004, 9:34 am

By: News On 6

HELSINKI, Finland (AP) _ Sending a text message with your mobile phone is poised to become en-lightening: A new messaging option on some Nokia handsets is more like semaphore than computing.

While it's not as convenient or utilitarian as sending a text message to someone in another city or country, wave messaging certainly can leave a lasting impression, particularly if you're in a night club and want to impress someone across the room.

Users of the upcoming Nokia 3220, slated for release this fall, must buy a special shell that snaps onto the phone. Users can then send a short message that, instead of going to another phone, is flashed on and off by 12 orange LED lights on the back of the phone shell.

Wave the phone back and forth, and a motion sensor tells which lights to fire. Done correctly, the message appears to be floating in space, bright as the stars.

Nokia says the image is visible from as far as 18 feet, but if it's cloudy or too bright, it might be better to send a regular text message or photograph instead.

Wave messaging isn't for the verbose, either. Only 15 characters can be displayed _ just enough for a phone number or a simple ``I LUV U!''