THE FUTURE AS SEEN THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

Though the Bluetooth headset appeals to consumers with a promise of unencumbered mobile communication, there has always been one pesky wire standing in the way of it being truly wireless: the charger. Iqua is taking on that last wire — and developing a more eco-friendly product in the process.

The Bluetooth accessory-maker recently unveiled the BHS-603 Sun, a Bluetooth headset that charges itself when used in or left in direct sunlight. The device allows users to answer or end calls, redial, voice dial or switch calls between the phone and headset, as well as make voice-over-IP calls.

“Bluetooth as a technology was designed to make wires disappear,” said Paul Murdock, vice president of the Americas for Iqua. “That's its only mission. Frankly, there is still one wire left, which is the power supply. We make devices people don't necessarily want to think about. If you are spending too much time thinking about your Bluetooth, you are taking away from the mission of the product. We think the consumer just wants to talk and listen; he doesn't want to have to worry about which one of the devices is charged.”

Murdock emphasized that using solar power to “go green” is not a fad for Iqua. The company's Finnish roots give it a predisposition toward eco-friendly solutions. “There are definitely more products we are going to bring out in the future that have this because we feel it's a natural usage product,” Murdock said.

U.S. consumers lag behind Europeans in adopting Bluetooth technology, largely due to a lack of awareness, he said. Despite this, analyst firm IMS Research sees Bluetooth technology as having potential for healthy growth in the high-end handset market. Bill Morelli, mobile technologies analyst for IMS, said the annual number of Bluetooth-enabled handsets shipped is on track to surpass the 500 million mark for the first time ever in 2007.

While Bluetooth has gained momentum in the U.S., Morelli is uncertain how quickly solar power will do the same. He said that solar power has yet to catch on for handsets because average consumers don't spend a lot of time outside. He said Iqua's solar-powered option Bluetooth might be a nice differentiator, but it may not be the most practical solution.

However, there solar power slowly is gaining steam in telecom. Two years ago, Vodafone Portugal launched a solar charger for mobile phones, claiming that 10,000 customers using the charger for a year on solar energy alone would prevent the atmospheric discharge of 8 tons of carbon dioxide. Savi Technology recently began deploying solar-powered radio frequency identification readers and signposts, enabling its customers in the defense and commercial sectors to conserve energy and reduce costs while tracking supplies. Even Verizon is letting the sun shine in as it installs 140 solar panels at its central office in Florida.

Iqua's Sun will be made available in conjunction with the Consumer Electronics Show in January, at which time the company will announce its U.S. distributors. In the U.K., Orange Telecom has been distributing the headsets since early November.