Helio phone tracks friends by satellite

0 Comments | AFP, November, 2006

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) — A Helio mobile telephone service launched in the United States lets users track friends and plot routes using satellite-mapping technology. Helio's Drift model telephone, custom-built by South Korea's Samsung Electronics, has a "Buddy Beacon" feature that maps the whereabouts of as many as 25 selected people with similar devices.

"Now, Helio members can spend less time searching and more time hanging out," said the Los Angeles company's chief executive Sky Dayton. Buddy Beacon was billed as a way for Helio members to "synchronize their social lives" by broadcasting their locations to friends when they want to be found. Helio members could "hide out" by leaving the Buddy Beacon off. "We're staying true to our mission of bringing advanced wireless...