NTT DoCoMo announced today they have developed a child-friendly 3G mobile phone, the FOMA SA800i. In addition, DoCoMo has established the Kids' Advisory Board of people with expertise in children's issues, who will advise the company on the development of products and services beneficial to children.

The SA800i's functions and compatible services are designed to help keep children safe. It is configured for easy use by children, and its rounded shape resembles a cocoon to emphasize the phone's child-oriented security features.

The handset has an alarm of about 100 decibels that children can quickly switch on in the case of an emergency. If the child activates the alarm, the handset will call up to three registered numbers with a voice message alert at regular intervals until all registered numbers pick up, or until a password is entered into the child's handset. Also, parents signed up for the "imadoco search" location service can set their phones to automatically receive e-mails announcing the child's physical location, and the e-mails will continue at regular intervals.

The parents who are signed up for imadoco search can also set their phones to receive an automatic e-mail of the child's location when the child's handset is turned off. Moreover, even after the child's handset is switched off, it is possible to receive e-mails of the phone's whereabouts in 15-, 30- or 60-minute intervals. The e-mails continue until a password is entered into either the parent's or child's handset.

The battery can be secured with a special screw to prevent it from being removed and the phone deactivated. The screw must be removed with a special tool.