AT&T Wireless debuts messaging device

NEW YORK: AT&T Wireless Services Inc. launches a mobile e-mail and messaging device without voice service, aiming to use a low price to tempt young consumers.

The gadget, branded "Ogo," does not transmit phone calls. It lets customers send instant messages and e-mails to computers and advanced phones, as well as short text messages that can be sent and received on most mobile phones.

The Ogo costs $17.99 monthly and includes an unlimited number of messages. The device itself, designed by No. 3 U.S. mobile provider AT&T Wireless, will sell for $129, before a $30 mail-in rebate.

This price could attract more consumers than existing phones that were designed for easy e-mailing and instant messaging but are much more expensive, according to IDC analyst, Alex Slawsby.

But he noted that since people mainly use mobile devices for making phone calls, the Ogo's popularity will depend on whether people are willing to carry a second gadget and pay for an extra service on top of their mobile phone charges.

"Voice is still the killer," Slawsby said.

IDC estimates that of the 169 million people who subscribe to mobile phone services today, about 12.3 million, or about 7 percent, send instant messages on mobile phones.

AT&T Wireless, in the process of being acquired by Cingular Wireless, had the device manufactured by Chi Mei Communication Systems Inc. of Taiwan.