Barbie Phone Reveal: A Vision in Pink, Complete With Mirror and Malibu Snake [CNET]

Accessorize, personalize and live out all of your pinkest dreams with this nostalgic flip phone.

Accessorize, personalize and live out all of your pinkest dreams with this nostalgic flip phone.

There are few places you can go to escape from the internet these days. Even in the real world the boundaries are blurred. But do you know a place free from the influence of social media? It’s pink, it’s plastic and it’s all about living in the moment — it’s Barbie Land.

Not a moment too soon, your new Barbie dream phone is available from Wednesday in the UK, and it couldn’t be cuter or more fun if it tried. The “power pink” flip phone takes things back to basics, with texting and calling as its main features, while providing many Easter eggs and touches that will delight Barbie fans.

We’ve had a six-month wait for the unveiling of the Barbie Phone. At Europe’s major mobile show MWC back in February, HMD (whose job is phones) announced it was teaming up with Mattel (whose job is toys) to make a themed device that would delight new and old Barbie fans alike. As of right now, the Barbie Phone is available for preorder in the UK for £99, and will be heading to the US later this fall, due to slight differences in the band requirements and operating system. When it launches in October, HMD expects it to cost $129.

Only now, as the phone goes on sale, are we able to glimpse the design of the device, which comes with a mirror on the front of the flip phone, giving you one less thing to carry in your purse when you leave the house. The phone is as pink on the inside as it is on the outside, with a pink removable battery to be discovered under the hood.

The flip design of the Barbie Phone is only but one of the nostalgic touches likely to please older owners of the device. HMD, which also makes Nokia phones, is bringing back replaceable covers that you can swap out to give the phone a totally different look (one of which is based on the bestselling 1992 Barbie). It’s a throwback to the fascia trend that was popular during the heyday of the Nokia 3210 and 3310, when everyone’s phone rocked a unique design — and not just by slapping a case on it.

And the personalization options don’t stop there. The Barbie Phone comes with a beaded strap and multiple phone charms that can be swapped in and out, as well as decorative stickers you can add. All the accessories are inspired by iconic Barbie looks, ranging from roller skates to sunglasses.

It was important to show people, says Lars Silberbauer, HMD’s CMO, that “a brand collaboration is not just about slapping a sticker on the front or back of the phone. It’s really about getting into details, get into the storyline and do something that is obviously Barbie, but never seen before.”

This is why when you start up the Barbie Phone for the first time, it will tell you, “Hi Barbie!” as well as presenting you with a missed call from Ken. “Ken will be calling because this is basically meant to be Barbie’s phone,” says Silberbauer. The lore runs deep through the phone’s software, with a custom-designed Barbie camera filter and a Malibu-themed version of classic Nokia game Snake.

Even the unboxing process has been designed to be a fun experience. Sustainable packaging is an increasingly common benefit when you buy a new phone, but that usually means it’s easily recyclable. HMD wanted to take this a step further, by creating packaging you might actually want to keep and reuse at home — so the Barbie Phone’s box doubles as a jewelry box, where you can keep spare accessories or use for other knickknacks. Designing the box “was a massive project on its own,” says Silberbauer. “It didn’t feel right to have small packaging and that you could throw away.”

As appealing to the eye as the Barbie Phone might be, I can’t help but wonder if HMD has a better sense than me of exactly who will buy the device. As the world’s dominant feature phone-maker, it’s long been an advocate of simpler phones for adults, but it’s also interested in tapping directly into the younger market. 

Just last month, the company launched the Better Phone project — a collaboration with parents to create a healthier, more age-appropriate phone for children and teens. As a feature phone with no access to social media, the Barbie Phone would make an ideal first phone for children, but I’m curious whether HMD expects it to appeal to people across generations.

“I’m lucky to have a focus group of two girls my own,” says Silberbauer of his young daughters. “Bringing a Barbie phone to life has definitely made me a hero in their eyes.” But, he adds, he expects it to be popular among many age groups, with adults enjoying the option to have a fun “detox phone” in addition to their main device. To help with this, the phone will feature digital wellbeing tips, including self-care reminders.

While Barbie herself has nothing to prove, the Barbie Phone is another matter entirely. If it succeeds, Silberbauer hints that Ken might at some point get his own phone too. “We might have something up our sleeves,” he says.