 The new TwitterPeek device. Click to enlarge. Source: Peek/Amazon |
Promising “unlimited Tweeting anywhere, anytime, no contracts, no credit checks, no activation fees,” the TwitterPeek is available today for the hard-core mobile, microblogging masses.
The TwitterPeek, created by mobile device firm Peek in partnership with Twitter, is about a half-inch thick, 4-inches-long and just under 3-inches-wide, sports a color screen and keyboard and offers five days of battery life, according to the company.
Like Peek’s first, eponymous wireless e-mail gadget, TwitterPeek is a one-trick pony: It does not support e-mail or calling, but it does let users send and receive tweets and direct messages, follow new users and view images sent through Twitpic.
The mobile device sells for either $99 or $199. If customers pay the higher price, they can access Twitter through Peek’s mobile network for free for the life of the device. If they pay $99, they get six months of Peek service, and after that, must pay $7.95 per month for network access. Both price points offer unlimited Tweeting.
The device is available exclusively on Amazon.com and on the Peek Web site.
It’s too soon to tell how well the TwitterPeek will do in the market, but it does face competition from a slew of mobile phone apps that already allow users to Tweet from their iPhone, BlackBerry or Android-powered handset.
Still, there’s no denying the ongoing popularity of the microblogging site, and the TwitterPeek is targeted at people who either can’t afford or don’t own smartphones.
The news of Twitter’s foray into branded hardware comes on the heels of several major partnership deals. Microsoft’s upstart Bing search service recently began letting users pull in real-time tweets from the popular microblogging service, while Google
also began putting baking Twitter posts into its search results.
Details of Twitter’s partnership with Peek were not disclosed. Twitter is also considering ways to generate money on the site, which may include some form of advertising.