"WiPOQ" Bluetooth Handset Companion

Sanyo’s recently established Wi Mobile Technologies Group today announced the availability of
its long-awaited WiPOQ Multimedia Messenger Terminal (MMT).The clever fashionoriented device will be marketed to style conscious on-the-go professionals principally in Europe. A planned marketing program entitled “Chic Not Geek" will coincide with consumer availability of the product.

WiPOQ is the perfect solution for people who believe small and simple is better.The pocket-sized WiPOQ MMT (soon to be followed by WiPOQ Media Player and WiPOQ TV), is a sleek data device with large screen,easy to use QWERTY keyboard and interface all in an ultra compact 15.5 mm thick case.By pairing WiPOQ to just about any Bluetooth handset, WiPOQ provides the full functionality of a wireless PDA and web browser combined with the elegant styling that
fashion-conscious consumers demand.

Send and receive email with attachments,access contacts and calendar, SMS, MMS, IM, web-browsing, Java-based gaming  allin a rugged small pocket-sized device that does not require a separate contract.WiPOQ is a wireless companion, as the company calls this category of devices.It takes advantage of enhancements in Bluetooth technology to give consumers an alternative to more traditional form factors.Dr. Jack Torobin, CEO of COMSCIENCES,the Los Angeles based marketing services and product design firm that helped SANYO develop WiPOQ, said,“WiPOQ is the culmination of over 3 years of research and development. Unlike many wireless concepts it started with a great design.

The WiPOQ team knew many consumers will avoid trying 3G because the handsets are too complicated or too cumbersome.So Sanyo set out to do something radically different – design a data device that was small and elegant as well as simple and functional  in three words: Chic not Geek"Nigel Newby, head of COMSCIENCES’s Wi Design studio in London who was  responsible for the initial product vision added:“Taking cues from credit cards, pocket books, fashion accessories and other popular items, we along with the team at Sanyo’s Technology Center in California explored familiar shapes and sizes and settled on a card case design as the most attractive and functional. The Chic Not Geek campaign will epitomize this design approach.

To bring WiPOQ to life, Okikuni Aoyagi, the project leader at Sanyo in Osaka was responsible for pulling together a global team that included not only R&D in San Jose California and the ultra-modern Shimane Sanyo factory in Japan, but component vendors, software suppliers and outside engineering support throughout the world.They listened carefully to what potential customers in major markets were demanding and set out to address their needs. Special hardware and software needed to be developed and new combinations of mechanics needed to be explored and tested. The result a revolutionary product of impeccable quality and style.

Consumers in most markets will have a choice of three models:WiPOQ Basic great value in a feature packed device; WiPOQ Pro extra memory and functionality for the on-the-go professional;WiPOQ Exec the enterprise solution. WiPOQ will be marketed through network operators as well as major retailers in most European markets by late Q3 2005. WIDGX