Future cell phone to take on music editing

An advanced concept phone by industrial design firm Pilotfish is seen in an undated photo released April 20, 2009.

HELSINKI (Reuters) - Design firm Pilotfish unveiled on Monday plans to make an advanced music phone, hoping to tap untested demand for music editing on the go.

Pilotfish said its concept -- which will reach the market a few years from now at the earliest -- will enable good quality recording of three separate sound tracks and allow editing of the music by physically twisting and bending the phone.

The company, which has also designed scooters and blood pressure monitors, will initially target music enthusiasts and amateur musicians, but also sees wider appeal for the phone.

Analysts said the phone looked attractive but were skeptical about the potential demand in a market dominated by phone manufacturers like Nokia and Apple.

"In a fast moving market niche specifications and applications can rapidly become standard features. We've seen that with cameras, positioning and a host of other features," said Geoff Blaber from CCS Insight.

The phone's main touch-screen, which is similar to today's folder phones, consists of three 'sticks' that can be removed and separately clipped onto a musical instrument or a person to capture live sound.

"The technology should be available in 2-3 years," said Stefanel Barutcieff, senior industrial designer at Germany-based Pilotfish.

Pilotfish says broadening the features of music phones would benefit content creators, who could offer sound libraries or musical games for download. Operators, it says, would gain from increased traffic, and device manufacturers sell new models.

(Reporting by Tarmo Virki; Editing by Rupert Winchester)