Virgin claims first ever MP3 mobile

Actually made by Samsung but Virgin has better PR

By Kieren McCarthy • Get more from this author

Posted in Music and Media, 29th August 2000 10:56 GMT

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Virgin Mobile has staked its claim to the world's first mobile phone with an in-built MP3 player. Available from today, the Samsung SGH M-100 is a fancy bit of kit and will set you back a not-inconsiderable £349.99.

The phone has actually been around for a while and can be found Spain, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Italy etc etc. However, in a further example of Virgin's PR being ahead of the game, Virgin Mobile has knocked up a press release saying it is launching the phone in the UK.

The phone itself comes with a 32Mb memory (just over half an hour of music), stereo headphones and a microphone. As well as this it offers: play, stop, skip, shuffle controls, graphic equaliser, and will play music for nine hours. Other features include vibration ring, PC compatibility, games and all the usual stuff.

Basically, it's a pretty nice phone. Whether it's "the epitome of modern mobile technology - a technology which knows no bounds" or worth coughing up £350 for, that's a different matter. ®

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