Remember the Twitter Peek thingie Peter Ha spotted last week? Yeah, it’s official now and is actually a neat little device if you Twitter a whole lot and don’t carry a smartphone. Wait, what?
So the TwitterPeek gives you an always-connected view of Twitter over a nationwide cellular network. You can tweet and twat all you want. The device runs $99 with 6 months of service or $199 with a lifetime of the device service.
I’m sure the TweeterPeek is a wonderful device, but most feature phones now include a Twitter app. So if you’re really getting into Twitter, first reevaluate your life, and then check out your cell phone provider’s offers to make sure you simply can’t upgrade your phone to get access to Twitter. Or you can just drop $200 on the TweeterPeek and call it good. Your call.
Peek Unveils TwitterPeek – Making It Affordable for Millions More to Twitter on the Go
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Peek, the maker of the award-winning Peek email and texting device, debuts the world’s first Twitter mobile device today exclusively on Amazon.com. TwitterPeek promises to unleash the thrill of Twitter on-the-go by enabling millions to tweet interesting news, stories, and ideas as soon as they happen – in real time – without an expensive smartphone or data plan.
Twitter has become a worldwide phenomenon, but – until now – the millions of Twitter users without a smartphone haven’t been able to fully experience the fun of Twitter on-the-go. “TwitterPeek will make it easy and affordable for everyone who doesn’t have a smartphone to really enjoy Twitter on–the-go,” said Peekster-in-Chief Amol Sarva.
TwitterPeek delivers the world of Twitter in a sleek, palm-sized gadget sure to top this year’s holiday gift list. “Twitter die-hards will appreciate its ‘always-on’ instant tweet delivery and newbies will finally ‘get Twitter’ once they have TwitterPeek in hand,” continued Sarva. “Even businesses that Twitter will dig TwitterPeek as a convenient way to stay connected with their customers.”
At $99 including unlimited nationwide service, TwitterPeek offers affordability no smartphone can match and a user experience far superior to SMS text messaging Twitter with a traditional cell phone.
Key features of TwitterPeek are:
Unlimited tweets and direct messages
Always-on instant tweet delivery
Views links (as plain text) and Twitpic images
Nationwide coverage. No wi-fi signal necessary.
Full QWERTY keyboard, color screen, click scroll wheel
30-day money back guarantee
1-year manufacturers warranty
Availability:TwitterPeek is available exclusively on Amazon.com and TwitterPeek.com from November 3, 2009.
The original Peek Classic and Peek Pronto email and texting mobile devices are available at Amazon.com, GetPeek.com, Costco.com, and select Blockbuster and RadioShack stores.
Cost: TwitterPeek$99 includes device plus 6 months of unlimited Twitter service ($7.95 per month for service thereafter)
$199 includes unlimited Twitter service for lifetime of device
No contracts
WTF?! I dont freaking get this and I am the creator!!
I am so contacting twitter agency
Hey. I think it’s great! But I dont seem to use it! Haha. I quit twitter but I do have a backup.
http://twitter.com/missmilesc
Hi! Um.. Im just giving you more comments…
Follow me http://twitter.com/twitillustrator
I love you http://twitter.com/missmilesc because your work is great.
I love you http://twitter.com/taylorswift13 because Twitter suits you and you’re sweet.
I hate you http://twitter.com/anthonyjrdawson because you’re rude!
– Im crazy and its what they call me –
It looks like a pretty useless device going by that they have written here -> http://digitizor.com/2009/10/29/twitterpeek-now-a-dedicated-device-to-tweet-pictures/
True to me, Fake to Twitter.
This link you’ve posted has the pricing way wrong. It claims that its $200 and then $15/month, which is likely a big factor in their conclusion that the Peek is too expensive. They don’t really say anything else other than their incorrect price is too high for them…
This device is absolutely insane, how did this ever get out of the brainstorming session
Worst string of comments follow article on stupid device for people with over-sized wallets.
Twitter is great, but this device is basically pointless unless it has a web-browser, if only one that can be used for links through twitter. Even then, what is this? 2005? Just go out and buy… well, just about ANY phone really, and you’ll have this. These single function devices need to be stomped out, I’m tired of them unless they can be hacked to add more functionality. Hell, even the Kindle, a thin and basic digitized book with storage ability, can do more than this thing can do. I just don’t see the point or the value at all here…
Make a larger screen/touch screen version with slide out keyboard that can text message with full web browsing ability. Basically, a Rogue without the phone. or even a Droid without the phone. Sure there probably wouldn’t be a lifetime service option as that would be insanely expensive, but fuck, I’d rather have a monthly option than non at all. $30-$40 a month sounds good to me, that’s how much verizon charges for their messaging/internet/email/data only service.
Summarized: Peek is awesome, but only if and when they get with that program. It’s 2009 going on 2010 people, there is a lot of potential here if they would only make use of it.
“Make a larger screen/touch screen version with slide out keyboard that can text message with full web browsing ability”
I got a great idea, how about you just make it into a….mobile phone
Then you’d have to pay for a voice plan too. :p
But this is pretty much my point is that it’s pretty much pointless.
another time waster comes along…
Does it run on ONLY T-Mobile? Can it be unlocked to run on any other networks?
I don’t know what demographic they are trying to get. I assume most people that use Twitter are tech Savy enough to have a smartphone. If this was cheaper – like $30 I could see teens & students using this device, but at $200 you could get an iPhone, a droid, or an iPod touch. WTF??
Their email device made sense. This is stupid.
I think its clear the demographic they are going for — the late adopters. There’s a whole world of parents and non-tech folks and everyday Alaskans who have cell phones but who have not migrated to the smartphone yet, likely because they think the additional $50 hit on their monthly bill is too expensive.
Additionally, there’s a huge market for people who use prepaid voice-only phones, likely an audience with a pretty low intersection with the one here on t/c. But anyway, non-tech people are curious to see what twitter is about, etc. and this presents an opportunity to get in the game without dealing with a credit check or the hassle of a monthly fee. A one time $200 is much easier than people to swallow even than $30/month.
“Contract” is a bad word to many people, and not even an option for many more, and the huge prepaid phone market should predict that data services may follow a similar path.
The fact that we’re in a bloody recession helps this sort of thing more than it hurts, I think… Its risky and ambitious and its a big bet on twitter becoming what it thinks its going to become.
Hello from Peek
Why’d we make TwitterPeek?
Because Twitter is better when it’s mobile
But the experience is crappy via text and on feature phones. Bad UI. Not always-on. And you’ll have to pay for unlimited texting and/or data.
As a result – few people use it that way. 85% of tweets come from people sitting at computers. http://bit.ly/4RES5
Vast majority of people are not into paying $100/month for a smartphone
So we made a device that’s
- always-on,
- always-with-you, and has
- no monthly fees
Anybody can afford that!
@amolsarva
First, your numbers are wrong.
Less then 1/2 of all tweets are made via the web: http://www.twitterrati.com/2009/02/28/how-do-people-tweet/
Secondly, $200??? Seriously? That’s absurd.
Smartphones are starting at $100 any many people have unlimited text messaging plans. The concept wasn’t a bad idea – but the pricing will make sure that this product dies before it ever takes off.
Web + Desktop = at a PC, not mobile.
Honestly….Really I mean H-O-N-E-S-T-L-Y
while I don’t know that this is a large enough/sustainable market, smartphones are subsidized the $100 only gets you to the front door. Without a monthly data service $19.99 + you don’t really have anything.
The $199 gets you both the faucet and the pipe here.
I see this having some value as a white label type tool… instead of having multiple people logging into an account to post group tweets you could just lay one of these things on the conference table.
Or say you want a back channel for communication during a presentation, just throw a handful of these guys pre-programmed out into the crowd to be passed around. Push the stream out onto a projector behind you and Voila backchannel for instant feedback.
Where’s the data that shows the number of users who use Twitter via the computer but already own some phone capable of using Twitter? I would guess the majority of Twitter users fall into this category of being “connected” beyond the computer screen.
Your device is beyond late to the game.
I’ll be sure to put this right next to my dedicated GPS device… in the closet while I use my iPhone or Droid or whatever. Single purpose mobile devices are DEAD.
yeah nobody buys gps devices anymore after the google announcement. they will start taking them out of cars as well, as android will reach 100% market share. makes sense.
if you’re going to put your GPS in the closet, i’ll give you $10 for it?
I am on pre-paid Virgin mobile and I can get Twitter. Plus you can get a notebook computer for a few $ more and have more functionality. They are going after a tiny demo of people me thinks.
Everyone can get to Twitter somehow.
But if you are doing it on a cramped feature phone via a sometimes-on app and goofy UI — you are not doing it often
And if you are doing it on a netbook or laptop, you are only doing it when you happen to be at home or in wifi
Twitter is better when it’s always on and always with you
Unlike the smartphones or laptop aircards where you spend an extra $50/month — you spend ZERO per month!
The Twitter Peek is a decent idea with sub-par carry through.
FYI – most people would rather “tweet” on a cramped feature phone with a goofy UI rather than on a feature-less phone with basically no UI.
Look at the iPhone and it’s Twitter apps, now go from there. It’s great that you don’t have to pay anything per month, but what are you getting out of it? I mean really? Next to nothing for most Twitter users. I think you guys are assuming that twitter users do nothing but “I just ate a doughnut, time to take out the laundry, etc etc”. If that were true, then this device would be fine. But Twitter is far far more than that.
This device feels like it was made by a company that doesn’t know Twitter and yet the device is FOR Twitter. Instead of bringing something real to the table, you’re just hopping on the buzzword cash cow like so many other companies do.
In any case, this isn’t 2005 anymore. Most phones and wireless devices can use Twitter no problem what-so-ever. It’s nice that this can connect anywhere without WiFi, but to what end? You can make and reply to tweets about people’s lives but that’s about it.
This thing will be dead under water within a year’s time. Technology is advancing, but you are not, not with this device anyhow.
You are correct. You can get a pre-paid Virgin Mobile account with a QWERTY keyboard phone for $80 and email, web, SMS, for as little at $15 per month. Oh, and don’t forget it makes phone calls.
dude the virgin mobile plans are way more expensive than $15. i thought i’d check it out if they really are that cheap, but for phone + txt + data you’re paying twice what you say for the most limited plan which hardly gets you any data.
I think the big thing the t/c audience doesn’t see is that there are millions of people out there using prepaid phones or who don’t have smartphones but who might want to get into the game without shelling out big bucks on a monthly plan.
Where I sometimes work in Newark, most people are on Boost or another minimal-cost phone provider, and often its because they are outside of the same credit system that most of us here face. For people in these and other non-traditional situations, which there are a lot of, making a one time $200 payment is a lot easier than a recurring $50-$70 monthly, which you can’t even get sometimes if you don’t have credit.
There’s a whole world out there where people don’t have smartphones, and its a pretty big world.
What a great device. It would actually be very good for a company to buy a few of these…and pass them around the office so people could take turns tweeting on the company account.
YES – exactly
Dude, if you’re going to shill for the company, try and make it sound less like a script you’re reading.
Sorry – thought I introduced myself up top with “hello from Peek”. I’m from Peek and I helped make this thing!
You want random employees to send tweets for your company?
I’m not sure I would actually buy this, but the immense difference between this and a smartphone is that this is $200 once, forever. I’m probably in the target market for this – I tweet a lot, from my desktop. Occasionally I use my basic unsmart phone to text or pic tweet on the spot, but I don’t follow my twitter stream on the phone. I’m considering a smart phone, but I’m not sure I can justify doubling my monthly service charge at this point. However, a one-time $200 cost might be doable.
Again, I’m not sure I’d actually buy it, but at least I can see the point of it.
$0/month TwitterPeek vs. $100/month for 2 years smartphone
$0/month TwitterPeek vs…
$100/month for 2 years smartphone which includes:
Push Email
Calendar/GTD System
Calculator
MP3 Player
100,000 Apps (which could includes Tweetie 2)
Full Web Browser (which includes Twitter.com)
Ability to make Phone Calls to Friends
Paperweight Mode (oh wait, both have that)
Point being, is for $100 a month, you get a LOT more than just Twitter.
If you’re 13 years old, and your parents can’t afford to put you on their cell phone plan, and you don’t have a need to call anyone, or write emails to anyone on the go, and dislike listing to music on your schoolbus, then sure… save up $200 from your baby-sitting job and buy this device and Tweet at your heart’s desire.
Can you make calls with TwitterPeek? I don’t want to carry around a phone AND TwitterPeak!
I only had to add $15 to my basic cell phone plan in order to get the data coverage to support my Android phone. And the phone itself cost me $150.
I wouldn’t be surprised if 99% of all active Twitter users already had a cell phone plan, so the point is they would only be adding anywhere between $15-25 to what they already pay, not $100.
I still think that $99 is a little expensive for its twitter-only function.
While I might think Twitter is basically the biggest POS that has ever surfaced on the internet, I can understand why the desperate and bored might find some entertainment in it.
What I can’t understand is why the desperate or bored would pay for this thing. Nobody cares about monthly fees these days because their monthly fees usually come with something, like a PHONE – which this thing is not. Amol, you act like people are only using their phones for twitter. You can’t even compare the cost of this device to cellular service because this thing is nothing like a smart phone or an iphone.
To make claims about bulky or infuriating interfaces suggests you have no faith in the users of mobile devices. People will adapt to whatever they have at their disposal, even if the UI is not ideal. This is proven by the fact that twitter has become so popular with all these so called bad interfaces you speak of.
You should have saved about 50 million dollars and made an android app that was always connected to twitter… oh wait, those exist. Nevermind.
this is so lame..it really is..
People will totally buy this, though. Lame or not.
Also, “you can tweet and twat all you want?” Twat? Really? Helloooo slang for vagina?
I actually kind of like this, I think that $200 up front is fairly reasonable to use it without monthly fees forever.
But, you can only use ONE twitter account. I have four to update for work, and one personal. One account is just not going to do it for me.
I think this is case in point for how stupid Twitter is. This is a great device and a brilliant invention for those who can express themselves aimlessly into the abyss in 140 chars or less and feel the need to repeatedly do so.
two things.
1) Why would I want a second device. Shoot, I think Twitter is a fad anyway.
2) Memo to Matt Burns. a “Twat” is another name for a vagina. Damn, nerds!
I just don’t get the point of this device.
Dumbest thing I have ever seen. Anyone who buys into this hype is even dumber.
I love how in an age of convergence, things like this come out
It needs more functionality. Plain and simple. I’m not carrying around another device just to be able to tweet text based messages of 140 characters or less. It’s nice that it’s low cost, except for the device itself, but you get what you pay for, which is next to nothing.
It’s all about the all-in-one devices these days.
At least, at the very least, it’s nice to see products like these as they will start to get the ball rolling. Maybe Apple will wise up and start offering data plans on their iPods.
You either have a smart phone and thus no need for this device, or you don’t have a smart phone but you have a smart device. There is no room for this thing, unless… you make it into a smart device. If you did that, it would be easily the best. Think iPod Touch with cellular service. People would eat that up. But this as it is now, just does not bring enough to the table to be interesting.
First off, the iPhone is a great device and so will be the Droid. This device is definitely not in the same class, but doesn’t have to be. It’s a great deal for people who don’t spend a lot of time talking on the phone or playing with apps. For 99 bucks a year for device and plan, its a steal. I’m almost sold on it.
Thanx for the valuable information. I love orkut. But my friends are spending more time on twitter. So Iv got no choice but to move.
hahahahah, que barco furado isto…