There's something appealing about the old fashioned phone receiver. Modern cell phones and headsets just don't have quite the same appeal, even if they are more technologically advanced and hassle free. Even though I use skype all the time to speak to my friends, I still can't get used to talking into a computer rather than holding a phone receiver. It feels so unnatural. It's kind of strange that I feel more comfortable holding some strange shaped object to my ear... But for the next generation, the phone receiver will probably be an unfamiliar object from the past. Something you see in a museum only...

But there are some designers out there trying to keep the traditional phone receiver in existence... and in fashion. For example, product designers Native Union have come up with the Pop Phone. It's a funky retro phone receiver that you can attach to your mobile phone.



Designed by renowned French designer David Turpin, it features a 3.5 mm plug that plugs into a mobile phone’s corresponding jack so you can make and receive calls the old fashioned way. The Pop Phone was also specially designed to be compatible with PCs and laptops so you can use it for Skype and Google Talk too.

I think they're cool but perhaps not $600 worth of cool (which is how much they cost). You can get a smart phone and a contract for less than that...