Nokia manufacturer Human Mobile Devices (HMD) has announced that the long-awaited Barbie Flip Phone is available in the UK from today, August 28th.
According to The Verge, US customers will be able to pre-order the phone starting September 23, with the first units shipping on October 1, while ChannelNews reports that Barbie fans in Australia will be able to pre-order it starting September 5.
The new feature phone has a 2.8-inch internal screen, a 0.3-megapixel camera with flash and a 1.77-inch clock display on the mirrored outer surface.
The special edition phone costs $129 / £99 / AU$199 and comes with a whole host of accessories to help you enjoy your Barbie life. These include a jewelry box, two interchangeable front covers, a lanyard with charms, a sticker sheet and a cleaning cloth. Almost everything is a fabulous shade of pink, of course.
The Barbie phone comes with other iconic features like glow-in-the-dark keys, a special beach-themed Malibu edition of Snake, and some secret software Easter eggs. It even says “Hi Barbie!” when it boots up. If that doesn’t make you feel like Barbie, we don’t know what else will.
However, if you want to share your Kenergy with friends, you should keep in mind that the focus of HMD’s feature phones is more on making calls and sending text messages than on social media.
The Barbie Flip Phone appears to be a special version of HMD’s Nokia 2660 Flip and as such offers limited access to social media and other apps – there is no Instagram, TikTok or X (formerly Twitter).
Additionally, those who want to enjoy the Barbie movie’s star-studded soundtrack will have to insert a microSD card or call their local radio station to get their fix of Dua Lipa or Charli XCX, as the only music options are an MP3 player or FM radio.
In recent years, HMD has marketed its feature phones as a stress-free alternative to always-connected smartphones. The Finnish company touts its phones as having long battery life and high durability, even calling the Barbie Phone a “real phone – without social media.”
For both longtime fans and those who were reminded of Barbie by last year’s blockbuster, a back-to-basics, Y2K-style rendition might be just the thing for Doctor Barbie.
UK shoppers looking for a modern flip phone without Barbie branding can currently find the 2660 Flip on offer for £49.99 (we can’t imagine passing up the Malibu Snake, though).
We wonder if HMD also has an Oppenheimer phone on the way to complement this collaboration and capitalize on last year’s huge “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. We certainly hope so.
If you’re interested in a digital detox, you can find out how one of our writers used a simple phone for a week.
