Zumba phone: best voice recognition ever?

IA Technologies has developed the Zumba phone, which it claims is the world's first fully accurate voice recognition handset.

Using an earpiece stuck to the back of a credit card-sized handset, the phone can then be operated almost entirely by your voice.

This means text messages are read out to you, so all you need to do is press a button to respond (well, you do need to use your hands a bit).

Internet connection

The front of the handset has a circular dial with alphabetic keys (presumably for inputting contacts) and removing the earpiece activates a connection to the internet, allowing you access to all your information.

This means the contacts aren't stored on the handset, they're placed on a '100 per cent secure' website, according to IA Technologies.

This means that if you ever lose the phone, it would be inoperable by somebody that found it, making it far safer than your standard Nokia or Samsung.

However, it might not be the phone for everyone... given the penchant with consumers these days for advanced functionality - GPS, mobile internet and photography for instance - this handset could end up being solely for the business-minded who like using their hands to work while chatting.

Still, it's likely to be out this year, so if you're tired of texting or fed up of constantly lifting your phone, then this could be the new gadget to ask Santa for.