Are disposable mobiles the future?

What with leaving them in taxis, dropping them in the toilet and having them pinched in the street, we're pretty much there already, aren't we?

Disposable mobile phones the size of a deck of playing cards will soon hit corner shops in the US after a regulatory body gave developers the go-ahead to release them. Hop-On, a small US business, said its no-frills CDMA phone had passed regulations set by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The business will sell its phones for a flat rate of $40 which will include 60 minutes of talk time through an as yet unnamed US carrier. Once the talk time is used up the phones will be discarded. The handsets will be rolled out to retailers such as corner shops and petrol stations over the next three months. Hop-On's CEO said the company is looking to win regulatory approval for an even cheaper version of the phone for Europe that will run on GSM mobile standards and sell for $29. Dutch electronics firm Philips supplies chipsets for the phones, which are based on Qualcomm technology. An attached microphone and earpiece mechanism allows the user to communicate.