The Barbie Phone is here, and it’s very pink, cute, and collectible. Teased by device maker HMD (which stands for Human Made Devices these days) during Mobile World Congress 2024, it’s based on a classic Nokia flip phone.
It is packed full of Barbie-ness, from the Barbie filters in the camera app to a missed call from Ken appearing on the screen when you start the phone up. If you’re a Barbie maniac, you’re going to want this phone.
It comes in a super presentation pack designed like a jewelry box, complete with a lift-out tray for storing the fun little extras included with the phone. You get a cute lanyard with charms like sunglasses and a roller boot to attach, Barbie-themed stickers, stick-on crystals for the specially designed replaceable rear panels, and an extra battery, too. Naturally, the battery pack is pink, just like the included USB-C cable.
The flip phone itself is also pink, but the front panel and screen double as a mirror, ready to ensure you look your best when using the Barbie filters included in the software. When you power up the phone, you’re greeted by a “Hi Barbie” when it starts up, and a menu system completely customized to match the color scheme (pink, in other words), along with custom icons plus a special Malibu version of the classic Snake game.
HMD promises plenty of Easter eggs throughout the software, so it’s worth exploring. For example, typing in #227243# on the keypad will make something magical happen.
On the subject of the software, in the U.K. and Europe, the Barbie phone uses HMD’s S30+ software, just like the reissued Nokia 3210, but in the U.S., it will have Kai OS installed. This has to do with region-specific requirements, and while it does mean more apps will be available, the phone does miss out on the special Barbie Easter eggs found on the S30+ versions. On the hardware side, the phone has a 2.8-inch main screen and a 1.77-inch outer screen, Bluetooth, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a VGA camera, 4G connectivity, and an FM radio.
HMD says the Barbie Phone is “heavy on the nostalgia,” and it also reminds us that the feature phone is part of its efforts to encourage us to use smartphones less. I’m not sure anyone will really want to use the Barbie Phone this way, but there’s no doubt it’s a fun collectible phone for fans.
Available from August 28 in the U.K. and Europe for 99 British pounds, it will also be released in the U.S. around October for $129.
