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TOS Communicator Cellphone - rare prototype

RapidNadion

RapidNadion

Commander
Red Shirt
Hey guys:

I usually don't post much in the Art forum, but I recently gained possession of this rare communicator and thought some of you here would like to see it. Fully-functioning cellphone, built by Nokia as a potential wide release for a Star Trek '09 tie-in. Obviously that never happened, but they built 14 prototypes ... and now I have one.

Here's a quick photo of the outer casing:

CommColored.jpg



And here's my YouTube guided tour of the comm/phone:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUeQJXznCtY


This is also being discussed at The Trek Prop Zone, but I thought people here might appreciate it too. Enjoy!
 
I have ALWAYS wanted to bash my old cell phones and shove it into a communicator prop... This would be so neat to have.

Hell, my blackberry already beeps like the TOS hail... And chirps like when it's being opened...

sigh
 
I've seen a couple of videos of people cramming a cellphone into some of the replica toys. Not a very elegant solution, but it did work.
 
The Axeman said:
I've seen a couple of videos of people cramming a cellphone into some of the replica toys. Not a very elegant solution, but it did work.
Click to expand...

I did something like that, I built a wooden holder shaped like the communicator body and attached a brass metal housing to the upper section of the flip phone. Looked close enough when closed. My current cellphone has the wallpaper set to the interior of a communicator and I figured out how to make it chirp when I open it.
 
I'd settle for a ringtone of the TOS communicator sound. Why TF doesn't somebody sell that?


Marian
 
Gary2 said:
YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS^^^^

I guess then that Beltran maintained a sense of "integrity" by being honest with his displeasure instead of just kicking back, getting the checks, and gaining greater visibility.

He must take acting very seriously if he's not content to get all the money and glory Trek bestowed and instead fought — vocally — for a better role.


I just can't see myself doing that. Those guys worked *really* long hours, sometimes from 4am until after midnight. With a diminished role, he wouldn't have to put as much grueling time in yet still get paid and enjoy the prestige.

So is the explanation simply that he considers acting more important than things such as money and prestige? If so, I suppose I'd have to respect him for that. I simply can't relate.


What's worse (or just as bad), is that I never detected his underutilization or evidently increasingly flat performances as the series went on. He completely fooled me. I wish I were better at recognizing things like that.



But one more thing: why go after fans and disparage Trekkies? Wasn't his issue with the producers? What'd fans do to him to earn his disrespect? I find it all sad, for I really did like his character.^^^^

I guess then that Beltran maintained a sense of "integrity" by being honest with his displeasure instead of just kicking back, getting the checks, and gaining greater visibility.

He must take acting very seriously if he's not content to get all the money and glory Trek bestowed and instead fought — vocally — for a better role.


I just can't see myself doing that. Those guys worked *really* long hours, sometimes from 4am until after midnight. With a diminished role, he wouldn't have to put as much grueling time in yet still get paid and enjoy the prestige.

So is the explanation simply that he considers acting more important than things such as money and prestige? If so, I suppose I'd have to respect him for that. I simply can't relate.


What's worse (or just as bad), is that I never detected his underutilization or evidently increasingly flat performances as the series went on. He completely fooled me. I wish I were better at recognizing things like that.



But one more thing: why go after fans and disparage Trekkies? Wasn't his issue with the producers? What'd fans do to him to earn his disrespect? I find it all sad, for I really did like his character.
Click to expand...
... wha... I... um... :confused: ... :shifty: ... :borg:


As for the topic, ever seen the Motorola Krave? It looks like the TOS communicator if the grill was see-through plastic instead. That's part of why I got it... :p
That's pretty cool though.
 
For a moment, I was really riveted to this. It looked like it had tremendously high potential to be VERY cool. But alas, it fell short for me. Sure it has a nice brass antenna grid and makes the Star Trek communicator chirp sound when the lid is raised, but there's little else that is similar. If I were Nokia, I'd have mated the brass grid with clear plexiglass that would allow you to see through to the actual internal face of the phone. And 3 slightly raised "jewel" buttons would have actual functionality.

So... to me, it's not worth shelling out a few hundred $$ for a half-baked prototype. :razz:
 
Gary7 said:
For a moment, I was really riveted to this. It looked like it had tremendously high potential to be VERY cool. But alas, it fell short for me. Sure it has a nice brass antenna grid and makes the Star Trek communicator chirp sound when the lid is raised, but there's little else that is similar. If I were Nokia, I'd have mated the brass grid with clear plexiglass that would allow you to see through to the actual internal face of the phone. And 3 slightly raised "jewel" buttons would have actual functionality.

So... to me, it's not worth shelling out a few hundred $$ for a half-baked prototype. :razz:
Click to expand...
Well, it is a prototype. It's not gonna be the best 100% complete perfect version, but it's a good start. I can't say I ever really thought ANY phone company would make a communicator phone. I do admit though, I think it'd work better if they simply took a touchscreen phone and added a brass antenna grid to the front. They could probably leave the three lights/buttons just below the touch screen. That'd be like, perfect. :p
 
MarianLH said:
I'd settle for a ringtone of the TOS communicator sound. Why TF doesn't somebody sell that?


Marian
Click to expand...

I see Shawnster has already beaten me to the punch on this one, but yeah ... I've been using a TOS chirp on my phone since I had the a500 back in 2003! Where ya been? :)


Gep Malakai said:
Cool! Do the folks over at The RPF know about this?
Click to expand...

Not yet - I'm a member of Trek Prop Zone, but not RPF. I thought it would look kind of sleazy for me to post this with a post-count of 1 ... like I was trying to boost my YouTube hit count or something. I dunno - opinions? Should I just go do it anyway?


Tom Riley said:
As for the topic, ever seen the Motorola Krave? It looks like the TOS communicator if the grill was see-through plastic instead. That's part of why I got it... :p
That's pretty cool though.
Click to expand...

Yeah definitely - Motorola really got as close as anyone's ever gotten to a mass-produced TOS comm with the Krave. I was heavily tempted to pick one up in '08, but by then I'd already developed a dependence on other software platforms. Really cool hardware though.

Gary7 said:
For a moment, I was really riveted to this. It looked like it had tremendously high potential to be VERY cool. But alas, it fell short for me. Sure it has a nice brass antenna grid and makes the Star Trek communicator chirp sound when the lid is raised, but there's little else that is similar. If I were Nokia, I'd have mated the brass grid with clear plexiglass that would allow you to see through to the actual internal face of the phone. And 3 slightly raised "jewel" buttons would have actual functionality.

So... to me, it's not worth shelling out a few hundred $$ for a half-baked prototype. :razz:
Click to expand...

Fortunately, no one asked you to. This isn't for sale.


erifah said:
The ST Communicator app on my iPhone is just as cool.
Click to expand...

Man, that's no lie. The communicator apps for iOS and Android are beyond awesome.

Thanks for the interest, everyone! Happy to answer other questions.
 
RapidNadion said:
Gep Malakai said:
Cool! Do the folks over at The RPF know about this?
Click to expand...

Not yet - I'm a member of Trek Prop Zone, but not RPF. I thought it would look kind of sleazy for me to post this with a post-count of 1 ... like I was trying to boost my YouTube hit count or something. I dunno - opinions? Should I just go do it anyway?
Click to expand...

I don't think registration is open on the RPF at the moment, so if you aren't already a member it's a moot point until the next open registration period.
 
UssGlenn said:
I don't think registration is open on the RPF at the moment, so if you aren't already a member it's a moot point until the next open registration period.
Click to expand...

Actually I just registered! I guess they're open.

I just went for it. I figured I've been a (lightly-posting) member here for so long, hopefully some people at least will recognize me and vouch for my non-spammy-ness.

Thanks for the suggestion, Gep Malakai!
 
^Yeah, they seem to have switched to an open-registration policy some months back, after the board management changed. (For the first time, I've been seeing spam there.)

RN, I figure all you have to say is that you post over at TrekPropZone and someone from the RPF told you they might be interested in your phone. :techman:
 
Post made. Thanks Gep!

Glad some people are enjoying this thing ... prop/rarity collecting can sometimes be a lonely hobby.
 
I noticed that this morning and was floored! I read Engadget about ten times a day, so this was quite a surprise. It's become a chore to remove some of the more derogatory comments on the vid, but three years on YouTube and twenty years of being a Trek fan have served me well in bearing up against that sort of thing. Thanks for your support in that regard!
 
I read Endgadget and the RPF, but I'm glad I caught your post here first. Thank you fior making your presentation and sharing it. What a neat item to have. I'm glad you decided to show the rest of us something cool we may have never known about.
 
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