HERZLIYA, Israel, SEPT 8
Israeli start-up firm Tawkon (pronounced talk-on) has developed a software to measure mobile phone handset radiation, to help users reduce exposure to emissions without giving up their phones.
Tawkon’s application is already available for Research in Motion’s (RIM’s) BlackBerry phones and will be launched for Google’s Android-based phones and Nokia’s Symbian later this year.
“It’s the first solution that can be downloaded to a phone,” Tawkon co-founder and CEO Gil Friedlander said. Till now, radiation emissions had to be measured with an external device.
The application monitors the phone user and if radiation levels reach a certain threshold called the ‘red zone’, an alert is sounded. The application also suggests how to minimise exposure, by simple measures like changing the phone’s position from horizontal to vertical.
On many phones, the antenna is on the bottom and covered by the user’s hand, causing the phone to emit more radiation. Connecting a ear piece or switching on the speakerphone reduces radiation exposure. Tawkon is connected to GPS. The software shows users where to move to reach a ‘green zone’ and reduce exposure.
Tawkon had initially targeted its software for the iPhone, but Apple rejected it in March for sale in its App store, Friedlander said.
“It will take a few years till research on the health effects of cell phone radiation is more conclusive,” Friedlander said. “To take precautionary measures is the right thing to do.”
