INQ Mobile has announced the launch of two 3G Social Mobiles in what it says is the next step in its mission to bring easy-to-use mobile Internet to the mass market.
The INQ Chat 3G is the companys first Qwerty-style phone, while the compact INQ Mini 3G provides an entry-level social mobile handset for the prepay market. INQ has also added Twitter to the suite of communications applications pre-loaded onto its handsets, which includes Facebook, Skype and Instant Messaging. Both phones will go on sale in Q4 this year.
After the initial log in, Twitter will be always on, on the two handsets. Consumers can send Tweets and retweet via the Internet, rather than using SMS. With the INQ Chat, a specially designed Twitter widget will deliver Twitter updates straight to the home screen.
INQ Mobile launched in 2008 with a mission to give consumers high-quality yet affordable mobile Internet, and enable carriers to stimulate data usage across their customer base. The company recently released data detailing device usage on UK and Hong Kong networks that shows usage patterns similar to those typically seen only on high-end Smartphones. An average of 65% of INQ users use Facebook regularly, 30% use their INQ frequently for email, and Windows Live Messenger activity is three to four times greater than on comparably-priced 3G phones. In February 2009, the INQ1 handset won the Handset of the Year awards at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. 
