3UK has launched a new phone into the UK market, the INQ¹, which it calls the “world’s most advanced social networking phone”.

Features to access Facebook are integrated into the heart of the phone, as well as other communication and music services.

The device has been developed by handset manufacturer INQ which is backed by Hutchison Whampoa, parent company of 3UK. It was desinged in collaboration with the 3 Group in an effort to overcome the limitations of traditional design and internet functionality on handsets.

There are several key features which make this a Social Networking phone.

	One-click access to Facebook and with live updates pushed direct to the front screen of the device. The INQ¹ also allows you to directly upload pictures to your Facebook profile from its 3.2 megapixel camera.
	Skype is also integrated into the phone, and the service offers free Skype-to-Skype calling.
	Windows Live Messenger is included, and the service offers unlimited free instant messenger capabilities.
	Last.fm the social music service that makes recommendations is also built in.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook said: “More than 15 million Facebook users currently access the site through their mobile devices. This number has doubled over the past six months, and we expect it to continue to grow as people become even more familiar with handsets like the INQ¹.”

“With more than a million minutes of Skype-to-Skype calls each day on 3 mobiles in the UK, we are delighted by the rapid growth in Skype usage on mobiles since the 3 Skypephone was introduced just over a year ago,” said Scott Durchslag, COO for Skype.

“The INQ¹ is a great step in the direction of opening up the communications benefits of the internet for mobile consumers,” said Hugh Griffiths, Director of Mobile Services for Microsoft UK. “It brings together some of the most popular internet communications services, including Windows Live Messenger, in a way that we believe will bring the world of the mobile and the world of the internet closer together than ever.”

Read the full 3UK press release.