HMD today announced a new kid-friendly smartphone with robust parental controls that go as far as blocking all nudity on the device. Dubbed the HMD Fuse, the device has software called "HarmBlock Plus" from cybersecurity company SafeToNet integrated at an operating system level.
The HarmBlock AI will kick in whenever it detects nudity on the screen, and the Fuse will effectively pop up a blocked message until the content is navigated away from. This applies operating system-wide, including in streaming apps like Netflix where a show or movie may have incidental nudity. Any camera app on the phone - whether it's the native camera app or Snapchat, for example - will automatically shut down if it detects nudity in the frame, before the user is able to take a photo. Any photos or videos with nudity saved on the phone will be automatically deleted.
In a teaser image ahead of the Fuse's launch, SafeToNet described it as "the first phone that stops children sexting", while HMD Australia described it as "pornography incompatible" in a press release.
In a media briefing ahead of the Fuse's announcement, HMD demonstrated the HarmBlock AI functionality. A spokesperson Googled pornography, and while the explicit images were visible for a few seconds, the HarmBlock AI then quickly obscured the entire screen.
The spokesperson said HarmBlock AI may even censor people in swimwear, and in a follow-up, another spokesperson confirmed it can, for example, block a photo of a work like the Statue of David.
SafeToNet says the HarmBlock AI was "ethically" trained on over 22 million images, including the world's only database of Child Sexual Assault Material.
At present, HarmBlock AI only focuses on nudity. However, a spokesperson said HarmBlock AI can be trained on "just about anything" and that violence is being tested. Blocking violent content is in the road map, and the spokesperson said they're confident the feature will launch early next year.
HarmBlock Plus has a plethora of other functionalities, with the pitch being the Fuse effectively starts as a dumb phone. Out of the box, the Fuse starts with only basic apps such as the phone, messages, a clock, and a calculator. Parents or guardians can then choose to grant access to other apps one by one. Parents also manually approve numbers that can text and message the device, and can track the location of the device.
In terms of specs, the HMD Fuse is underpowered for its $799 asking price. It features a 6.56-inch 720+ display with a 90Hz refresh rate, a Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 chipset, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, and a 5,000mAh battery. It has a 108MP camera with a 2MP depth lens on the back, and a 50MP selfie camera on the front. These are the kinds of specs you'd typically find on a $400 or so device.
HMD says the Fuse will get two years of operating system upgrades and three years of security updates. That is again low for an $799 asking price, with manufacturers like OPPO and Samsung now promising five or six years. The Pixel 9a, which is only slightly more expensive, gets seven years of software and security.
The HarmBlock Plus software is included for free for the first year, but is charged at $26.95 per month thereafter.
The HMD Fuse will be available from Harvey Norman and Officeworks from August 28.
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