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Hans India
a day ago
- Business
- Hans India
HMD Fuse: AI-Powered Smartphone for Kids That Blocks Nude Content
Finnish phone-maker HMD Global, best known for reviving the Nokia brand, has entered a new niche in the smartphone market—devices made exclusively for children. The company has unveiled the HMD Fuse, a smartphone designed with built-in artificial intelligence that promises to block all nude or inappropriate content, making it the first of its kind globally. The Fuse is powered by an AI model called HarmBlock AI, developed by UK-based cybersecurity company SafeToNet. Unlike typical filtering apps that operate online, this AI runs locally on the phone itself, giving parents and children real-time protection without depending on cloud-based servers. According to HMD, the Fuse is capable of preventing children from filming, sharing, or even receiving any form of explicit content. It also works seamlessly during livestreams, ensuring that such material never reaches the child's screen or gets stored on the device. Along with its headline feature, the HMD Fuse packs a suite of expanded parental controls. Parents can monitor their child's phone use, including screen time, app activity, and internet access. Time limits can be set for individual applications, and location tracking is also built in, allowing parents to know where their children are at all times. Interestingly, the Fuse blocks social media apps and internet browsing by default. However, HMD has designed the phone to adapt as children grow older. Initially, parents can restrict the device to work as a simple phone with basic calling and messaging. Over time, additional features—such as web access or selective apps—can be unlocked under parental supervision. So why did HMD decide to create such a product? According to the company, the idea came from a global survey involving 37,000 parents and children. The study revealed a growing demand for smartphones that offer greater digital supervision, with parents voicing concerns over children's exposure to unsafe online content and the risks associated with social media. Unlike many mainstream smartphone makers, HMD has recently focused on meaningful features like repairability and long-lasting devices. With the Fuse, the company is doubling down on this philosophy by addressing one of the most pressing concerns of modern parenting—children's online safety. On the hardware front, the HMD Fuse features a 6.56-inch HD+ LCD display with a 90Hz refresh rate and 600 nits of brightness, ensuring a smooth and bright viewing experience. It runs on the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 processor with 5G connectivity, offering decent performance for day-to-day tasks. The phone comes in a single black color variant. For now, the device is available only in the UK, where it is being sold exclusively through Vodafone. Customers can purchase the phone with a monthly plan of £33 (around ₹3,878) along with an upfront cost of £30 (around ₹3,526). It remains unclear if HMD plans to bring the Fuse to India. The company's most recent India launch was the HMD Fusion, a modular smartphone introduced in November 2024 at a price of ₹17,999. With the Fuse, HMD aims to reassure parents that children can enjoy the benefits of connectivity without the risks of unfiltered internet access—making it a potential game-changer in the family-friendly smartphone segment.
India Today
a day ago
- Business
- India Today
Meet HMD Fuse, a new smartphone for kids that uses AI to block all nude content
HMD, the Finnish firm that used to make Nokia devices under license, has announced the Fuse smartphone. The company claims that this device is the world's first-ever smartphone that can directly block any nude is using an AI model called HarmBlock AI from SafeToNet, a British cybersecurity firm. The model will work locally on the handset. The Fuse will impose restrictions on the screen and camera. It will prevent the children from filming or sending nude content. Moreover, the phone will also not allow the user to see or save inappropriate images, even during Fuse also provides other parental controls on the device. Parents will get access to children's phone usage including screen time and app access. Parents will be able to set time limits for each app. The phone will also provide location tracking data. The HMD Fuse blocks social apps and internet by default. HMD claims that restrictions on the Fuse can be reduced as the child grows. Initially, parents can set-up a basic phone with minimal functionalities. With time, some features can be enabled including controlled web access and did HMD make the Fuse?HMD is unlike most mainstream smartphone companies. In recent years, the company has focused on repairability and long-term life of its devices. Now, the Finnish firm has found a new niche in the market - parents buying phones for young to the company, a global survey of 37,000 parents and children showed there was a need for more digital control over smartphones. Privacy concerns over personal data have increased in recent years. Parents have become more cautious over their children's access to the internet, particularly social media HMD Fuse is positioned as an ideal smartphone for parents who are looking for a restricted device for Fuse has a 6.56-inch HD+ LCD display with 90Hz refresh rate and 600nits of peak brightness. It is powered by the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 and has 5G connectivity. The smartphone comes in a single black HMD Fuse is currently only available in the UK. Users can purchase the device only via a Vodafone plan of 33 (roughly Rs 3,878) a month with a 30 (roughly Rs 3,526) upfront cost. It is unclear if HMD will launch the phone in company's last smartphone to launch in India was the HMD Fusion in November 2024. It is a device with a modular design, priced at Rs 17,999.- Ends
GSM Arena
a day ago
- GSM Arena
HMD Fuse debuts with Harmblock AI to protect kids from explicit content
The HMD Fuse is a newly launched child-focused smartphone that promises system-wide protection against explicit content. It features HarmBlock+, powered by SafeToNet's HarmBlock AI, which is said to prevent nude content from being captured on the camera or accessed on the device. HarmBlock+ is claimed to be integrated into the phone's OS and works across all apps. The handset offers granular parental controls to help parents manage every aspect of the phone. Parents can block or approve apps, get real-time tracking, location history, whitelist contacts, and more. HMD Global's new phone is otherwise basd on the HMD Fusion. It sports a 6.56-inch HD+ display that offers a refresh rate of 90Hz and 600 nits peak brightness. The phone is powered by the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 SoC and is available with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.2 storage. It also supports storage expansion via a microSD card. As for cameras, the HMD Fuse gets a 108MP primary rear camera with auto focus and a 2MP depth sensor. For selfies and video calls, the device has a 50MP camera housed in a punch-hole cutout on the display. Other specifications of the phone include a 5,000 mAh battery with 33W fast charging support, a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, an IP54 rating, Bluetooth 5.1, Wi-Fi, NFC, GPS, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The phone runs Android 15 out of the box and will receive three years of security updates. It also comes with accessory connector pins at the back and supports the Blue Casual Outfit and Blue Flashy Outfit cases, both of which are included in the box. HMD Fusion The Fuse is available for purchase exclusively from Vodafone UK online and retail stores at a monthly price of £33 ($44). The phone will also be sold in Australia and other countries soon. Source
