Profile: Roman Foeckl, Cososys: The most useless gadget, a small pink remote controlled helicopter

1. What gadget's in your pocket, at hand?

I always have an iPhone and a secure USB Flash Drive.

2. What was the first gadget you had? At what age?

In 1994 when I was 16 I got my very first computer. It was a notebook from Schneider with a monochrome display.

3. What was the latest tech product you bought?

Latest IT Product I bought was an Asus Netbook two weeks ago in Taipei at the Guang Hua electronics market. And I am waiting for my iPad.

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4. The most unpleasant gadget-related incident

My iPhone 3G broke when I had to leave for a busines trip to Japan. I had to take my old iPhone that didn’t work in Japan since it didn’t support the Japanese network. So I had no working phone.

5. How much would you be willing to pay for a cell phone?

With a two year contract I guess around 300 € maximum. More is just too much for a gadget you can easily misplace.

6. What features would your ideal phone have?

Work in harmony with my PC and Outlook. It should offer simple to use sync options for contacts, calendar etc. and - very important - a high level of data security in case the phone gets lost or stolen.

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7. What was the first cell phone you've used?

Motorola DynaTAC in 1992 if I remember correctly.

8. What mobile phone brand do you prefer?

Apple

9. The tech brand and manager you admire

Apple and Radu Georgescu.

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10. The most useless gadget you found on sale?

A small pink remote controlled helicopter.

11. If money were no object, what gadget would you buy?

Icon A5 (Light Sport Aircraft)

12. What type of websites do you access regularly? What is your favorite website?

I use Amazon or eBay all the time to buy things and sites like engadget to see the latest toys. For news I like NYtimes.com

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13. What was the latest acquisition made online?

Books on Amazon.de last weekend.

14. What is internet to you?

Freedom for everybody with access to it to achieve targets, learn things and reach people and goals that would otherwise be unreachable or unimaginable.

15. How would a day in your life without internet look like?

I guess my house would suddenly be full with books. We currently have sites such as Wikipedia and all information at our fingertips.

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16. What do you find attractive in a notebook: its performance or its mobility?

All notebooks are mobile, portable gadgets. Performance is better each month, but there are two aspects linked to performance and often overlooked that are essential to me: reliability and security.

17. Your favorite mean of communication

E-Mail.

18. Where will the innovation go in IT? What gadget would you create, that has not been done before?

I believe IT innovation in software and hardware is infinite. I assume that every 2 years a new generation of even easier to use and better connected gadgets appears. I just spoke today with an industrial designer about an idea we had for a very advanced secure storage device. Maybe it will come out in the next year or so as a real product.

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