Not text, but tunes this year

The days of sending text messages like TOY (Thinking of you), 4EAE (For ever and ever) are waning as young couples discover that mobile technology can go much further. From trying to find the perfect ringtone downloads to sending romantic caller tunes, group graphics, photo SMSes, nostalgic video clips and pink wallpaper — youngsters are taking cell phone technology to a new level this Valentine's Day.

Many Bangaloreans are planning to use their mobile phones to the fullest this year. Some plan to browse through music lists for the most romantic songs, others are composing the sweetest texts they can think of, while a few are on the hunt for photographs that can convey their deepest feelings. And as an unusual gesture, some couples also plan to switch off their cellphones for the day, so as to give their partners some undivided attention.

Says actor singer Sunil Raoh, "Valentine's Day this year will centre around chatting and texting on the phone. As for me, I plan to take a picture of a bunch of beautiful flowers and a box of chocolates and send it to the special people in my life. Of course, I will follow it up with real flowers and chocolates to make the gesture more complete."

Actor and TV host Avinash Bharadwaj plans to dedicate a song to his Valentine. "A song would be more meaningful than an SMS. I find that sending an SMS is too staid now and because you can send group messages, it does not have much meaning. But a song is so personal, and these days, I can also specify the time I want the songs to be sent. And though the charges of sending a song are computed per second, I think it's worth every paisa."

MBA student Kenneth George will stick to sending SMSes this year. "I'll send messages to all my friends but I'll make sure I personalise the text. I think sending cards were popular only during our school days and I still see many school kids sending cards. Now that we're in college, we'd much rather use the phone for everything."

For copy writer Prabodh Ballal, it's going to be a day when he's going to get creative. "I usually get a lot of forwards for every festival on my phone which really irritates me," he says. "So this time, I'm going to make a template in the morning of what I want to convey and send it to everyone. It will be a special message because I'm a writer and a poet. I'll make sure the message is wild and wacky. I think that sending music or ringtones is a sweet gesture but it can be annoying when you are at work. So, it's important to send such messages at the right time."

According to Jacob Perez, vice president, sales and marketing of a mobile service provider, there's a lot that can be done over the cell phone this year. "This Valentine's day, you can gift music via a mobile phone and add a personalised prerecorded message to it.

For instance, if you choose a love song, you can add a tag from the many choices that are offered to you and it becomes more than a mere song for the person who receives it. You could also gift a caller tune or record a song from a radio and send it to someone. Special wallpapers can also be sent via phone. There are so many choices open to youngsters this year."