You can't help but notice when someone whips out his cellphone and the colours perfectly match his outfit: Totti Helin looks chic. Pink-shirted, with spiky hair and mobile in hand - yes, it's pink, the 34-year-old Finnish designer of Nokia's L'amour Collection II talks to The Nation about the "birth" of his baby - the latest "fashion phone".

What are the major differences between L'amour I and II?

We've updated the colours, introducing the pink, and there are technological improvements, like the 2.0 mega pixel camera and the new graphics for Oriental, middle-eastern and North African cultures.

How do the design and technology fit together?

Design makes the technology easier to use - with the phone in your hand you should feel comfortable. Designers don't create the phone by saying "this is the design, please execute it". The artistic side and the technological side go hand in hand - it's a team effort.

How were you involved in this collection?

My background is on the design side so I focus on the look - the shape and form. I have colour and material specialists working with me to figure out how to combine glass and leather and this and that together.

So as a designer, did you have to learn about the technology to design the cellphone?

Absolutely! After years of working at Nokia, I know what goes on inside the phone as well as outside.

Since Nokia are so big on the fashion scene - they even sponsor Thailand's Elle Fashion Week - have you had an itch to design clothing?

Not really. I'm living in Beijing at the moment where there are very good tailors. If I wanted, I could just take my sketches to them and they'd do everything for me - I think anyone can be a fashion designer now.

What did you design before phones?

I did some interior design.

I even door handles for the houses - bronze casting and all that.

In a way, I considered that close to sculpting which I found very interesting.

The difference between making a product by hand one or two at a time, and producing millions in the case of the mobiles... I find that very fascinating.

What're the influences that dictate phone design?

At Nokia we're people-watchers - watching how they dress, how they carry their accessories and themselves.

We keep our eyes open for emerging trends and we pick them up and develop them.

But there're so many sources of inspiration.

Some fashions look to the past for inspiration. Will your designs be going retro?

[Laughs] Then I guess we'll make a very big phone again.

Do you categorise cellphone users?

Fashion-oriented people like nicely designed phones.

Then there are the technology-oriented people who like the latest gadgets and a camera and all that.

There are the business types who like using the e-mail applications and, of course, those who just want the basics to be able to communicate with their loved ones - send messages without wanting to show off or spend too much money.

I think that's how I would coarsely put it.

So which group are you in?

I'm definitely in the fashion category. I'm not saying that because I work for Nokia. I'm just interested in fashion - it's what drives me.

How many phones do you carry at the moment? Do you have a whole rack and change it daily?

No. Actually I've been using this [L'amour] one since June. I carry a lot of things like music, messages and pictures with me, so it's practical to use one at a time.

How do you feel when you see people using your design?

I feel very proud. It's one of the key things that drives me in doing this job. I enjoy it.

Kreangsak Suwanpantakul

The Nation