Nokia has just announced a phone that can send “airtexts” — messages that are displayed in the air by a set of LEDs. As their press release notes:

By waving the Nokia 3220 from side to side, the LED lights of the Nokia Xpress-on(TM) Fun Shell light up to “write” a message that appears to float in mid-air. Exchanging messages across a crowded room or at open-air concerts will never be the same.

Blogger Joi Ito speculated on the possibility of this being used for some hilariously aggressive heckling at conferences. Imagine some stuffed shirt giving a speech — and looking up to see the words “YOU SUCK” floating in the middle of the audience. Heh. And speakers thought the backchannel was bad.

(Thanks to Boing Boing for this one!)