THE next generation of mobile phones, able to send recorded or live video, will soon hit the streets of Swindon.

Third generation mobile phones will finally arrive at the end of this month after a series of delays and a huge wave of publicity.

Around £22 billion was paid by the mobile phone providers to the government to buy the licenses to use the 3G technologies.

The first provider of these phones is 3, formerly Hutchinson 3G. But they will be joined next year by 3G phones from Orange, O2, T-Mobile and Vodafone.

Millions have been spent on setting up basic network coverage in the major cities and along the motorway networks of the UK.

Customers began ordering their phones from early-March. Nationally, more than 10,000 have signed up for the new network.

Coverage of the Swindon area has been of great importance to the company. As a result, much of the town is covered by the new service including Cricklade and Wootton Bassett.

The company is working in co-operation with mobile operator O2. If 3G phone users are in an area with no 3 coverage, then voice and text services will still work even though video services will temporarily be unavailable.

Mike Dobson, community affairs manager for 3 in the south west of England said: "Imagine, you're working late and you want to see your children before they can go to sleep. Well you can now and they can see you."

"The technology is fantastic. The camera contained within the handset also means that that you can show someone else live motion pictures of what you can see."

"So if you were looking for a new car, and saw something you liked the look of, you could call your partner and show him or her what you've found and get a second opinion instantly."

The new phones will be a far cry from the phones that many of us carry.

Each phone is fitted with a camera for videophone calls allowing you to see who you're calling. They are also capable of video messaging, similar to text messaging or picture messaging. Users can record a video message and then send it as an alternative to a videophone call.

Each 3G mobile knows its exact position, which allows users to find local services including pubs, restaurants and shops. These can be displayed on a digital map display.

Football fans can review their favourite highlights and goals from recent matches. There will also be regular television news bulletins, plus cartoons from companies such as Aardman productions, who made Chicken Run. Comedy clips and celebrity interviews can also be downloaded and stored.

A series of arcade games has also been designed for use on the network's phones.

The speed of the connection is comparable to a broadband internet connection making the downloading of video clips extremely fast.

Mr Dobson added: "This really is the technology of the future. It is like something from a sci-fi movie.

"The phones are no more complicated than what you find on the high street at the moment. I showed my phone to my parents and they found it was easy to use.

"They are slightly larger than a typical mobile, but this is only so the screens are large enough to view the information on."

The new phone technology means the construction of new masts or base stations. There are currently around 35,000 base stations across the UK.

By the end of this year with the introduction of 3G, there will be around 40,000 base stations in the UK and that could increase to 48,000 by 2007.

www.three.co.uk