Phone firms dialed in on niche markets

Adrenaline junkies and busy mothers among targets for gadget companies

BARCELONA - Phones rugged enough to survive falling from the sky or resistant to foaming hand soap - just some of the special features mobile phonemakers are offering to appeal to niche markets.

"The smartphone market is so enormous that even having a phone that is targeting a niche can still sell hundreds of thousands, if not millions of units over its life," said Ian Fogg, head of mobile research company IHS.