Twitter hits new high with Everest 'tweet'

A renowned British climber has taken Twitter to a new high, firing off the first "tweet" from the peak of world's tallest mountain.

Kenton Cool used the terse text message to plug a slick new Galaxy S II smartphone made by Samsung, the South Korean consumer electronics giant that backed his ninth ascent to the top of Mount Everest.

"Everest summit no 9! 1st tweet from the top of the world thanks to a weak 3G signal & the awesome Samsung Galaxy S2 handset!" the mountaineer said in a tweet sent Thursday.

Nepal telecom carrier Ncell installed a mobile signal receiver at the base of Everest late last year, but it had been unclear whether its range extended to the peak.

A blog post at Cool's website dream-guides.com proclaimed the Samsung Everest climb a success and promised more details as Cool made his way back down.

(c) 2011 AFP