page_title: KX telephone boxes
section_title: KX+
hierarchical_section_title: KX telephone boxes / KX+
caption_attribution_description: English: A pair of KXplus kiosks, erected alongside an existing group of KX100s .
context_page_description: The KX series of telephone boxes in the United Kingdom was introduced by BT in 1985. Following the privatisation of BT in 1984, the company decided to create a newly designed and improved take on the British telephone box, which at this point consisted of only red telephone boxes which BT had recently acquired, the most common being the iconic K6 box. These red boxes were considered flawed in parts by BT for several reasons, including cost, lack of ventilation, accessibility and maintenance. BT announced the £160 million series of new boxes, the KX series designed by GKN, as well as announcing the eventual replacement of all existing telephone boxes. The main telephone box in the KX range is the KX100. Upon launch, there were five models in total. The boxes were produced at a rate of 5,000 a year, with the total count of all BT-owned kiosks reaching 137,000 by 1999, a number which has since decreased by more than seventy per cent.
  Whilst the updated functions of the KX series were praised, the designs were widely criticised and were seen as inferior to the red telephone boxes. The plan to replace the red boxes was also criticised.
context_section_description: In 1996, BT, having acknowledged the negative reaction to the original KX models, made an attempt to win the public over and revisited the KX100 and built upon its design to improve its appeal and add some character. The new updated version was named the KX+, also known as the KXplus, the KXPlus, the KX100 Plus or the KX100+. It is essentially an updated and taller version of the KX100. It differs from the KX100 in that the 'waistband' in its door and sides is lower, and the colour used in the midsection trim panel and remodelled door handle also now matches the newly introduced trim panel at the top. In a nod to earlier Post Office kiosks and following the negative feedback on the KX100's design, it features a domed, plastic roof (modelled on those of the K2 and K6). This said, the dome also brought other benefits to BT. The enhanced model was now taller and more visible than the boxes of BT's competitors, and it also offered valuable extra space for future developments, such as public wi-fi hotspot equipment. The earliest KX+ kiosks carried signage on the door and side lintels and the domed roof. The interior of the booths are fitted with a large illuminated display panel. They also contained a small seat and a shelf for writing or placing property. They featured a lower handle on the door to help customers with disabilities and a new closing mechanism to make the door more robust.
  The original version featured red trim panels and a red-domed roof. This colour was chosen for its high visibility, and also to recall the red colour of the iconic Post Office kiosks. In late 2003, BT introduced internet connectivity to select kiosks. These booths feature distinctive blue colour to distinguish them from kiosks with standard telephone equipment (see photo), and also carry the BT Openzone logo. These kiosks have been described as perhaps "the last throw of the dice to save the telephone box", with Red Phone Box noting "the idea is good but the practicality isn't, you are unable to print out your internet findings in these boxes as a printer and paper would create mess." The payphone within the KX+ inside takes cash, phonecards, credit cards and chargecards, with these payment options clearly written on the outside of the box rather than using red or green colour coding which was the practice of the KX series as well as elder red telephone boxes that had been updated accordingly.
  The first KX+ kiosks appeared in Autumn 1996, with the first being placed in London, and within its first year, over 5,000 KX+ kiosks had been installed. Its launch also saw the end of production for the KX100. Some KX100s went on to be retrofitted with KX+ style domes - in effect a cost-reduced model, known during its development as the K Excel but supplied as KX Minus. Both the KX+ and the KX Minus were designed by DCA and manufactured by GKN.
caption: A pair of KX+ kiosks, erected alongside an existing group of KX100s.
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