SoftBank Announces iPhone for Japan

[austinfd]

It seems to immensely increase the possibility of iPhone in South Korea?

Anyone getting the secret wind of it?

This will happen only if:

1. ALL of the ancient Korean websites written with ActiveX are re-coded.

2. The Korean iPhone ships with a version of Internet Explorer.

The reality here is that a huge percentage of sites are only 100% compatible with IE. Even Firefox gets set home with his tain between his legs at some sites.

For the same reasons, Vista has been extremely slow to catch on here.

I see a fair amount to Touches on the streets of Seoul, but a LG has just released a new phone with a iPhone like browsing experience that is sure to cater to the Korean netizens needs. If the iPhone won't show someone's cyworld page, it will never be popular.

 

[austinfd]

and then there's the issue of TV. I dont know if the above mentioned phone includes broadcast TV, but you can get a phone with FREE digital TV broadcast for around $200.


And while I'm at it.... how long before the US cell phone market catches up with the rest of the world?

free incoming calls/texts?
free TV (like in Korea, and I guess Japan)

 

[hawaiiHEMI]

Gonna hold off and see! Should be moving back to Japan some time within the next few month. Wonder if I should purchase the 3G here, unlock it. Get the free phone and use that sim card?????

 

[Eraserhead]

3G is basically possible because of japan

japan is a huge market for iphone

Europe needs 3G too .

 

[stephenli]

Not necessarily, the softbank's xseries has no OneSeeg or electronic cash..

However, xseries is not very famous, I've seen very few people using those mobile phones.. Probably because weren't made for Japanese market and softbank tried to sell them here in some way, not very successfully..
This makes me think.. is Japanese market ready for the iPhone? Mobile phone models and functions are pretty the same all around the world, but Japanese market has a lot of different stuff.. we'll see..

take a look at the monthly rank for japan mobile sale you may see that those without both 1-seg and Felica seldom rank in on top ten..
For those who consider X-series it may become their 2nd phone..not for the main use..

I dont think Apple would built custom model with Felica & 1-seg included for Japan market....but if yes it should be sweet.

and then there's the issue of TV. I dont know if the above mentioned phone includes broadcast TV, but you can get a phone with FREE digital TV broadcast for around $200.

And while I'm at it.... how long before the US cell phone market catches up with the rest of the world?

free incoming calls/texts?
free TV (like in Korea, and I guess Japan)

Yes. under Japan's system incoming call is free. However receive mail (mail. yes. e-mail, not sms) need to charge packet.
Digital boardcast (1-seg) in Japan also free.
but a mobile phone cost a lot more than $200....very expensive indeed.

 

[umijin]

Softbank? Eh?

The mobile phone service providers in Japan won't leave much room to negotiate, and probably wanted Apple to jump through all sorts of hoops. Softbank is the weakest of the big three mobile services by far. My guess is that if this is true, they were the ones to bend the most because they have to. Unfortunately, Softbank's network is the weakest in terms of signal availability.

Docomo is too stodgy a company to bend to Apple's demands - err - requirements. I've always thought Au was the best provider, in terms of overall service and contract price. Softbank will have problems managing the demand if they have the exclusive contract. And my guess is that they will have an exclusive contract, as phones are locked to the provider here in Japan.

 

[austinfd]

Digital boardcast (1-seg) in Japan also free.
but a mobile phone cost a lot more than $200....very expensive indeed.

With all the bells and whistles yes.... I paid a bit over 200,000 won ($200) for my phone in Korea. It is pretty basic, but I do get free TV. The LG internet phone I'm sure costs 3 times that.

 

[BongoBanger]

i dont think Japanese feel interesting on iPhone , Their cell phone usually have 854 x 480 resolution, 3~5Mega Pixel Auto-Focus Camera
Digital TV, digital wallet, etc .......

I kind of agree. The Japanese market is probably the hardest market to enter because they're miles ahead of everyone else in terms of mobile technology. The new iPhone will need to be really special to crack it.

 

[umijin]

Softbank has the best mobile phones here in Japan (imo), probably the only one with some smartphone and a blackberry-clone (x-series).. And it's growing a lot, actually won top spot for annual net mobile subscriber growth in 2007..

No they don't have the best phones - not overall. It has grown lots because they offered very cheap switching and setup fees, but people tell me they pay more in monthly costs with SoftBank. New subscribers aren't necessarily staying with Softbank as a result.

Softbank has changed its name several times in the 7 years I've lived here and nearly went bankrupt. This is a risky move by Apple, but a win-win move by Softbank. Let's hope they don't screw it up.

 

[umijin]

I think its really cool that iPhone is coming to Japan. As a Docomo user, I would strongly consider switching carriers to SoftBank. However, I think there are several key items that the 3G iPhone will have to have when marketing in Japan:

1. Strong built-in camera (at least 3 megapixels is a must, considering many use camera phones as their main camera)

2. Digital TV tuner - the "One Seg" tuner is becoming almost a standard feature on all cell phones

3. Electronic cash/Edy/Felica/Mobile Suica - many people are using their mobile phones in Japan to board trains and purchase items at convenience stores and kiosks.

I think the latter two are domestic features that probably won't be included in the next iPhone, but I think its going to be a huge hit!!

Nobody would watch the one-seg TV crap in Japan if they had better things to watch on their phones. An iPhone would give users more options for video content, though not necessarily live feeds, like one-seg.

Some people may use their phones for felica/suica - but it's not even close to the majority. So, I think the iPhone has a good chance in Japan.

The problem will be if SoftBank can support the bandwidth in its coverage area. I also worry if they or any Japan provider will gouge iPhone customers more for download/connection fees than the usual packet costs. And for gaijin like me, I will want to use my iPhone with English menus, etc. Let's hope we don't get screwed on that, like we do with most of the keitai models on the market here.

 

[JapanScott]

Why ?

2. Digital TV tuner - the "One Seg" tuner is becoming almost a standard feature on all cell phones

To me, TV makes about as much sense as radio. If I have 8, 16, 32GB of my OWN music and video why OH why would I want to listen to crap radio or crap Japanese TV.... UMAI ! NOT !!! And 'One Seg' from what I've read, has limited reception.

 

[shigzeo]

i am glad it is not docomo. i really hate them. they are expensive but then so is japan for mobiles. worse certainly than canada, austrailia etc. i wonder how they are going to float the bloody fees. iphone for 50 000 en per months?

 

[shigzeo]

I kind of agree. The Japanese market is probably the hardest market to enter because they're miles ahead of everyone else in terms of mobile technology. The new iPhone will need to be really special to crack it.

miles ahead and hampered by japanese designed software. go to a japanese webpage: most are impossible to navigate even on a computer. use a mobile phone and it really needs to have a manual with it. iphone will do very well in japan. only the bloody data rates are way too much. i

 

[Diode]

This about 80% confirms the iphone will use a quad-band UMTS modem that supports the freq 800/850/1900/2100 - which means no t-mobile 3G support (800 and 2100 are used in Japan and 1700/2100 are used by t-mobile).

While Five and Six band phones (800/850/900/1700/1900/2100) that would support t-mobile are possible - none has been announced.

Keep in mind the GSM/EDGE part will remain compatible.

 

[JapanScott]

オレはうれしいだよ！！！

I am quite happy to hear this announcement, but also a bit worried about the service plans. I hope that you can run the thing on their "White" plan and maybe do some ala carte with the data.

 

[iAlan]

I just asked 15 of my co-workers (all Japanese, I am living in Tokyo) and got the following responses:

- 12 knew about the iPhone
- 9 said they are very interested with 6 of the 9 saying they would buy an iPhone 'at some point within the next 12 months'
- 11 had TV capabilities on their current phones but only 2 watch TV more than 2-3 times a month while traveling to work
- 13 had "electronic cash" capabilities on their phones and only 1 has actually ever used this function
- None of the 15 specifically bought the phone they have because of the above 2 functions - the design, coverage and plan were the key reasons
- all 15 were not happy with their 'mobile internet experiences' with 10 saying this function, if good to use, would be an influence in buying behavior in the future

Sure my sample is limited but clearly awareness of the iPhone is high, TV and 'electronic cash' do not seem to be a conscious choice when buying a phone, however 'mobile internet experience' could be a factor in the future.

I guess I will start my own little countdown clock once a data is announced - and I hope it is in the coming weeks and SoftBank just couldn't announce a date so as not to steal Steve-sama's thunder next week!

 

[shedder]

miles ahead and hampered by japanese designed software. go to a japanese webpage: most are impossible to navigate even on a computer. use a mobile phone and it really needs to have a manual with it. iphone will do very well in japan. only the bloody data rates are way too much. i

so true, and that's the reason because I kinda like softbank's mobile phones (even if I'm using AU), some of them are designed for english market and have a different approach on features like user interface, media player and so on.. (but yes, they're probably more expensive than au or docomo)

Japanese phones are technologically advanced, no doubt, they have with big display and a lot of functions, but most of the time useless for me, 'cause they're designed for japanese market.. For example my mobile phone (a sony ericsson) has a "pc browser", that's just an old version of opera mobile.. however, many japanese people don't use their browser for pc website but for mobile websites (imode & c)... or to listen some mp3 I have to use a weird software for windows (no mac version) to transfer the songs..
Long story short, mobile phones in japan are used differently from europe or america (have you ever seen a smartphone or a blackberry here?)..

The big problem is data rates.. so expensive and plain stupid sometimes, there's a 1000 yen subscription for data but you don't really know how much you're going to spend.. at least in Italy, using 3, I had an option with 50mb/day at 9 euro/month.. it's clear and easy..

 

[JapanScott]

miles ahead and hampered by japanese designed software. go to a japanese webpage: most are impossible to navigate even on a computer. use a mobile phone and it really needs to have a manual with it. iphone will do very well in japan. only the bloody data rates are way too much. i

I agree with you on this. I can't tell ya how often my wife is browsing a Japanese website and has things stall on her. (It doesn't help any that she insists on using IE !)

 

[Shasterball]

WAIT! There's going to be a 3G iPhone?

Isn't the fact that Apple confirmed this enough? Do we have to keep posting stories that also "confirm it". How about we post testimonials of people using the 3G network after they buy it to confirm that the new version has 3G?

"I know Apple said it wold have 3G and the box says 3G, but I didn't believe it until someone used it and posted it on here!"

 

[janakin2k5]

functions in English though?

I've been making the long wait for the iPhone in Japan like many here, but my time in Japan is winding down so maybe it will arrive too late for me anyway.

The biggest concern for ex-pats that can't read and write Japanese, is if the functions will be available in English? My Sony-Ericsson phone now has English menus, but all the best functions and services are only in Japanese, and therefore unusable since I cannot read Japanese (do not say learn to read Japanese, I don't have 2+ years worth of time to learn how to do it).

I hope also that iPhones bought in Japan can be easily used back in the U.S. by replacing the sim card and don't have some other proprietary only in Japan chip inside them.

 

[Tres]

The biggest concern for ex-pats that can't read and write Japanese, is if the functions will be available in English? My Sony-Ericsson phone now has English menus, but all the best functions and services are only in Japanese, and therefore unusable since I cannot read Japanese (do not say learn to read Japanese, I don't have 2+ years worth of time to learn how to do it).

You won't have to do this because the iPhone and iPod touch both have English menu options, but how hard is it to sit down with an electronic dictionary and work out the menus? It's what I did when I got my phone.

 

[zentraedi]

*dances*

Great, been waiting for this for a while. Yeah, my girlfriend and her whole family is on Softbank's White Plan, so I really didn't have choice.

Anyway, in the past 6 months, I've talked to lots of Japanese people, especially, teenagers/early 20s and they seem to have quite a bit of enthusiasm. They all say they'd have to stay with whatever their family has, but most said they get it if their family's carrier offered it.

 

[JapanScott]

It runs on OS X !

I've been making the long wait for the iPhone in Japan like many here, but my time in Japan is winding down so maybe it will arrive too late for me anyway.

The biggest concern for ex-pats that can't read and write Japanese, is if the functions will be available in English? My Sony-Ericsson phone now has English menus, but all the best functions and services are only in Japanese, and therefore unusable since I cannot read Japanese (do not say learn to read Japanese, I don't have 2+ years worth of time to learn how to do it).

I hope also that iPhones bought in Japan can be easily used back in the U.S. by replacing the sim card and don't have some other proprietary only in Japan chip inside them.

1. It is a device designed by a western company. 2. Its OS was originally in English. And I'm sure we could all make this list longer and longer. There are NO doubts that the Japanese iPhone will be multi-lingual.

I've been using a Nokia 6630 (SoftBank 702NK) for a couple of years. I've (basically) enjoyed using it due to the fact that as I stated above... western designed and runs an OS that is originally English.

Don't worry... Be Happy. The iPhone is coming !

 

[mangis]

I just can't wait to:

1. Quit NTT Docomo
2. Buy an iphone
3. Throw my piece of sh*t sony-ericsson phone in the toilet where it belongs

I will absolutely switch and pay whatever price I have to.

 

[Mackan]

does this mean that iphone in usa might have more carriers than the previous iphone

No, Apple will continue with their buisness model and stay exclusive with one carrier wherever they can. Sad, but true.