Apple iPhone

The iPhone has proven quite popular in Japan, despite the fact that many phones in the Japanese market have most of the common features that the iPhone lacks. Because of this, a former NTT DoCoMo executive blames the industry for being too insular, designing phones only to carrier specifications.

Japan, which has long had 3G networks (still in relative infancy here in the US), has been in many ways years ahead in innovations compared to other markets. Most phones can scan QR barcodes, pay for items at vending machines, and use a complex system of "emoji" for messaging, all features that the iPhone currently lacks. But data access is built around the i-mode system, developed by NTT DoCoMo in 1999 as sort of an Internet "lite" that is speedy and easily transmitted over cell networks, and Japanese handsets are built to work with the i-mode network.

The iPhone, on the other hand, was built to access the "real Internet," using standard protocols and data formats. And since it wasn't limited to any carriers' specifications, Apple was free to design a device with an innovative interface and relatively open features. "I believe the iPhone is closer to the mobile phone of the future, compared with the latest Japanese mobile phones," Tsuyoshi Natsuno—former head of the i-mode division at DoCoMo—told Nikkei's TechOn. He compared Steve Jobs' vision in developing the iPhone to that of Sony's Ken Kutaragi, responsible for the Playstation and Playstation 2, and Nintendo's Satoshi Iwata, the man behind the Gameboy DS and the Wii.

The iPhone could really shake up the handset designs in Japan. At the same time, the iPhone's popularity there could result in requests for some of the features that are missing, which could lead to the features spreading to other parts of the world. iPhone OS 2.0 already includes an innovative character input method for Chinese and Japanese originally developed in Asia, so there's hope that new developments won't just work in one direction. I'm already having dreams of swiping my iPhone to hop on the CTA or pay my bar tab.

General 2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
Announced 2007, January
Status Available. Released 2007, June
Size Dimensions 115 x 61 x 11.6 mm
Weight 135 g
Display Type Touchscreen, 16M colors
Size 320 x 480 pixels, 3.5 inches
- Multi-touch input method
- Accelerometer sensor for auto-rotate
- Proximity sensor for auto turn-off
Ringtones Type Polyphonic, MP3
Customization Download
Vibration Yes
- 3.5 mm headset jack
Memory Phonebook Practically unlimited entries and fields, Photocall
Call records 100 received, dialed and missed calls
Card slot No
- 4/8/16 GB shared memory
Data GPRS Yes
HSCSD No
EDGE Yes
3G No
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Bluetooth Yes, v2.0, headset support only
Infrared port No
USB Yes, v2.0
Features OS Mac OS X v10.4.8
Messaging SMS, Email
Browser HTML (Safari)
Games Downloadable (firmware 2.0)
Colors Black
Camera 2 MP, 1600x1200 pixels
- Google Maps
- iPod audio/video player
- PIM including calendar, to-do list
- TV output (firmware 1.1.1)
- Photo browser/editor
- Voice memo
- Integrated handsfree
Battery Standard battery, Li-Ion
Stand-by Up to 250 h
Talk time Up to 8 h