Important Announcement: New Community Site - www.mobileinjapan.com

Dear Windows Mobile in Japan Community

For a number of years I've not not been satisfied with the level of news reporting, community interaction and information sharing and aethetics offered by Windows Mobile in Japan. On top of that, the mobile phone and smartphone market is getting more and more dynamic in terms of devices and platforms.

At last ... a sexy solution I'm proud to announce. Thanks to the magic of Ning and some late nights by myself and Paul Papadimitriou we have : 

Mobile in Japan  -   www.mobileinjapan.com

... and especially for Windows Mobile fans ...

www.mobileinjapan.com/group/windowsmobileinjapan

We are sensitive to creating a community that allows you controlled access to useful information and we hope we have achieved that. We'd love to hear your feedback and ideas so don't hesitate to drop us a note.

At some point I will redirect the Windows Mobile in Japan domain and will make a decision on the Yahoo! Group. Future news will be posted to the new site.

Thanks for all your support and contributions over the years. Enjoy the new site.

Andrew & Paul

DoCoMo's WInter 2009 Smartphone Line Up

DoCoMo announced 22 new handsets and changed their naming system. I only looked at one of the 4 new categories - the Pro series. Here's what we can expect in terms of smart phones: HTC Touch Pro, HTC Touch Diamond, Blackberry Bold, Nokia E71 and another Sharp device with QWERTY keyboard, but which is closer to standard Japanese phones.

Japanese Product Page

English Press Release

Softbank Announce HTC Touch Diamond, Touch Diamond Pro and Samsung Omnia

Softbank have announced 3 Windows Mobile devices in their fall lineup. The HTC Diamond already available on Emobile, the HTC Touch Diamond Pro, a high end device also due on AU next yea and on DoCoMo and the Samsung Omnia.

Details (Ja) here: http://mb.softbank.jp/mb/special/08winter

Sharp & Willcom Announce Real Time Image Chat Service - Tegaki Chat

Willcom and Sharp have announced an innovative but simple real time chat service.

Users with the software installed can edit the same picture and instantly see each others changes. I can imagine this service would be useful for example drawing and sharing a map, but it could also be fun too.

The catch is that both users have to have the software installed and be subscribed to the service (at $3/month). The software is only available for the W-ZERO 03 and Advanced W-ZERO3(es) which is really going to restrict usage. I can't really seeing the service going anywhere with this limited niche so hopefully they'll open it up to other Windows Mobile users.

Tegaki Chat Web Site (Ja but the with animations)

Willcom Information Page (Ja)

Willcom Press Release (Ja)

 

FOMA F1100 Out in the streets of Ikebukuro

On October 4th, 2008, I spotted a FOMA F1100 selling for 7,800yen in Ikebukuro. The F1100 has a fingerprint recognition, Wifi (IEEE802.11a/b/g), security scan and more. This seems to be a positive mark from NTT Docomo, who recently changed their logo. I did not get to touch the device, but I will post more when I can get a hold of the F1100.

Flat Rate Price Update for Softbank Users in Japan

In case anyone missed it, the iPhone also had a positive impact for Windows Mobile (and Nokia) smart phone users on Softbank in Japan. The flat rate plans put in place especially for the iPhone also apply to users of these devices. The diagram explains things reasonably well, but full details are here.

au's first Windows Mobile Phone made public.

More Details (in Japanese)Au (opened up) its first business Windows Mobile 6.1 keitai on September 11th. It's made from HTC, and called E30HT. It is rumored to be put on public market on 2009, but I'm sure there will be BETA testers out already this year.

OS Microsoft® Windows Mobile® 6.1 Professional Edition
CPU Qualcomm MSM7201A 528MHz(au version unknown)

via WinCE.ne.jp (Windows Keitai .com)
Display 2.8inchVGA TFT（Touchscreen）
Communication CDMA 1x EV-DO Rev.A (CDMA 1X WIN)

Japanese Smartphone Market News & Trends

Image by laurence.thurion via Flickr This article [Japanese] by Japanese daily Fuji Sankei gives some good insights into the Japanese smartphone market.

• It was predicted Apple/Softbank would have sold 1 million iPhones here. Although the stats are not released, it is predicted that they have only sold around 200,000 and sales have drastically slowed so they may only sell 350,000 by the end of the year. The latest talk out on the streets seems to be the the iPhone is being dubbed a relative failure here.
  
• AU/KDDI plan to release smartphones by the end of the year, Japan Communications will enter the market this month and HTC will also release more devices.
• Samsung is aiming to release their Omnia Windows Mobile device here.
  
• NTT DoCoMo's strategy is to focus on business users.
• Both KDDI's UQ Communications and Willcom are considering smartphones for their next generation networks (WiMax and Willcom Core) that will be launched next year boasting speeds of 20 megabits/second

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• HTC Neon hits the FCC, next stop NTT DoCoMo?
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Get 3000yen when you buy WILLCOM 3.

There is an offer at microsoft that you can get a 3,000 yen gift certificate if you buy the new WILLCOM3 from WILLCOM. The WILLCOM3 runs Windows Mobile 6.1, and has a nice new stylish design. Skydrive is also accessible from the WILLCOM3, so you can share files in business meetings.

the link is: http://www.microsoft.com/japan/windowsmobile/special/windowslive0908/default.mspx (in Japanese)

CMOS CCD fingerprint/ face authentication on Windows Mobile Phones

CMOS / CCD fingerprint authentication will be interesting feature on Windows Mobile. Probably this can be applied on other regular phones as well. The best way to do is by developing a standard for Windows Mobile so the Windows Mobile phones can be locked remotely when the face / fingerprint is not recognized. For example, in such a case when you accidentally drop your phone, an unwanted user will be unable to use the phone.

Windows Mobile Suica, Edy, WebMoney

It will be interesting to see a Windows Mobile with integrated Suica, PASMO, Edy, WebMoney I guess you can make tons of money with that. If the OEM companies or third party develops additional chip for making this possible, the Windows Mobile share will increase dramatically.

Bluetooth Digital Photo Frame and Smartphone.

If you have the time and money to try a sort of experiment, it might be interesting to use a Bluetooth digital photo frame and your Windows Mobile smartphone to view photos. This concept is applicable to new ways of lifestyle in the digital world we face today.

CF Company is offering this solution right now for 18,480yen.

Vote for Memory Size

On Wince.ne.jp, there is a page where you can vote how much memory you use on the new WILLCOM3. Although WILLCOM3 officially does not support SDHC, it seems like many people are using 8GB microSD cards on the device. In the near future, when microSDs lower their prices, some users will use 16GB microSD cards more... I guess it will be used for video/mp3 playback?

Link

ACCESS Launches Mobile Widget Community Site

Interested to try out this new functionality and see what it adds to the Windows Mobile browsing and application experience. Only compatible with WM Professional (i.e. touch screen) devices at the moment.

Full press release below and here.

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ACCESS Launches Mobile Widget Community Site

• Widget Player for Windows Mobile® Devices Available for Trial on New Beta Site

Tokyo, Japan, July 1, 2008 — ACCESS CO., LTD., a global provider of advanced software technologies to the mobile and beyond-PC markets, today announced the launch of a beta version of its NetFront™ Browser Widgets community site, where users can download and try free widgets for mobile devices. Widgets provided on this site can be used after users download and install a free beta version of NetFront Browser Widgets Player, which initially is compatible with Windows Mobile versions 5.0 and 6.0. NetFront Browser Widgets is based on ACCESS' acclaimed NetFront™ Browser engine, one of the most widely-used browsers on the market today, with over 590 million deployments worldwide.

Widgets are mini applications displayed in small GUI windows on the screen of a handset or consumer electronic device. Widgets are appealing to users because they can be accessed without having to open the handset's browser, automatically acquiring and displaying the latest information from the Web. The NetFront Browser Widgets community site provides a variety of widget applications such as maps, weather forecasts and games.

"ACCESS will begin providing tools for developers to create their own widgets in the near future," said Toru Arakawa, CEO, president and co-founder of ACCESS. "By providing a platform for interchange among users and developers, ACCESS will facilitate the development of innovative content based on NetFront Browser Widgets, as well as contribute to the ubiquity of widget culture."

The NetFront Browser Widgets community site is available in English and Japanese at the following URL: http://www.access.co.jp/nfbwc/.

A widget player for smartphones using Windows Mobile 5.0 Smartphone Edition and Windows Mobile 6.0 Standard Edition is planned for the future.

About NetFront Browser Widgets

NetFront Browser Widgets is a solution that is based on the NetFront Browser engine and enables widgets for mobile handsets and consumer electronics to be created on the basis of open Web technology. It provides widget players, development tools, and widget content in one package for carriers and device manufacturers, helping businesses to quickly implement a diverse range of widget services.

About ACCESS

ACCESS CO., LTD. is a global company providing leading technology, software products and platforms for Web browsing, mobile phones, wireless handhelds, and other networked devices. ACCESS' product portfolio, including its NetFront™ Browser, Garnet™ OS (formerly Palm OS®) and ACCESS Linux Platform™, provides customers with solutions that enable faster time to market, flexibility and customizability. The company, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, operates 24 subsidiaries and affiliates within Asia, Europe and the United States. ACCESS is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mother's Index under the number 4813. For more information about ACCESS, please visit http://www.access-company.com/.

Emobile ads at the Yamanote Line are quite interesting, with the monkey holding a EMONSTER S11HT.