Free local TV soon to be available on cell phones
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31 Comments
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0
Beelzebub
Ubiquitous communications = the total dumbing down of the human race.
0
LFRAgain
It's fun to watch the U.S. cell phone industry try to play catch-up with technology that's been in wide use in Japan for at least two years. The U.S. still has a way to go, it would appear.
0
goddog
Waste of time. Never use that on my Japanese phone either.
0
pawatan
Ho-hum. (watches one-seg)
I can't say I use my one-seg all the time, but I use it enough to consider it essential to the phone.
0
taj
Local TV? (This being JapanToday, I assumed this was local to Japan.
0
Typhoon_Tom
Free? It's already free at least on Docomo's One-Seg.
0
stirfry
even the best tv show in recorded history would probably suck if you had to watch it on a 3-inch screen
0
Darren White
@LFRAgain
Ahem, no, mate, it's the other way around ! Japan hasn't had the cutting-edge on tech for years, and are WAY behind in mobile computing. All of the companies mentioned here are US, apart from Samsung & LG, which are South Korean.
0
pawatan
In Japan, people use bleeding edge technology in their phones. Sharp, Panasonic - Japanese companies. The reason this article uses US companies is it's a US-based AP article. Japanese mobile phones are always ahead of US phones technologically (though the gap has closed a bit recently)
Japan's had FREE one-seg for years, there is no equivalent free TV in the US. Mobile phone as payment - does that even exist yet in the US? It's been here for years.
0
LFRAgain
Darren White,
Umm, mate, first of all, when it comes to tech arguments like this, you have to admit that it's all relative to what kind of tech we're talking about. While the US leads in aerospace and certain computer and biological science techs, Japan whoops massive amounts of world-class ass when it comes to robotics, automotive tech, and consumer electronics.
Second, you did read the title of the article, yes? This isn't an argument about mobile computing technology. It's an article about cell phones that have TV-viewing capability. Japanese cell phone manufacturers have been offering one-seg TV as a standard option on virtually all cell phones sold in Japan for the past three years. Meanwhile, the above article entire point is that this technology is only recently entering the US market. That alone should be enough to quell your disbelief that the US could actually lag in some area, but I've got a whole boatload for you:
Japanese cell phones makers have their US rivals beat soundly when it comes to digital cameras on their phones (10~12 megapixel resolution now standard), real world marketplace compatibility and mobile banking (Docomo ID, AU Lismo, and Softbank Edy "electronic wallet" tech standard since 2003), full Internet browsing capability long before the IPhone entered the world, and GPS tech that was standard fare on most phones for more than five years. Infrared data transfer tech that, while invented by American tech companies in the 90s, was in put into wide use on most Japanese cell phones by 2002, predating Bluetooth implementation in cell phones by several years. And the "Aps" that gets we Americans all giggly and misty-eyed over were part of the Japanese cell phone lexicon as "Applis" long before Android was even a sparkle in Google's eye.
To top it all off, "Dropped Calls" is a phenomenon so rare with Japanese phone networks that there's been no need to create an corresponding Japanese euphemism for it English counterpart, much less include "call quality" as an comparable option you would have to look into before choosing a phone. All cell phones in Japan have good call quality (caveat: I'm not speaking to coverage issues).
And I'm not even talking about "Smart Phone" level entries. These are basic entry-level phones. I've got a entry-level phone from 2001 sitting in a box collecting dust right now that is still possess better features and quality than entry-level phones offered as new in the US market right now.
My position still stands: The US cell phone has got nothing on its Japanese counterparts, and unless you can provide some examples to the contrary, I'm just going to take your "Japan hasn't had the cutting-edge on tech for years" with a large grain of salt.
0
guest
So true, Iphone is the most wanted phone in Japan. Japanese haven't got a clue anymore, its sad...
0
guest
if Japans phones are so good why cant they sell them to the rest of the world?
0
guest
Dropped calles in a country the size of a single US state? Are you kidding? Overcrowded to the point where most of the population lives right next door. hahah funny.
0
XXXXX
I have the feature on my phone but now I barely use it. Such waste.
now that doesn't sound healthy
0
pawatan
No, it's not. Look around town and you'll see that. Softbank has them for FREE right now to get them to move. Doesn't sound like it's the most wanted phone to me.
0
LFRAgain
Quest,
Maybe you should have prefaced your posts with the disclaimer, "Hi, I'm Quest. And for the next three posts, I'm going to talk out of my arse."
Not so. In fact, when the iPhone first hit the Japanese market and Softbank tried with all of its marketing might to pitch it to consumers, popular response was a resounding, "Meh. My (DoCoMo/Au/Softbank) phone already does all that -- and for half the price." The only thing the iPhone had going for it was its brilliant touch-screen interface. Everything else had been standard features on Japanese phones for years. Oh, yeah, and Japanese phones will allow the cutting and pasting of data. Oddly, the iPhone didn't. But hey, don't take my word for it about the low interest in the iPhone here:
http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/02/26/iphone-not-selling-well-in-japan-now-available-for-free/
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/02/why-the-iphone/
Certainly, there are indications that the iPhone is finally starting to make headway in the Japanese market, but that data is based on the iPhone's performance in the so-called "Smart Phone" category, a term invented in the US for mobiles that possess Internet/scheduling/BlueTooth capabilities, all feature that Japanese phones already possesed years earlier without having to call the phones "smart." When we’re talking about the Japanese market, virtually all phones are already "smart," so there’s really only one direction to go for am iPhone that has to create its own private category to gauge its success, and that’s up.
But I wouldn't count on this limited success lasting very long. The only real distinction between iPhone and other brands is the larger interface touch screen, which again, is genius. But everything else is already standard fare on Japanese phones, so what's the lure? As Japanese manufacturers are wont to do, namely take a interesting idea and make it better –- much better –- companies like NEC, Panasonic, Sharp, and Hitachi are already rolling out phones that possess all of the interface usability of the iPhone, PLUS all of the other usability features that Japanese come to expect from their phones, PLUS features non-Japanese makers had never even considered before.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/6537395/Five-Japanese-mobile-phones-well-never-see-in-the-West.html
Apparently you aren't even aware of the world marketplace. Japanese cell phone companies do sell in the rest of the world. Sony-Erikson, NEC, Sharp, Hitachi -- these are all well recognized handset brands. In just the US market alone, there are some 50 manufacturers attempting to sell their phones. Sony-Erikson stands at 5th place for the number of models offered (121). Apple, BTW, sits waaaaaay down the list with 20 models. Also, there are issues with network compatibility and the sharing of patent technology with other countries. Japan is notoriously protective of its network tech, and isn’t particularly eager to share it. But then again, lingering issues with network compatibility/ sharing and how to slice the profit pie is precisely why the US cell phone market has been so far behind Japan’s. No one in the US seems willing to play nice with one another, so new and emerging techs suffer as a result.
If preventing dropped calls within state lines is such a simple matter, then why do dropped calls still seem to occur with regular frequency within state lines in the US?
Clearly, you've never set foot in Japan, or the one time you did was spent sequestered at the Outback Steakhouse in Roppongi, Tokyo, but I've got a newsflash for you. Japan is not Tokyo. Tokyo is but a small part of Japan. There vast swaths of rural nothingness throughout Japan, and countless cities, towns, and villages that are incredibly spacious. Not that I expect you to know this, since you seem perfectly comfortable presenting rumor, hearsay, and material culled from your nether regions as fact. But hey, learning is a lifelong process.
0
gaijintraveller
I have a Sony Ericsson phone. Its got "cutting edge" Japanese technology. Let me explain what that is.
It has an alarm that you cannot hear when you are asleep or in a noisy place.
It has a music player that won't play mp3 files.
It has email capability to receive an attached pdf file, but you cannot read it or forward it as an attachment to a computer that can.
It has text messaging. As it is an Au phone, it is only possible to send text messages to other Au phones. It is not standard SMS. When I am out of Japan, I have no trouble sending text messages to other countries, that is except Japan, of course. I have an Au because Docomo and Softbank connections are notoriously bad in the area I live in.
It works in other countries. I asked where I put the SIM card which I purchase in another country. "Eh, SIM card? Nan desu ka?" It may work in other countries, but only if the call is routed via Japan. In other countries I just buy a SIM card, which probably costs less than one call on my Japanese phone, and put it in my old Nokia.
It has 1 seg TV. I think that works, but it is not worth having.
It has predictive typing, but I wish its predictions were as good as my Nokia's, which is a really old model.
That is Japanese cutting edge phone technology.
0
guest
Softbank number one in new subscribers since iphone debut.
Japans phones dont sell well. They could make 1000 different models, but no one wants or needs them. If they made good phones they would be number 1 like Nokia is.
and the classic-
Nothingness and no one living there. 90% of Japans 120 million people live on top of each other in semi squalid, overcrowded conditions.
0
guest
I take that back, 90% of Japan lives inside of their phones.
0
guest
ABI Research, a market intelligence company, said only two Japanese companies were in the top 10 in 2008, with Finland's Nokia Corp. having the world's top cell phone share at 38.6 percent. Kyocera Corp. is ranked seventh with a 1.4 percent share and Sharp is 10th with 1 percent.
0
LFRAgain
gaijintraveller,
1) Your alarm issues: If you can sleep somewhere noisy in the first place, then it seems a bit unrealistic to expect that any alarm short of a bullhorn is going to wake you. Alarms aren’t intended to be used in public areas like trains, planes, or subway cars, no matter what country you’re in. This isn’t a tech issue. It’s a user issue regarding proper cell phone etiquette, or perhaps even lack of proper sleep habits.
2) Can't play MP3 files? I've used DoCoMo for 9 years and my current 3-year-old model plays MP3s beautifully. What's wrong with your particular phone? Does you manual indicate that it’s MP3 capable? If not, then it’s unrealistic of you expect that "ring tones" and MIDI files are same as an MP3. They're not. This isn't a tech issue. That’s a issue with the particular model you chose to purchase. And if it is supposed to play MP3s, then take it back to the shop and have it fixed or replaced -- assuming it's still under warranty.
3) You say you can only send text messages between Au phones exclusively? I regularly send and receive e-mails with Au users with nary a hitch. Your problem isn’t a tech one, but a calling plan/contract one. Visit your local Au shop and ask to have the restrictions lifted off of your text messaging service.
4) You didn’t know where to insert your SIM card? If you don't know where to insert the SIM card on your own phone, then that may explain the trouble you’re having with some of your phone's other features.
5) Who specifically said to you, “Eh, SIM card? Nan desu ka?" I’m assuming it’s a direct quote, or else why post it here at all? Did a salesperson at a cell phone shop say this? I've never met a sales rep in Japan who was unaware of what a SIM card is, particularly since it’s a standard feature all Japanese cell phones these days, and even in most higher-end phones manufactured outside of Japan. Your issue here isn't with Japanese tech, but rather with an unknowledgeable salesperson.
6) Let me see if I understand you correctly: Your phone has 1-seg TV, but you “think” it works? What does this mean? Do you mean you suspect it might work, but haven’t yet had the opportunity to check? Or do you mean that when you’re watching a TV show on your cell phone, you’re wondering to yourself if this is how 1-seg TV is supposed to work? If you have not yet used your phone's 1-seg capabilities, then I'm a bit dubious of your conviction in stating that it's not worth having.
As I asked Darren White above, did you bother to read the title of the above article?
"Free local TV soon to be available on cell phones"
Apparently, someone out there seems to think being able to watch TV for free on one’s cell phone is a desirable feature – at least desirable enough to warrant a 590-word article and spark this discussion. So again, this isn’t a tech issue, but a personal preference one.
7) Your issue with the predictive typing feature on your phone intrigues me. Are you trying to suggest that a Finnish company, Nokia, has a better software algorithm for predicting Japanese-language words or phrases than actual Japanese companies do? If so, could it possibly be that the issue isn’t with the software, but rather your Japanese proficiency? I’m just saying . . .
Unless, of course, you’re talking about English-language predictive typing, which would be surprising since it isn’t offered on most Japanese-market cell phones, this being, well, Japan and all. If I were in the US, I certainly wouldn’t expect US mobiles to be particularly good at Japanese, Russian, or Kenyan-language predictive typing, but I would anticipate the English-language prediction to be stellar. So it stands to reason that while Japanese phones might not be particularly adept at English language prediction, they might be far more clever at Japanese language prediction - which they are.
No, that is you being dissatisfied with non-tech related issues surrounding one particular phone you bought. There's a difference between the two.
0
LFRAgain
quest,
First off, one word: Punctuation.
I’m sorry, quest. I was assuming you’d be supportings your silly statement with some evidence. But apparently, facts are in short supply for you today. Care to back up any of your claims? I can actually whip out a couple of studies right now that pointedly indicate Japanese consumers not only don't like the iPhone, but also have no intention of buying one. Can you provide a similar or comparable survey regarding non-Japanese attitudes towards Japanese phones? I’ll be patient while you dig those up, thanks.
Umm, it's 127 million people, BTW, and only 22% live in cities with populations of 1 million or more. But hey! Don't let facts get in your way, sparky! :-D You just keep plugging away with claims like “squalid” living conditions, never mind that Japan possesses one of the highest standards of living among G-8 and G-20 nations, including life in Central Tokyo. If you had ever visited here, you’d know that. Just admit it: You’ve never set foot in Japan and are still talking out of your arse about things you know nothing of.
Okay, I have to apologize again. I wasn’t aware I was debating with a 12-year-old. I’ll adjust my attitude accordingly.
And YET . . . Japanese cell phones are still packed with infinitely more convenient features than their non-Japanese counterparts. Fancy that. Oh! I meant, uhh, I know you are, but what am I? Sorry. Forgot to keep things age-appropriate.
0
guest
At less then 3% global market share for all Japanese phones the numbers speak for themselves. Its an incredibly simple concept.
0
Peeping_Tom
quest
Japanese small share of the mobile phone global market is mostly due to:
Huge profits on the home front meant they didn't really have to make an effort to expand overseas; that is, until now!
The complex functionality of J-handsets, unsuitable for overseas custumers; different perceptions of what a mobile is supposed to do, etc.
Hope the following link is helpful:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/mobile-phones/6537395/Five-Japanese-mobile-phones-well-never-see-in-the-West.html
0
guest
More excuses and spin.
Case closed.
Click
0
lostrune2
At least ESPN has its networks on some phones for years.
Japanese phones don't sell outside Japan because of compatibility issues.
A jail-broken iPhone is like a PC - you can put whatever you want on it, especially apps that Apple wouldn't approve of (like the "homewrecker" app - appear as any phone # and any voice you like - call the wife using the husband's phone # and use a cute female voice, try it, it's fun).
0
Peeping_Tom
And exactly who's spinning and what?
Did you care to read the article on the link I posted FIY?
It was published in the Telegraph, our very own well reputable British national paper. It would appear you don't want to accept the fact that Japan's mobile tech,i.e phones are far ahead of its rivals. Fine, it's your prerogative, but that's not what those in the industry think.
And I couldn't care less about phones anyway, just stating a well known fact.
0
5SpeedRacer5
Probably nobody cares, but do I have to pay NHK fees to use this?
Oh. Never mind. I am just curious really. I will not be buying a phone to watch TV, that is for sure, but I just wonder how NHK gets its cut. Just shout out if you know....
0
LFRAgain
5SpeedRacer5,
I've never heard that you do, but then realistically, I doubt there's any way they could come after anyone for the fees, even if they wanted to.
I also sometimes watch TV on my laptop via the Monster TV adapter, and I've yet to hear anything about being beholden to the NHK cops yet.
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