TOKYO —

A total of 6,443,000 used cell phone handsets were collected in Japan in fiscal 2007 that ended in March, down 2.7% from the previous year, industry data showed Tuesday. The number of collected handsets has been declining since peaking at 13,615,000 in fiscal 2000, according to the data compiled by the Telecommunications Carriers Association and the Communications and Information Network Association of Japan.

Used handsets are collected by mobile phone carriers. Parts of such handsets are reused for various purposes. The associations believe that the decrease in the number of collected handsets came as users hold onto their older phones for use as cameras and game machines.

They aim to raise the collection rate through such measures as making it easier to transfer data from one phone to another.

JCN

6 Comments

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  rajakumar at 12:04 PM JST - 25th June

  6.5 million used phones, why not send them to poor countries like cambodia/elsewhere.

  I heard they were sending stolen bicycles/used japan bicycles, to help cambodia/elsewhere.

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  sageb1 at 04:15 PM JST - 25th June

  because they make great cameras and game machines.

  my old iMike 560 which used the iDen network, now just works as a clock and database. it has all my most called phonebook in it.

  my new cellphone is a BlackBerry Pearl 8130. Most definitely when I upgrade to a new cellphone in 2.5 years it will become a camera and addressbook for both names, addresses & phone numbers and names and email addresses of my friends.

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  sageb1 at 04:16 PM JST - 25th June

  and email addresses of my friends with phone numbers and addresses.

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  wilbur at 06:51 PM JST - 25th June

  the cambodians have plenty of mobile phones, trust me

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  VoXman at 04:08 AM JST - 26th June

  6.5 million used phones, why not send them to poor countries like cambodia/elsewhere.

  I heard they were sending stolen bicycles/used japan bicycles, to help cambodia/elsewhere.

  That would be because Japan Cells do not work in other cournties and are hard to crack unlike many other cellphones. You can use a US Cell in any country in Asia except Japan.

• 

  TeruSensei at 04:54 PM JST - 1st July

  I get sentimental about my phones.

  It's like a timeline of my life, a collection of phones from the very first one I ever had.

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