iPhone in Japan? Is it ever coming?

[sTeVe aUsTiN]

I heard the talks with DoCoMo and SoftBank stalled. I figure AU would balk at the same points that those 2 companies did since the Japanese market is so different from other countries. The phones here seriously rule already, but is the iPhone ever coming?

[JonB]

who cares!

Don't get me wrong I love Apple products but I have no intention of buying a phone with the current prices or contracts.

Sorry - but I am a bit of a luddite when it comes to mobile phones

[aehlke]

It's coming to Japan but it's not going to be as big a hit there as in America.

iPhone's nice but seriously lacking in features compared to other Japanese phones..

[Psy]

I'm thinking this might change given the company's latest announcements both in price and functionality. The thing is a bit novel for my needs, but you can't deny that they're cool.

[JonB]

I think mainly foreigners will buy it - since my last comment I bought a Nano and lost my phone. I love the nano - excellent for the gym and I am happy with a cheap phone in case I leave it in a taxi again!!

This being Japan though I got my phone back and no outbound calls had been made.

[markystar]

i contacted softbank yesterday about getting on the waiting list.
still waiting for the call back, but they said some Tokyo shops will be doing pre-orders, so i'm psyched

It's coming to Japan but it's not going to be as big a hit there as in America.

i disagree.
i think it'll be huge because apple has a massive brand appeal here and japanese consumers tend to buy 'status items' more than americans. an iphone has both status and great functionality in the states. in japan, it will just be status - namely, having the "cool phone" first and being seen with it.

basically, i just wanna watch youtube videos on it... and be seen with it.
god, i'm so shallow.

[elau1986]

i'm considering getting an iPhone 3G too only one month until it reaches Australia, excited ~

[Hamiltoons]

I bought the iPOD Touch for my birthday this past January. Now that the 3G is coming out I might just switch to the iPhone. I'll wait to see what size memory it has first. I've used the Touch every day since I bought it. I've watched TV shows, movies, videos, listened to my music and now listen to my Japanesepod101 lessons on it. I figure if the 3G has more memory for less money then I can give my wife my old iPOD Touch and I'll get myself the new phone.

[aehlke]

i contacted softbank yesterday about getting on the waiting list.
still waiting for the call back, but they said some Tokyo shops will be doing pre-orders, so i'm psyched

It's coming to Japan but it's not going to be as big a hit there as in America.

i disagree.
i think it'll be huge because apple has a massive brand appeal here and japanese consumers tend to buy 'status items' more than americans. an iphone has both status and great functionality in the states. in japan, it will just be status - namely, having the "cool phone" first and being seen with it.

basically, i just wanna watch youtube videos on it... and be seen with it.
god, i'm so shallow.

Other smartphones have failed miserably in Japan. Also, the iPod doesn't seem to have nearly as much popularity in Japan, since they have so many other popular players.

Have you really seen the other Japanese cellphones at the top? There's a lot more good competition for the iPhone in Japan than the US, by far.

[Psy]

Yeah, Japanese cellphones are pretty amazing... still, marky has a point. Though if they don't have those little clips where girls can clip on those cute little holder doodads...

... guess we'll just have to wait and see.

[sTeVe aUsTiN]

Also, the iPod doesn't seem to have nearly as much popularity in Japan, since they have so many other popular players.

iPod is the number selling mp3 player in Japan. I see them everywhere.

And I agree with the status thing. Having an iPod in Japan is the "cool" thing.

[Jason]

I bought the iPOD Touch for my birthday this past January. Now that the 3G is coming out I might just switch to the iPhone. I'll wait to see what size memory it has first. I've used the Touch every day since I bought it. I've watched TV shows, movies, videos, listened to my music and now listen to my Japanesepod101 lessons on it. I figure if the 3G has more memory for less money then I can give my wife my old iPOD Touch and I'll get myself the new phone.

So far they've only announced 8GB and 16GB versions. That's one thing (other than not wanting to switch to AT&T) that's really holding me back for now. I have a 32GB iPod Touch now, and really want that extra 16GB. It was a pain to shuffle playlists and such around when I had a 16GB iPT.

I especially like it's GPS features. That's something I'll definitely need in Japan. Maybe they'll have larger GB versions by the time I get over there.

We are looking into doing some iPhone/iPT apps. I can't really say much more than that right now. But it's a platform I'm looking forward to learning and developing for (and already have had a little fun with).

[プチクレア]

The Iphone is brilliant !!!!! I don't have too much experience with japanese cellphones (a few weeks here and there mostly), but as "western" phones, both traditional and smartphones, go, this is the best thing I've owned in years.

And I'm pretty excited because at last with the new firmware 2.0 there will be japanese input on the phone (previously I used my Ipod Touch for on-the-go japanese writing, but having this feature on the phone is going to be great).

Another real nice thing is that, at least as far as I know, this will be the only "western" phone that can be used in Japan too... meaning no more phone rental when I'm travelling. Of course fees might be prohibitive.

But for this reason only I will certainly change my first generation Iphone for a new 3G this july.

[Psy]

We are looking into doing some iPhone/iPT apps. I can't really say much more than that right now. But it's a platform I'm looking forward to learning and developing for (and already have had a little fun with).

Just to throw it out there, although I'm only freshly inducted into the world that is Cocoa/Cocoa-touch programming, if this is an informal operation and you're in need of another head...

... or y'know, I could always become your competition, since Japanese-language apps are some of my development objectives.

[JonB]

Another real nice thing is that, at least as far as I know, this will be the only "western" phone that can be used in Japan too...

Any 3G phone should work here - the problem being the coverage. 3G is great in metroploitan areas but disappears rapidly as you go into the countryside.

I moved back from my 3G Vodafone nokia to AU a couple of years back and will not be switching any time soon - and I am a big Apple fan, it's just nice to make a phone call when you want without having to hunt for service availability.