Again and again we see super-cool phones coming from the Land of the rising Sun. Why handset makers don’t bring those babies to the western hemisphere is beyond me. I’m sure many IntoMobile readers share our passion for high-end phones, jam-packed with all the latest technologies. Anyway, let’s briefly introduce KDDI’s latest collection…

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KDDI Corp has reported a 27% gain in profit for Q3 2008, and remains on track to reach its full-year forecast of $4.4 billion. The company earned 138.5 billion yen ($1.4 billion) for the quarter.

Wow! good numbers!

The full-year forecast is apparently below analysts expectations, but nonetheless it is still a good result in the face of what is going on with many economies currently. The reason behind the profits boost, is at least partly due to KDDI switching from handset subsidies to charging more for the handset (with resulting cheaper calls/tariffs).

There has been a slowing of handset sales, but, on the flipside, subsidy payments to handset vendors have dropped greatly. I wonder if we’ll see this widespread in Europe in not so very long? Already some operators have SIM-only tariffs, and many have introduced 18 months contracts as standard, so what’s next – BYOM (bring your own mobile)??

[Via: telecomasia.net]

The last go at cell phone companions left a lot to be desired, but Japanese carrier KDDI still has hope. The latest from their lab is an e-paper tablet which wires images via infrared stored on your mobile to a full 13.1″ display. It takes about 12 seconds to load each page (which can be rendered in full colour), so it might not be so helpful for, say, flipping through photo albums or the like, but enterprise applications for finance and insurance are apparently ripe for this sort of full, secure viewing option. Something in this form factor for text alone would be great if they could cut down the transmission time, especially for e-mail-heavy devices like BlackBerry (NSDQ: RIMM). Combined with their 3D mobile LCD screen, KDDI has proven that they’re willing to think outside the box, but whether or not they’ll actually be able to sell some of these innovations is another question altogether.

[TechOn via Endgadget]

The folks at KDDI have started showing off a new prototype LCD display targetted for use on mobile phones. The new display will be capable of showing 3D images. The display interlaces two images together… one image for the left eye, and one for the right. With the 2 images in a slightly different position, the stereoscoping LCD display tricks your eye into thinking there’s a real 3D image right in front of them. KDDI demonstrated a prototype at a resolution of 480×800.

Imagine watching that sunday night football game on your mobile device…. in 3D!? Cool! Something about this screams ‘Back to the Future‘ to me for some reason… Great Scott!

[Via: MobileMentalism]

au BOX!

TechRadar has a really interesting convergence story, which is emanating from Japan!

KDDI (the number two carrier in Japan) have delivered a set-top box (called the ‘au BOX’) which will cost ¥315 (£1.60) a month, and offer subs who use the KDDI network (and handsets) the ability to load content to the device via the TV!

The box displays on the TV with a web-browsing like environment, and will grab anything download from au’s ‘various media services‘ for transfer to the handset. The box is based on Linux, and given it has a DVD drive can also rip movies/music to a handset format (so it has some on-board transcoding too – cool!). Apparently the handset has to be connected by USB, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see a wireless radio added at launch, or just after.

It’s not only the content that is converged, but also the billing – users are charged for the content they consume to their mobile bill, giving them just one payment to concern themselves with.

If you want to check out the ‘au BOX’ in more detail, then you can go here – I’m suggesting a good grasp of Japanese if you want to get the most out of the site though

[Via: TechRadar]

Who said the iPhone would struggle to find traction in the super-competitive Japanese wireless market? That’s right, just about everyone.

Following on new sales estimates that point to 3 million iPhone 3Gs in the wild, a new study from from TechOn, dubbed “iPhone Affects KDDI’s Net Subscription Growth,” points to incredible new subscription growth on SoftBank (OTCPK: SFTBF), Apple (NSDQ: AAPL)’s exclusive iPhone 3G carrier in Japan. Of the 391,500 new activations in Japan for July, more than half, or 215,400 to be more precise, were due to the iPhone 3G alone. “We believe our large net growth was an iPhone effect,” according to Softbank.

And, it the iPhone 3G’s affect on the Japanese wireless market has been noted by rival carrier KDDI. They found that the iPhone 3G was responsible for more subscriber cancellations due to customers porting their accounts to other carriers. “We are accepting the fact, considering that our handsets weren’t attractive enough,” said KDDI representatives.

While there are many potential explanations for the iPhone 3G’s success in the Japanese market, there seems to be a lack of focus on the heralded iPhone’s user interface (UI) and the user experience that it delivers.

While Japan has more than its fair share of feature phones that boast the most advanced features on the planet, Japanese handsets have traditionally been limited to flip-phone form-factors with little emphasis on a clean user interface. The iPhone 3G represents a major shift in handset-perception for the Japanese people, giving them a multi-touch touchscreen handset that focuses on delivering a user experience bar none.

The iPhone 3G does lack in the feature-department. The 2 megapixel camera is woefully lacking compared to the high-end shooters from competitors. There’s no video recording. No turn-by-turn navigation. And, in comparison with the feature-packed handsets in Japan, the iPhone 3G is a veritable late-bloomer that has yet to actually bloom.

But, the iPhone and iPhone 3G’s UI, the iPhone Mac OS,  helps affect a user experience that is greater than the sum of its parts. While advanced Japanese feature-phones focus on packing in features with little regard for an integrated feel, the iPhone 3G makes the most of its limited feature set.

The iPhone’s UI may not be the single, or even the most significant, reason for Japan’s enthusiastic adoption rates of the iPhone 3G, but it likely does play a role.

The question remains, will the iPhone 3G sustain this kind of explosive growth?

[Via: TechOn]

KDDI is partnering with Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ to launch a 24-hour online bank. The 50-50 venture will be called Jibun Bank or “me bank,” and will reportedly debut in mid-July.

Initially, account holders will be able to make online payments using their mobile phones or PCs, with such features as loans, insurance and credit card services planned to be rolled out in the near future. KDDI and Bank of Tokyo expect to have 2.4 million accounts and deposits representing a total of 1 trillion yen ($9.27 billion) in the fiscal year starting April 2010. Then, in the following two years, the bank plans to have a total of 3.4 million accounts and 1.5 trillion yen in deposits.

The service, however, won’t be open to KDDI users, only. It will be open to other mobile networks, NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM) and Softbank (OTCPK: SFTBF), users as well, but KDDI plans to make its phones “the most convenient cellphones on the market, and the safest way to transfer money.”

Bank president Masato Nakai said he expects half of the bank’s revenues to come from fees, and the other half from investments on deposits.

[Via: Reuters]

Finally, the third of the largest Japanese mobile operators (other two are DoCoMo and SoftBank) has announced its summer collection. As you’re about to see, it’s good to be in Japan these days. With so many great options, the only “problem” left is to choose the right device. Let’s quickly go through KDDI’s offering:

• Hitachi Wooo W62H is definitely one of those device designed to woo us. The dual-flip phone (like the Nokia (NYSE: NOK) N93 for instance) prides itself with 3G gaming and video capabilities. Comes in blue, silver, and black.
• Sharp W62SH – among the specs we pick 16:9 WVGA screen, 3.2 megapixel camera and the built-in FM transmitter. Comes in purple, white, and gold with Spidermen 2 movie pre-loaded.
• Sanyo (OTCPK: SANYY) W63SA – Global CDMA roaming phone with integrated English-Japanese dictionary. Available in red, silver or black.
• Toshiba (OTCPK: TOSBF) Sportio is a candybar designed to keep you in shape. QVGA screen may be enough for Europe and the U.S., but not for Japan. Then again, this one may be targeted toward people who don’t want all the mumbo-jumbo of high-end phones. It’s available in orange, black, white, green and red.
• Casio G’zOne W62CA – rugged clamshell for an adventurer in everyone of us. Resists impact, water, and among other things features a compass, thermometer, GPS and one-seg TV receiver. Color options include green, black or white.
• Sanyo W64SA – I guess we should call this baby the high-end fashion phone, thanks to the gorgeous 2.8″ WVGA screen. Comes in pink, white, yellow and black.
• Sony Ericsson (NYSE: SNE) Full Change re – this is probably one of the most customizable handsets we’ve seen. Five individual pieces can be removed from the front, back, and top of the phone to create a totally customized experience. Shell choices include white, pink, green, orange and silver.
• Toshiba W62T – with WQVGA screen, Toshiba’s handsets seems destined for the mid-range in Japan. 3.2 megapixel camera also won’t help it moving up the ladder. Available colors include gold, pink and black.
• Kyocera (NYSE: KYO) W64K – this is almost an entry level device in Japan. WQVGA screen and 2 megapixel camera won’t get you anywhere in the Land of the Rising Sun. Pink and gold are the only color options.
• Kyocera W62K – and this IS the entry-level one. 1.3 megapixel camera and QVGA screen. What can I say, except – skip this one. Comes in beige, blue and black.
• Kyocera W63K – the 10.8mm thick candybar with 1.3 megapixel camera. Available in black, burgundy and beige.
• Pantech W62PT seems designed for strangers or older folks is Japan, and is the only device made by a non-Japanese company. Offers basic phone features on a QVGA screen. It comes in silver, gold and pink.

And that’s it. We should look at the top part of the list, as far as I’m concerned. WVGA screens are getting a standard in the high-end mobile phone market in Japan. And in the rest of the world, moving beyond the QVGA has just started…

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

Why fuss with vague or complex search strings to find information about a product that you’re holding in your hands? Sure, semantic and contextual search engines help narrow down your search to the most likely hits by “reading between the lines,” but they still require you to describe the object you’re searching for. That’s where visual search technologies come in.

KDDI has just announced that their intention to put the Bandai Networks-powered visual search application, dubbed ER Search, on their Spring 2008 au line of cameraphones. The visual search application allows users to take a picture of an object with their cameraphone and send the picture to a server. In a few moments, the service will return relevant content regarding the object of interest – all without having to enter a single search query.

Customers with previous version of au cameraphones will also be offered the ER Search visual search application.

It’s unclear how Bandai’s ER Search business model works, but it’s likely safe to presume that referral fees for viewing product information or commissions off product sales will fuel the application’s success. Visual search is a great idea and we can only hope that the tech will make it Stateside sooner than later.

Press release on the link.

[Update]
Speaking of bringing visual search technology to us Yankees. Stefan found this video of the ViPR visual search engine being demonstrated with an iPhone. Just imagine how cool this tech will be once the search engine and image-processing server are integrated into a natively installed application for any and all cameraphones out there. Of course, there will always be a place for text-based search, but visual search is going to change the entire search-game.

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Panasonic (NYSE: PC) has announced the sale of it’s 100 millionth Mobile phone in Japan. It has supplied devices to carriers including NTT DoCoMo (NYSE: DCM), KDDI, and Softbank (OTCPK: SFTBF).

Pansonic first began selling mobile comms terminals in 1979 – the first mobile phone being in 1987. Since then Panasonic has gone on to be Number 1 or Number 2 in the Japanese market for several years. The 100 millionth unit will be a FOMA P905i sold to NTT, for those that are interested.

That is some quantity of devices to get through – although not maybe as much as some other notable vendors, it’s still a milestone in it’s own right – well done Pana!
[Via: Techshout]