Japanese "hate" for iPhone all a big mistake

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 100
    I lived in Tokyo the past 6 years and of course owned a mobile phone (Au carrier and Sony Ericsson models) the whole time. I moved back to the U.S. two weeks ago. The day after I arrived I got an iPhone 3G and instantly loved it. Actually, I couldn't wait to finally own a smartphone and not just a gimmick phone. 1Seg TV and using your phone to pay for things are all gimmicks, as the quoted source says.
  • Reply 22 of 100
    Well if you are looking for a sub par smart phone that looks really hip then the iphone is the phone for you. But if you want a phone that lets you do practically anything you want then get the G1. If you don't like the slide keyboard then wait a couple of months for the slimmer version with no keyboard. Sorry apple geeks but as I write this on my more powerful sony vaio laptop with umbutu I can't help think that android is the future of the cell phone and umbutu is the future of the OS.
  • Reply 23 of 100
    Fantastic job with this article, AI.



    Btw, does anyone really bother to read Wired anymore? I am surprised that they are still around. I have always thought that they belong in the pathetic, Zune category of products: well-meaning, but derivative, always a couple of steps behind, lacking innovation, and not having a particularly compelling set of features or users (i.e., readers).
  • Reply 24 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Nobuyuki Hayashi View Post


    Hi this is Nobuyuki Hayashi aka Nobi quoted in the article.

    Wow! Thanks for setting the record straight; I appreciate it ....



    .......I've been receiving so many denouncements, etc. for those who read the original article and quoted article ....



    Mr. Hayashi: Keep up the great work, sir.



    Sorry to hear that you've been denounced because of someone else's lies. Even if it is sometimes frustratingly late, the truth always comes out.
  • Reply 25 of 100
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kevin19713 View Post


    ...smart phone that looks really hip then the iphone is ...



    It's the iPhone. (Unless, of course, the Shift key on your Vaio keyboard is acting randomly).
  • Reply 26 of 100
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    Thank you for giving us some clarification on how things are going in Japan. We've had a lot of spirited debate on how well the iPhone would do in Japan.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Nobuyuki Hayashi View Post


    Hi this is Nobuyuki Hayashi aka Nobi quoted in the article.

    Wow! Thanks for setting the record straight; I appreciate it



  • Reply 27 of 100
    Chen's Response:

    http://brianxchen.tumblr.com/post/82...n-iphone-story





    Big surprise, he totally denies any wrongdoing and doesn't even mention the chief complaints like the fact that he TWICE wrongly attributed the quote about the "Japanese would consider the iPhone to be lame" to other people before finally just saying it himself in editorial. Also the fact that the changed the article multiple times without even mentioning it... he says in the response he "edited for clarity" and didn't feel it necessary to be more transparent.



    Clarity??? Like removing quotes made up and attributed to highly-respected individuals?



    How about not even making a public apology to the man whose reputation he damaged? or even mentioning the controversy!
  • Reply 28 of 100
    adjeiadjei Posts: 738member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kevin19713 View Post


    Well if you are looking for a sub par smart phone that looks really hip then the iphone is the phone for you. But if you want a phone that lets you do practically anything you want then get the G1. If you don't like the slide keyboard then wait a couple of months for the slimmer version with no keyboard. Sorry apple geeks but as I write this on my more powerful sony vaio laptop with umbutu I can't help think that android is the future of the cell phone and umbutu is the future of the OS.



  • Reply 29 of 100
    There are quite a few people here who carry the iphone. It is especially popular among foreign residents, especially since Softbank has better marketing and service programs that foreigners here like. But yeah, as far as coverage is concerned, Docomo is the way to go and the carrier I currently use. They do lack the proper "smartphones" that Softbank and Wicom support, however.
  • Reply 30 of 100
    umijinumijin Posts: 133member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenoBell View Post


    I don't see what you are saying as being much different or any more enlightenig from what the article said.





    The point is that the nonsense about he said-she-said doesn't really address the issues (some of which were perhaps buried in the article).
  • Reply 31 of 100
    winterspanwinterspan Posts: 605member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kevin19713 View Post


    ....Sorry apple geeks but as I write this on my more powerful sony vaio laptop with umbutu I can't help think that android is the future of the cell phone and umbutu is the future of the OS.



    Yes, because Umbutu is an excellent OS.... Perhaps you mean Ubuntu? you weren't even close..
  • Reply 32 of 100
    ivladivlad Posts: 742member
    its ok iPhone is popular in any other country on this planet
  • Reply 33 of 100
    mdriftmeyermdriftmeyer Posts: 7,503member
    Some group with interest in seeing the iPhone fail created false stories to become prevalent and thus give the wrong perception all in the hopes of protecting their positions? I must be full of tinfoil to be so cynical. Not!
  • Reply 34 of 100
    kotatsukotatsu Posts: 1,010member
    Good article, and a nice change on AppleInsider for it to be free of fanboy insults and comments.



    The reality is in Japan is that most people use NTTDoCoMo and are very invested in the Japanese fashion phone design. (thin flip phones which can be used with one hand, and can have multiple mascots attached to them) The iPhone therefore faces an uphill struggle, but in my experiences in Japan there is no hatred for the device, quite the contrary, as Apple stores are full of people keen to try them out, and stories about the iPhone on TV are very full of 'look how cool this is' type of stuff.



    I believe if Apple can ditch Softbank and switch to NTT, and do something as simple as add a strap/mascot (the popularity of these should not be underestimated, even dour businessmen will have their phones adorned with dozens of them) attach point things will pick up. I don't believe 1-seg matters at all either, as you can count the number of people out and about using it on the fingers of one hand.
  • Reply 35 of 100
    addaboxaddabox Posts: 12,665member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by kevin19713 View Post


    Well if you are looking for a sub par smart phone that looks really hip then the iphone is the phone for you. But if you want a phone that lets you do practically anything you want then get the G1. If you don't like the slide keyboard then wait a couple of months for the slimmer version with no keyboard. Sorry apple geeks but as I write this on my more powerful sony vaio laptop with umbutu I can't help think that android is the future of the cell phone and umbutu is the future of the OS.



    And I can't help but thinking that anyone that still thinks Linux is "the future of the OS" probably shouldn't be hazarding any guesses as to the future of cell phones.
  • Reply 36 of 100
    ivan.rnn01ivan.rnn01 Posts: 1,822member
    the key point of the whole story:



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    but there are indeed a number of aspects about the iPhone which would pose a barrier to adoption, especially for a person very used to the Japanese cellphone ways or modes. No infrared data or personal information exchange, none of the Japan-only stuff like Suica (train pass) or 'wallet' function (auto-debit credit card), no hook for a strap, and a different text entry method are some of the things that feel like obstacles.



    Were what TV showed about how japs used cellphones true, they would be in real need of IR/bluetooth/wifi/etc. connectivity on their phones. And yes, alas, carrying iPhone does lame person, having got used to such a lifestyle.

    Yes, iPhone radio isn't the best in the world either.

    Yes, iPod seems to be the only thing one might want in Japan. iPod Touch may then be good enough, and, maybe, iPods Touch were actually seen to be carried by folks there, you can't tell them from iPhones, having seen them from a distance.



    The rest of the article isn't technical though and says little to me...
  • Reply 37 of 100
    meelashmeelash Posts: 1,045member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by alansky View Post


    Stories like this demonstrate quite convincingly why amateur bloggers and "journalists" should not write the news. Hearsay run rampant: this is the result of wholesale citizen journalism. Freedom of the press is one thing; the freedom to write anything you want without regard to fairness and accuracy is a sure-fire recipe for disaster. Methinks there's a serious ethical dilemma brewing here.



    As if "trained journalists" are any better. Have you read the news lately? The problem is that media outlets reward their employees for publicity instead of for getting accurate stories. Therefore news stories are basically just what they think their readers "want" to hear.
  • Reply 38 of 100
    ted13ted13 Posts: 65member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hiimamac View Post


    Although a bit off topic, the real story here us we have gone(USA) from 3rd to 17th globally in terms of high speed. To much politics and red tape of telcos. Hope Obamas broadband initiative works. Many countries stream TV while we are stuck with 1-2 MB at best. How lame us that. We should have streaming tv anywhere let alone Flash cases hulu capable iPhones.



    I predict a steep decline of the iPhone if it doesn't have flash by the time the millions if 1st gen users reach their 2 year anniversary. Especially with all the newer phones coming. Probably see price cuts too.



    What are you, a miserable Adobe employee?



    I can guarantee two things:



    1) iPhone 3.0 isn't going to support Flash -- the reasons are many, but the most salient one is that Flash is dead in the long term -- it will be replaced by the better performing, standard and non-proprietary HTML 5, which is fully supported by Apple/Webkit and thus all Webkit based browsers including Chrome, Safari, and what runs on many different mobile phone platforms.



    2) It isn't going to hurt iPhone sales.



    Any phone platform that end up fully supporting Flash (which AFAIK isn't happening before 2010, until then you just get Flash-lite), is going to at a severe competitive disadvantage to iPhone because their user experience is going suck. Their batteries will be drained quickly and cell network connections choked by all the Flash based banner ads, not to mention their users will be buried in ads, which mobile Safari, by not having Flash, conveniently blocks.





    Back on topic -- this is a spectacular article -- great job AppleInsider! If Wired remotely values their reputation they should print a full retraction and sanction their "journalist".
  • Reply 39 of 100
    jdwjdw Posts: 1,324member
    I've lived here in central Japan (Aichi-ken) for nearly 15 years. I've seen and toyed with many Japanese cell phones through the years. I can tell you they are all about the same when it comes to UI stupidity. Yes, they may have a couple cool features that are unique to Japan (e.g., e-payments, bar code reading), but that matters nothing to me if the UI is brain dead.



    Most Japanese whom I associate with have an interest in the iPhone, but the two main turn-offs are: (1) the outrageous monthly fees tied to it, and (2) SoftBank's bad reputation for dropped calls relative to any other carrier here. I personally have a SoftBank Japanese brand cell phone in spite of the dropped calls because you can't beat the White Plan at ¥980/month. I can call my wife on her SoftBank phone and we can talk as long as we want without any additional fees, so long as we finish our chat before 9pm (which we always do). Of course, I can't get an iPhone for use on such an economical plan, but that's precisely why I myself don't have an iPhone. But that doesn't mean all Japanese follow in my footsteps. I've seen a fair number of people who have them, and one of those people is a fellow co-worker.



    But going back to the topic of "brain dead," Brian Chen is certainly the textbook definition of that. I laid into that nutcase -- ahem, "journalist" -- not long ago when he was acting as a troll on the MacWorld forums, defending Wired on investigative journalism into Steve Job's health. I take issue with Steve on many issues but that's no reason to hassle him about his health. And I say this as an AAPL investor, concerning whom many say have a "right to know" every little thing about Steve. I disagree with that. But Chen is the type who would being willing to break into Steve Jobs house if he could make a buck quoting Jobs' last words on his death bed. Chen is below even "yellow journalism." Wired should let the man go so he can express his true nature more freely at the National Inquirer.
  • Reply 40 of 100
    Only thing that's lame seems to be wired's journalism (or lack thereof).
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