CULTURE


With versatility in mind, this flat-panel cell allows users to check TV and movie listings.

The future is there

Japan's cell phone innovations give us a glimpse into the communications world to come.

by Jon M. Gibson
6/14/00

 

 

 

 

 

It's a market unlike anywhere else in the world.

 


Just one of many features of a Japanese cell, a full-color, animated character reads the daily news to users.

 

Speed-dial evolution

Cell phones keep advancing stateside, too.

Here are a few words on what’s next:

Shrinking

A longtime reporter covering consumer electronics and now spokesman for the industry, Jim Barry has been following cell phones since they were "the size of a brick." His current phone, he said the other day while in Detroit spreading the high-tech gospel, is about the size of an 18-stick pack of gum.

"We’re pretty much at the limit of how small you can get and still use it as a mouthpiece and an ear piece," he said. "What we see happening is more people are using an ear bud or an ear piece and a microphone," with the rest of the device in a pocket or clipped to a belt. (Which means a new class of people walking around apparently talking to themselves.)

Experimental methods of micro-machining and "microscopic resonating beam technologies" point to much smaller phones still.

Linking

Also known as "convergence," this is the bundling together of formerly separate devices, which – to some extent – offsets the smallness trend.

Said Barry: "We now have wireless phones that are also pagers that are also Internet access devices to send and receive e-mail or to check different Web sites. We also have handheld computers or personal digital assistants – or whatever buzz word you want to use for them – like the Palm VII, which gives you wireless Internet access and that has also spurred very quickly a whole new generation of accessory products that let you add on a Palm device to a phone or add a phone to Palm device."

One MIT project is a handheld combo of all of the above functions with an AM/FM radio and TV.

Look for the cell phone to increasingly merge with its stay-at-home predecessor. Eventually, said Barry, we’ll simply have one number for whichever of our phones happens to be nearest.

"You know, we used to call places. I’d call your place and say, ‘Is Mr. Heron there?’ Now I can call you, and I say, ‘Where are you?’"

Thinking

Some of us worry about the unexpected consequences of cell phones’ hyper-proliferation. What does it mean if there’s no excuse for being unreachable? What wrathful viruses will infect the merged computer-cell phones? Will marketers develop the equivalent of junk mail that tracks our cellular location?

Then there are the health questions. With hundreds of millions of cell phones in use "even small adverse effects on health could have major health implications," said a World Health Organization press release, outlining research to be completed within the next few years. And what about the University of Washington research report that cell phone-like emissions dull long-term memory in rats? Will we have the definitive answer before we have cell phones small enough for rodents?–W. Kim Heron

 

As a fashion accessory, essential communications device, status symbol and much more, mobile phones have become a staple in our culture. It seems as though practically every street corner and party store offers a cellular hookup, and grocery store aisles and freeway fast lanes are clogged with consumers indulging in cellular conversation.

You think it’s bad here, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Try talking about cell phones in Japan, a country that has transformed the portability and power of the keitei (kay-e-tay – Japanese for "cell phone") into a technological masterpiece.

Powered by an outstanding number of Japanese subscribers, the country’s capabilities for wireless communication have far surpassed that of any other region in the world.

There, 1-ounce handsets are carried next to loose change and Chap Stick in more than 57 million pockets and purses, and many analysts insist that Japan has a half-decade lead on other global competition – with good reason.

Ask Jim McGrath, business development manager at Motorola Japan, why cell phones are so popular in Japan, and he says, "It is clearly the content and the proliferation of good handsets. They are very small – and fit in my hand beautifully. (They have) a large LCD (liquid crystal display) screen. The voice quality is fantastic."

Add to all this such fun options as customizable antennas that flash when an incoming call is received, and it becomes obvious why the country known for the most innovative electronics is also becoming the kingpin of wireless stock.

On a recent trip to Japan, I discovered a plethora of new innovations that make today’s American cell phones look like those clunky devices we lugged around a decade ago.

Online, all the time

Access the Internet from your cell phone? Absolutely, and much more too. There are already TV Guide-type magazines that cover Japan’s mobile universe, cataloging the major attractions of some 7,000 Internet sites now active.

The equivalent of 33.3K modems reside in the attractive plastic casing of a majority of name-brand cells, letting users scan stock quotes, read local, regional or international news, check movie listings, do Web searches, convert currency, check train departures, book plane tickets, reserve hotel rooms, surf the waves of e-commerce, or even see if a favorite video is available at the local rental shop. That’s in addition to the more conversationally related aspects of handsets, such as voice mail and roaming abilities, that many cell phone companies in the States are still spraying for microbugs.

"On the train, when I’m going to the office, I can stroll all over the Internet – now I’m picking up news services from the United States," says McGrath.

Custom creatures

Animation giant Bandai was among the first pioneers in the customizable cell phone realm, providing more than 1 million customers with a freshly rendered desktop character every 24 hours. For 100 yen (about $1) per month, users can watch the daily, full-color "anime" creature groove on their phone’s LCD screen as they chatter with parents or business partners.

Other services like Bandai’s are also in popular use, such as daily weather briefs for about 50 cents an update. And the trend doesn’t look like it’s about to stop anytime soon.

"Look for licensors of other pop culture icons and characters to emulate Bandai’s extraordinary success in the fee-for-service sector," predicts Tim Clark, president of Internet consulting company TKAI.

Appropriately, payment is made only if a service is used. Conveniently, rather than swiping a credit card for every use, charges are fastened to monthly phone bills.

Access for all

The reason for Japan’s handheld obsession? Unlike the United States, ISP (Internet service provider) prices in Japan are on the brink of being dubbed "only for opulent society."

"Japan is a mutant market," says Clark. "It’s unlike anything else in the world. In the United States, business needs drive most cellular usage. In Japan, the need for consumers to carry around cellular handsets drives cellular telephone usage."

Shown to be at an all-time high by a recent study, the country’s average cost for home-based, desktop Internet connection was a whopping $67 for a mere 20 hours of surfing. Prices in the States range around $15-$20 per month for unlimited access time.

So it is obvious to see why so many Japanese customers have turned to the power of their cell phones to provide cheaper, quicker and more convenient online access.

Plus, the utter annoyance of advertising banners does not plague the information world of the keitei, since most files are presented in text-based form, with minimal graphics to interrupt download time.

This outburst of cell usage, however, has created one major problem. Many ISPs were forced to suspend the adoption of new customers since servers constantly become overrun.

Ironically, the technology has acquired such extreme popularity, Japan’s ISPs and cell phone manufacturers must move at rocket speeds in order to keep up with demand to insure that everyone can purchase a cell phone. If companies can’t keep up with the rapid pace of sign-ups, some analysts fear that a so-called "Selective Service" might affect new users.

Yet, these teething problems are likely to dissolve soon, and then it will be more clear than ever that Japan has clinched the copyright to the cell phone movement. From the latest and greatest video games to the most advanced audio hardware, the country always has something new and improved up its sleeve. Just wait until they begin exporting.

Jon M. Gibson writes about technology and entertainment for the Metro Times.

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