Kddi Au Archive

  • NTT DoCoMo, KDDI launch their endless Summer 2010 collections

    NTT DoCoMo, KDDI launch their endless Summer 2010 collections

    Posted on May 19, 2010 | No Comments
    Surprise: Japanese carriers are announcing literally dozens of phones at once. Okay, look, that's not a surprise at all, but bear with us, because there are a few shining jewels in here amongst the seemingly endless array of WVGA displays and one-seg tuners from NTT DoCoMo and KDDI au, both of whom have announced their Summer 2010 collections of handsets this week. Of note, two of the models from DoCoMo -- the Fujitsu F-06B and Sharp SH-07B are capable of shooting 1080p video, while KDDI's SH008 from Sharp, S003 from Sony Ericsson, and CA005 from Casio all feature sensors of 12 megapixels or larger. Several of the devices can also be used as WiFi hotspots, and Hitachi's trick Beskey for KDDI has interchangeable keypads that change the shape of the keys, not the layout -- a bit superficial, perhaps, but we're all about choice. DoCoMo is also launching a handful of smartphones: the Lynx SH-10B from Sharp (not to be confused with the old Atari handheld of the same name) that features Android atop a 5-inch touchscreen, Toshiba's 4.1-inch T-01B Dynapocket with WinMo, and RIM's plain old BlackBerry Bold 9700. Don't get us wrong, it's still quite a haul, but we can't help but feel that the gap between Japan's wireless scene and the rest of the world is closing fast.

    NTT DoCoMo, KDDI launch their endless Summer 2010 collections originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 19 May 2010 00:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • IS01: Sharp to roll out Android smartbook

    IS01: Sharp to roll out Android smartbook

    Posted on March 30, 2010 | No Comments
    There's just one Android phone currently available in Japan, one of the biggest mobile markets in the world. But the HTC Magic, which Japan's biggest telco, NTT Docomo, started distributing last summer, will soon be joined by the Sharp IS01 [JP] - which is not really a "smartphone", but rather being marketed as an MID or "smartbook" instead.

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  • $2.2 billion liabilities: Japan’s wireless carrier Willcom files for bankruptcy

    $2.2 billion liabilities: Japan’s wireless carrier Willcom files for bankruptcy

    Posted on February 19, 2010 | No Comments
    Wikipedia has a pretty useful list of countries by number of mobile phones in use, which shows that Japan (with around 100 million users) is the No. 7 in the world. The market is largely controlled by mobile carriers NTT Docomo, KDDI au and SoftBank Mobile but seemed big enough to offer enough room for a number of smaller competitors, too. Yesterday, however, a company called Willcom (one of said smaller players) announced it had to file for bankruptcy. The reason: With just $54 million in capital, Willcom managed to amass a whopping $2.2 billion in liabilities. It's the biggest bankruptcy ever in Japan's hyper-competitive mobile industry.

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  • Casio Exilim CA003 and CA004 uncloaked in KDDI au’s winter lineup

    Casio Exilim CA003 and CA004 uncloaked in KDDI au’s winter lineup

    Posted on October 19, 2009 | No Comments

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    KDDI au's unleashing its winter lineup, and among them sits Casio's latest cameras phone, the 12.17 megapixel Exilim CA003 and 8 megapixel CA004. The higher-tier former boasts a 28mm wide angle lens with 3x optical zoom and autofocus, and a 3.3-inch WVGA OLED screen. It'll also shoot a quick burst of 20 pics per second when you need to capture the exact moment and aren't exactly sure when that is. Other amenities include microSDHC card slot, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, FM radio, and a handful of color options. Not wanting all that horsepower? The CA004 has smaller resolution shots, support up to 2GB microSD, and a 3.1-inch WVGA OLED screen, but is otherwise touting the same features. Akihabara News has some hands-on shots of the beaut you might wanna check out, unless you're the type who gets violently jealous by phones that aren't hitting American soil.

    [Via Engadget Japan]

    Read - KDDI au lineup
    Read - CA003 / CA004 hands-on

    Casio Exilim CA003 and CA004 uncloaked in KDDI au's winter lineup originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 06:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • iida Ply and Prismoid: Japan gets two new designer cell phones

    iida Ply and Prismoid: Japan gets two new designer cell phones

    Posted on September 9, 2009 | No Comments
    Japan's No. 2 cell phone carrier KDDI au is stepping up its efforts to promote its iida sub brand of designer cell phones (here's my photo report of some iida concept phones from back in April). Not only did it present its robotic cell phone Polaris today, it now gives us another two (more conventional) phones. And these you can actually buy soon (if you live in Japan).

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  • The iida Polaris is a cool mix between robot and phone (video)

    The iida Polaris is a cool mix between robot and phone (video)

    Posted on September 9, 2009 | No Comments
    Japan is the nation of robots. Everybody knows that. It's also the nation of cell phones. So why not mix robots and cell phones? That's what the country's second biggest mobile phone provider KDDI au thought and today presents the iida Polaris, a robotic cell phone [link in English], for the first time (click here for my iida concept photo report from April).

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  • Video: The iida Polaris is a cool mix between robot and phone

    Video: The iida Polaris is a cool mix between robot and phone

    Posted on September 9, 2009 | No Comments
    Japan is the nation of robots. Everybody knows that. It's also the nation of cell phones. So why not mix robots and cell phones? That's what the country's second biggest mobile phone provider KDDI au thought and today presents the iida Polaris, a robotic cell phone [link in English], for the first time (click here for my iida concept photo report from April).

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