Sales of old flip-phone cell phones are skyrocketing in Japan, while smartphones are declining

[froggyboy604]

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese shipments of traditional flip-phones rose in 2014 for the first time in seven years while smartphone shipments fell, highlighting Japanese consumers' tenacious attachment to the familiar and typically less expensive older models.
 
Dubbed "Galapagos" phones because they have evolved to meet unique Japanese standards and tastes, flip-phone shipments rose 5.7 percent to 10.58 million in 2014, data from market researcher MM Research Institute Ltd shows. Smartphone shipments fell 5.3 percent to 27.70 million, down for a second year.
 

Users in Japan pay some of the highest smartphone fees among developed nations, the telecommunications ministry says, while flip-phone rates are among the lowest. Many Japanese accustomed to years of deflation are content with old-style flip-phones offering voice calling, email and in most cases basic Internet services.
 
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I think smartphones are not really needed these days now that most people own tablets and laptops which can use the same smartphone apps like Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, etc, so more Japanese people are choosing to use a tablet for browsing the web, and using apps like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube while using a flip phone for voice calls, texting, e-mail, and basic internet service.
 
Tablets and laptops are also very affordable these days because you can buy a good tablet or laptop for $99-200.
 
Japanese people also save a lot of money by subscribing to a flip phone cell service rather than paying high smartphone service bills.

 

[hissae2]

Not sure if this is the same in the US but in Canada they will refuse to give you a data plan on a flip phone, or anything that isn't a smartphone. Kind of forces you to buy a smartphone if you want to access the internet. 

 

[froggyboy604]

I think the flip phones in Japan are pretty advance. I watch a TV show that showed Japanese watching TV on their flip phone, writing e-mails, and doing other tasks which is typically done on a smartphone or tabler.

There are tablets  like iPad or Galaxy tab which Canadian cell service users in Vancouver, BC can subscribe to a Telus data plan for $5-10 a month which comes with 10-200 MB of data. Rogers and other cell services also have USB Data modems for plugging into a laptop, or providing data which is converted to Wi-Fi for use with Wi-Fi devices.

Tablets, and Data modems are kind of bulky, but using a tablet with a data connection, and a flip phone cell service can save some money.

 

[Demon_Skeith]

I read this yesturday, kind of surpised but a good phone to make a comeback.

 

[froggyboy604]

Flip phones are pretty reliable, and their battery life can last many hours or days of constant use depending on the size of their battery. Some Flip phones can also survive high drops to the floor.

I think Japanese like reliable products since Fax machines are still actively used in Japan  according to ( In High-Tech Japan, the Fax Machines Roll On ) compared to the rest of the world which mostly use e-mail to save money. The Fax machine is one of the most reliable ways to send a printed letter because it can't get lost like regular mail which sometimes get stolen, and Fax letters are printed on paper, so it does not need online storage on a server like e-mail. 

 

[Cierra]

Smart Phones have their advantages and disadvantages too, just like Flip phones. Also like has been said above, Japanese f.phones are very advanced and have a lot of features.

 

[froggyboy604]

I think one of the reasons Japanese like their flip phones is because their language is based on characters and pictures, and they can quickly text out words by pressing one or more characters to spell a word rather than typing many letters like English, French, and other Western Langues.

Plus, in Japan, more people may need a cell phone with long battery life because a lot of people in Japan travel by Train or take public transit where finding a power outlet to plug in a charger for a cell phone is harder than the US where you can find a power outlet at school, work place, gas station, library, local restaurant, etc which is usually a few blocks away from where you are standing if you live in a big city like New York, San Francisco, and Seattle in the US where power is easy to find.

A Flip phone has great battery life, so it does not need to be charge as often as smartphones.