During the 505i launch event on Tuesday, Takeshi Natsuno was on stage to demonstrate the F505i’s capabilities – including the fingerprintreader used to authenticate access to the phone’s address book, mail, picture store, and scheduler. When Natsuno applied his finger onto the reader platen glass (located at the bottom of the phone), **nothing happened!** “OK – we’ll try that later,” he added somewhat sheepishly, after waiting for some 30 seconds..

Now to be fair, the phones on demo were all pre-production models and the company said it will still take up to three months to get them ready to hit the market; presumably, any interface flaws will be solved by then. But on the other hand, they wouldn’t have tried to demo the fingerprint reader if they hadn’t thought it was ready for prime time. ;-( Early adopters: be forewarned.

Related posts:

1. DoCoMo’s 506i Series Launch Event
2. Natsuno and Ai Kato Launch 505i; and WWJ – Facing a Transition
3. NTT DoCoMo Unveils 505i Series i-mode Mobile Phones
4. New DoCoMo 3G Handset Hits the Street: Fujitsu F900i
5. Fujitsu for FeliCa F900iC 3G FOMA

Some sage advise when entering new turf; Stop, Look and Listen.. it’s also good to secure a local guide. Japan is the cradle of mobile civilization – we have been dedicated to this space since 2001 – trust our archives here offer some useful material.

Domestic activities continue to set the pace, and sharp players are looking at global markets. We have hard-earned industry expertise and trusted network of contacts with access to advanced intell. and potential deal flow. Need a lift.. Ok, buckle-up!