Sign of the Times
Sign of the Times

Sign of the Times

Vodafone Rolls out Sharp Ferrari-Branded Handsets

Vodafone Rolls out Two Sharp Ferrari Branded HandsetsAll doubts are now removed about who is making “Ferrari Class” handsets and the gloves are off for a bare-knuckles contest in the UK mobile data market. With O2 getting ready to roll out their i-mode portal in the next few months, Vodafone is clearly taking advantage of its relationship with Japanese OEMs and the London young turks need for speed. The GX25 (photo right) has Bluetooth and a QVGA TFT LCD bundled into its tri-band body, and the 3G-enabled 902sh touts a 2-megapixel camera with Video Out function.

Their ad copy says it all: “Jump into the seat with the Sharp 902 official Ferrari merchandise. You too can be part of the team through games, ring tones and customised menu which are all included in this unique package. Enjoy the benefits of this high-quality phone and share the excitement of the Ferrari footage with your friends. This striking Vodafone live! with 3G phone also features a 2 megapixel camera with autofocus and 2x optical zoom. After you have amazed others with your photography skills, why not explore the world of Vodafone live! with 3G to catch the latest music videos, Barclays Premiership goals, film trailers and breaking video news bulletins? All this before you have made your first face-to-face video call!“

DoCoMo 3G Cell Phones Model Designer Fashion

DoCoMo 3G Cell Phone Models Designer FashionHey DoCoMo Pimp my handset! NTT is shrugging off some of that infamous group-think mentality promoting trendy young designs in an eye-popping line of custom jackets for the P901iS series. Skulls, pistols, snakeskin, Samba Samurai and flower camo transform mobile phones into Japanese pop culture icons — complete with matching phone straps. D-@-mo (datmo design project) is turning out some of the best P901iS covers, but P901iS manufacturer Panasonic
plus a host of licensees have Japanese strutting down urban catwalks flashing their phones like designer clutches.

The cell phones transformation into fashion statement is something Americans are slowly catching on to. Coach, Hermes and Gucci got it right away and started marketing phone straps, charms or Keitai cases for brand loving locals. Custom painted, and completely illegal, rip offs of Chanel and Dior logos decorate jewel-encrusted handsets on pretty young things but everyone knows real brands are better. Now licensed names by youth culture designers and even game-obsessed Otaku brands are spreading onto handsets like a virus – a shiny, happy moneymaking virus.

Vodafone K.K. Enlists New Celebrities

Vodafone K.K. just announced that it has enlisted two Japanese celebrities, Junichi Okada and Misaki Ito, to promote the companies services in Japan. Junichi Okada and Misaki Ito will feature in new TV advertisements, to go on air from the end of June, that are part of the current “Vodafone, beyond borders” ad campaign. Advertisements in newspapers, magazines and other media will begin from mid-June.

Tomy Looks to Mobile Phones for Driving New Toy Sales

Tomy Looks to Mobile Phones for Driving New Toy Sales

The wireless road warriors from Tomy have put cell phones in the drivers’ seat with these tiny remote control cars that can zip along in response to signals from infrared-equipped handsets. Licensed by Disney, Putica (petite car), comes in three classic Disney cartoon character designs from the 40s and 50s: Susie the hot rod, steam engine Casey Jr. and Pedro the plane. Overseas readers may not recognize these anthropomorphic mechanicals from the past, but these are by no means obscure for Japanese consumers. Regional marketing of secondary and even obscure characters from old Disney cartoons have become a huge spin-off industry here. Susie, the little blue hot rod, has her own line of character goods. These hot-rods are priced at a mere 1680 yen. To synch controls with most mobile phones, drivers can download a free software application from the online Tomy Putica website.

DoCoMo to Halt 2G Development

NTT DoCoMo Inc will halt development of new 2G (second-generation) cellular phone handsets after about two new models are released this year, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported, without citing sources. Panasonic Mobile Communications Co and others that co-develop handsets with DoCoMo have already halted R&D operations for the products, the business daily said.

DoCoMo May Import LG Handsets

A first for a Korean manufacturer, LG Electronics Inc. is looking to set foot in the Japanese mobile phone market, the Seoul-based company said over the weekend. LG Electronics, the country’s second-largest electronics company, recently formed a task force to handle negotiations with NTT DoCoMo, the largest wireless communications company in Japan. Executives said that the company is aiming to supply 3G handsets to the Japanese communications giant.