Terminal Technology
Terminal Technology

Japan 3G Phones Raising the Bar

Japan 3G Phones Raising the BarToday we look at some of the highlights from NTT DoCoMo’s 1 June 2004 press conference announcing the release of three new 3G cellphone each of which includes new functionality not seen before in the Japan market. This press event is typical for a new handset announcement; all three of Japan’s major cellcos (NTT DoCoMo, KDDI, Vodafone) conduct similar sessions for their new model releases. Today’s models all make the first FOMA handsets released back in late 2001 look fatter, clunkier, and more awful than ever. The battery life issues have been solved, and these sleek clam-shell beauties are more sophisticated than ever before.

Full Program Run-time 5:04, also available in Real Player and Quick-Time formats.

KDDI Pumping Up the BREW

On top of rolling out BREW 3.1, KDDI and Big Binary Brother Qualcomm are looking to bring BREW to the boil over the next two years by redeveloping BREW as a de facto OS, according to Nikkei BP today.

FeliCa-Enabled Wireless Watch

JCB, a leading international credit card brand, in cooperation with Casio, today launched a two-month trial of its new “Offica” wristwatch-based corporate solution. The Offica Watch [image] contains employee ID, access control, and cashless payment functions using Sony’s FeliCa contactless interface chip. Twenty-five JCB employees will use the Offica Watch instead of the current Offica card to access the JCB tower in central Tokyo, make purchases at company restaurants and stores, and carry out a variety of administrative functions.

ACCESS Announces First Full-Featured Browser for QUALCOMM'S BREW

ACCESS, a global provider of mobile content delivery and Internet access technologies, today announced that its NetFront v3.0 microbrowser is now available for QUALCOMM’s BREW(R) solution. With NetFront for BREW, mobile operators and handset manufacturers will have access to the some of the most advanced mobile browsing technology in the world. The company announced the product at the BREW 2004 Developers Conference being held June 7-9 in San Diego, California.

Fujitsu for FeliCa F900iC 3G FOMA

Yet another important pre-launch milestone for FeliCa, the break-through IC chip technology we feel is going to turn Japan’s mobile phones into e-wallets from next year, has been announced by Fujitsu: The company will incorporate the hardware it its next-generation F900iC handsets a scant 8 weeks from now. These new handsets, as we have argued in a series of articles over the last six months, have a very good chance of sparking a revolution in the way keitai are used in Japan.

NEC's Software Verification System Cuts Mobile LSI Development Costs

NEC Corporation and NEC Electronics Corporation today announced that they have succeeded in increasing efficiency of the development of software that operates complicated system LSI used in digital appliances and mobile phones through the development of a software verification system that substantially reduces development cost and time of system LSI.