(keitai-l) Handset technology (was: JPEG & DSP on keitais)

From: Eijkemans, Paul <Paul.Eijkemans_at_ben.nl>
Date: 03/14/01
Message-ID: <41F2B29D1CB4D2118BD50008C7C562F10BD5DDCD@ben-mail01.ben.nl>
Michael, you seem very knowledgeable on keitai technology. Could you (and
the other members of the group) shed some light on the questions why Western
manufacturers are unable to create the same fancy handsets as the Japanese
manufacturers and why the Japanese manufacturers produce the same
unattractive handsets in the West as all Western manufacturers do?

The only technical explanation I can find so far is that GSM technology
needs more space as the technology itself is more advanced than PDC
technology. Hence also the difference in voice quality between GSM and PDC.

There are also non-technical explanations such as the grip of Japanese and
Korean manufactuers on the battery, colorscreen and handset-chip market. But
that does not explain the dumbness of the Japanese GSM handsets.

In this list I proposed earlier that the Japanese manufacturers will not
introduce fancy handsets in the West to avoid a competitive situation in
which the Western manufacturers are forced to introduce fancy models too,
thus gaining experience with producing fancy handsets. This will enable
Japanese manufacturers to introduce W-CDMA models in a market where those
handsets could easily outperform their competitors when it comes to
features; although outperforming in brand recognition would take some time
for those manufacturers that do not have a strong brand at this moment.  

The handset market in itself is not profitable. However, the whole consumer
electronics industry that leverages on miniaturization, small operating
systems, great circuitry design, etc., could be without too much competition
around.

Best regards,
Paul


>And there must be other functions of a keitai that would
>benefit from a DSP, ones that aren't engaged while
>browsing.  It could filter incoming and outgoing
>-m
>leap@gol.com


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Received on Wed Mar 14 19:48:01 2001