(keitai-l) Re: M-Services: Learning from Japan

From: Chris Lowery <chris_at_onegoodwindow.com>
Date: 06/18/01
Message-ID: <3B2E5BF8.99C6045@onegoodwindow.com>
Hi Josh, me and my Sprint/Sanyo UP.browser phone have some ideas,
please forgive me picking your mail to pieces:

Josh White wrote:
> I'm not sure that model works well other places.  In the US, 
> Sprint controls their handsets more than other carriers, 
> and I think it hurts them more than it helps.  I don't know how much 
> design control Sprint exerts over their partners, 

A lot - the WML Style Guide from Sprint/Phone.com says a lot about
what they agreed on and didn't. Yet alarmingly their hearts seemed
in the right place, on the mobile user's side.

That said, my phone works wonderfully, as far as WAP goes. It's
got a workable UI and good graphics support. There's four steps
to get from poweron to a bookmarked link, but whadayagonnado?
also, their emulator is the fastest, hands down, and doesn't 
crash too much.

> but I do know Sprint rebrands many of their handsets (e.g. The
> Sprint "NP1000" handset is the NeoPoint handset) and doesn't 
> offer Nokia products - perhaps the only US carrier not to do so.  
> This is remarkable because Nokia phones are very popular here.

Indeed. From the purely artist-myopic-bastard standpoint (hm,
it's comfortable here), Nokia graphics support is not so great,
even on the newer phones. On the other hand, not all Sprint 
phones even support graphics.

> I wonder: Does Sprint refuse to carry Nokia handsets because 
> Nokia won't make them Sprint-like?

I think it's more like: Sprint busted its ass getting the
UP.browser/phone.com/openwave technology working their way,
and they're uninterested in any other browser. Didn't someone
say phone.com helped with the KDDI browser as well?

> I wonder: in the US do the best handset designs come from 
> carriers (DoCoMo) or handset manufacturers (Nokia)?

I want to say 'when they all work together' but I really think
the best combos today are Japanese hardware + American software.
(just disclosure: typing this on a VAIO)

> -Josh

best,
chris.

-- 
Chris Lowery - Emergency Interface Technician - www.onegoodwindow.com
"doctor, heal thyself."

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Received on Mon Jun 18 22:43:38 2001