Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

iPhone Has 46% of Japanese Smartphone Market

Posted by kdawson on from the it's-little-it's-lovely dept.

MBCook writes "Despite claims earlier in the year that the iPhone was hated by Japanese consumers (later disproved), the iPhone has been doing well in the land of the rising sun and the evidence is in. Apple has taken 46% of the Japanese smartphone market, cutting in half the once 27% market share of the previous lead, Advance Sharp W-Zero3 (Japanese site). The article includes a large chart of the market share of Japanese smartphones over the last 3 years."

2 of 214 comments (clear)

  1. Better Article at Engadget Mobile by teko_teko · · Score: 5, Informative

    Engadget Mobile provides a better perspective:

    iPhone nabs 46 pecent of Japanese smartphone market, the tiny Japanese smartphone market

    So you read a headline like "iPhone grabs 46 percent of the Japanese smartphone market" and the first thing you're likely to think is, "wow, Apple is really doing well for itself." Well, it is and it isn't. While it has made some considerable gains in the smartphone market at the expense of phones like Sharp's W-ZERO3 and the Willcom 03, it still hasn't gained nearly the same total mindshare or market share that it has over here. That's because "smartphones" as we know them are still a relatively small market in Japan, where carriers' lineups consist of a whole range of offerings including everything from mobile TV-equipped phones to true camera phones to perfume holders.

    Source

    1. Re:Better Article at Engadget Mobile by PeeweeJD · · Score: 5, Informative

      I spent a week in Tokyo back in November. When I was there, I saw 2 iPhones in the wild. Both were owned by the Americans I was traveling with. That is also 2 more than the number of Blackberries I noticed (besides the one I have).

      Everyone there has these flip phones with these really tall screens that rotate 90 degrees to "landscape" mode (they also watch TV on them).

      So yeah, US style "smartphones" are not really used. They use these mutant flip phones instead.