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Apple in the pink for Japan’s cherry blossom season

Rick Martin 2014.03.25

Here in Japan, the annual cherry blossom season is upon us, as cherry trees have already started to flower in the nation’s more southern regions, with Tokyo expected to be blooming this weekend or early next week. Interestingly, Japan’s hanami (cherry blossom viewing) season has an almost holiday like status, and even Apple is in agreement, with a featured section in the App Store for hanami-related apps and media. The recommended apps include some obvious choices like ‘Cherry Blossoms – Best 100 in Japan’ and the somewhat pricey Sakura reference book app. But other recommendations like the Pizza Hut app certainly won’t go unappreciated by the many park-goers in Japan once they down a few beers. This featured section of the Japanese App Store is an interesting addition by Apple. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of any other naturally occurring phenomenon that has received such status from the Cupertino company. This is a good example of how a company should be aware of local customs and traditions here in Japan. The local mobile market can be a tough nut to crack, but anticipating user needs during seasonal times or holidays is one way that a company…

Here in Japan, the annual cherry blossom season is upon us, as cherry trees have already started to flower in the nation’s more southern regions, with Tokyo expected to be blooming this weekend or early next week. Interestingly, Japan’s hanami (cherry blossom viewing) season has an almost holiday like status, and even Apple is in agreement, with a featured section in the App Store for hanami-related apps and media.

The recommended apps include some obvious choices like ‘Cherry Blossoms – Best 100 in Japan’ and the somewhat pricey Sakura reference book app. But other recommendations like the Pizza Hut app certainly won’t go unappreciated by the many park-goers in Japan once they down a few beers.

This featured section of the Japanese App Store is an interesting addition by Apple. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of any other naturally occurring phenomenon that has received such status from the Cupertino company.

This is a good example of how a company should be aware of local customs and traditions here in Japan. The local mobile market can be a tough nut to crack, but anticipating user needs during seasonal times or holidays is one way that a company like Apple can connect with consumers.

If you’re searching for some popular hanami spots in Tokyo, here are a few recommended ones over on The Japan Times, as well as extensive lists of spots from WalkerPlus and the Tokyo Metropolitan Park Association.

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Apple’s new iPhone 5C and 5s start hot in Japan [Photos]

Rick Martin 2013.09.22

It’s opening weekend for Apple’s new iPhone 5C and 5S here in Japan. And I was curious to see that even on a very hot Sunday morning there were perhaps a hundred people lined up at the Apple Store in Shibuya, even though it’s the third day that they’ve been on sale. You can check out more pictures below. Now that the iPhone is on NTT Docomo , Apple’s presence in Japan has significant room to grow. The carrier has 55 million mobile subscribers, and has finally given up on their aspirations to crapwarify the popular handset with their vision of a ‘lifestyle system’. But clearly customers want something different, as Docomo’s flagship Galaxy S4 has disappointed. With a population that is both very health- and fashion- conscious, expect the new iPhone 5S to do especially well in Japan, with the fashionable gold model and the new M7 motion coprocessor bringing new kinds of fitness apps to the platform.

It’s opening weekend for Apple’s new iPhone 5C and 5S here in Japan. And I was curious to see that even on a very hot Sunday morning there were perhaps a hundred people lined up at the Apple Store in Shibuya, even though it’s the third day that they’ve been on sale. You can check out more pictures below.

Now that the iPhone is on NTT Docomo , Apple’s presence in Japan has significant room to grow. The carrier has 55 million mobile subscribers, and has finally given up on their aspirations to crapwarify the popular handset with their vision of a ‘lifestyle system’.

But clearly customers want something different, as Docomo’s flagship Galaxy S4 has disappointed.

With a population that is both very health- and fashion- conscious, expect the new iPhone 5S to do especially well in Japan, with the fashionable gold model and the new M7 motion coprocessor bringing new kinds of fitness apps to the platform.

news

With strong iPhone sales, Apple’s biggest regional revenue growth was Japan

Rick Martin 2013.07.24

Apple reported its Q3 2013 earnings yesterday, showing a record June quarter for iPhone sales, helped by very strong sales in Japan in particular, which grew 66% over the same period the year before. In fact, amid sluggish international revenue growth for the Cupertino company, Japan represented the biggest regional yearly revenue growth, up more than 26 percent while most other regions dropped (see chart above). Overall Apple’s quarterly revenue was $35.3 billion, up 1% on the year before. iPhone sales were up 20%, and in addition to Japan, the U.S., UK, Japan, Brazil, Russia, India, Thailand and Singapore all grew well. On the earnings call, CEO Tim Cook was asked if he thought smartphone markets were reaching saturation on the high end. Cook expressed confidence that, at least for Apple, they are not: From a growth point of view for Apple our key catalysts will be always will be new products and new services, and these are above in existing categories. […] And I don’t subscribe to the common view that […] the smartphone market is at it’s peak. I don’t believe that, but we will see and we will report our result as we go along. For Apple…

Apple reported its Q3 2013 earnings yesterday, showing a record June quarter for iPhone sales, helped by very strong sales in Japan in particular, which grew 66% over the same period the year before. In fact, amid sluggish international revenue growth for the Cupertino company, Japan represented the biggest regional yearly revenue growth, up more than 26 percent while most other regions dropped (see chart above).

Overall Apple’s quarterly revenue was $35.3 billion, up 1% on the year before. iPhone sales were up 20%, and in addition to Japan, the U.S., UK, Japan, Brazil, Russia, India, Thailand and Singapore all grew well.

On the earnings call, CEO Tim Cook was asked if he thought smartphone markets were reaching saturation on the high end. Cook expressed confidence that, at least for Apple, they are not:

From a growth point of view for Apple our key catalysts will be always will be new products and new services, and these are above in existing categories. […] And I don’t subscribe to the common view that […] the smartphone market is at it’s peak. I don’t believe that, but we will see and we will report our result as we go along.

For Apple here in Japan, the most obvious opportunity for growth lies specifically in the 61 million Docomo subscribers that its handsets currently do not reach. Apple has partnered with rival carriers KDDI/au and Softbank, but Docomo remains a staunch holdout.

apple-quarterly-revenue — Apple quarterly revenue (millions)

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In Japan, creative trash can mod yields faux Mac Pro

Rick Martin 2013.06.27

Many of you may have seen the now famous ‘Tubelor’ trash can selling on Amazon Japan that bears a striking resemblance to the new Mac Pro. Well, it was probably inevitable that this would happen, but someone has taken that trash can and turned it into a PC case, effectively making a very cheap, but still very slick looking faux Mac Pro computer. The folks over at Ascii.jp have outlined the process undertaken by a former PC parts shop worker. The guts of his machine are a 2.5 GHz i3 processor, two sticks of DDR3 RAM (2GB each), an Intel DH67CF system board, and two 120GB solid state drives. Also included in the build were a 150W FlexATX power supply, a 12-centimeter fan, and an aluminum plate base which will be vertically oriented within the trash-can casing. I’ve included a few pictures below, but to view the whole series of steps, do check out the Ascii post in its entirety (Google Translate). It’s a pretty great hack that will certainly turn some heads among your Mac-loving friends if you can pull it off. Of course, this isn’t the first time that Japan has been inspired by the new Mac Pro’s…

mac-pro-fauz — Faux Mac Pro made from Tubelor garbage can (photo via Ascii.jp)

Many of you may have seen the now famous ‘Tubelor’ trash can selling on Amazon Japan that bears a striking resemblance to the new Mac Pro. Well, it was probably inevitable that this would happen, but someone has taken that trash can and turned it into a PC case, effectively making a very cheap, but still very slick looking faux Mac Pro computer.

The folks over at Ascii.jp have outlined the process undertaken by a former PC parts shop worker. The guts of his machine are a 2.5 GHz i3 processor, two sticks of DDR3 RAM (2GB each), an Intel DH67CF system board, and two 120GB solid state drives. Also included in the build were a 150W FlexATX power supply, a 12-centimeter fan, and an aluminum plate base which will be vertically oriented within the trash-can casing.

I’ve included a few pictures below, but to view the whole series of steps, do check out the Ascii post in its entirety (Google Translate). It’s a pretty great hack that will certainly turn some heads among your Mac-loving friends if you can pull it off.

Of course, this isn’t the first time that Japan has been inspired by the new Mac Pro’s unusual appearance. You may recall the many creative photoshop interpretations that many Japanese netizens published just after the Mac Pro was announced at WWDC. So much fun!

(Via @freaklabs on Twitter)

garbage can mac pro — The ‘Tubelor’ garbage can, as seen on Amazon Japan. 3465 yen, or $35

Faux Mac Pro made from Tubelor garbage can (photo via Ascii.jp)

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Can’t find your iPhone in your purse? Tunewear has the case for you

Yukari Mitsuhashi 2013.06.13

Women’s bags tend to be the destination for an endless number of daily items. This causes a problem. When your phone is ringing, we often struggle to find our phones among the clutter, and we sometimes even miss the call as a result. Well, worry no more! A new iPhone case from Japan solves this problem. It’s called Julia Phone Pochette by Tunewear. This iPhone case is essentially a tiny sholder bag, just big enough to hold your handset. It also comes equipped with several pockets for your IC cards (for public transport) and a pretty gold chain to strap over your shoulder. It comes in three color variations: red, pink, and green, and is available for 3980 yen (or about $42). There are a lot mobile phone accessories and decorations in Japan — some weird, some cute, some very convenient. This product reminded me of a past initiative by Softbank Selection, where they turned to Facebook to find out what kind of things women prefer for their mobile phones. It’s great to see companies paying attention to women’s needs in this way. I’m sure it’s a strategy that will pay off with big sales, especially here in Japan.

Women’s bags tend to be the destination for an endless number of daily items. This causes a problem. When your phone is ringing, we often struggle to find our phones among the clutter, and we sometimes even miss the call as a result. Well, worry no more! A new iPhone case from Japan solves this problem. It’s called Julia Phone Pochette by Tunewear.

This iPhone case is essentially a tiny sholder bag, just big enough to hold your handset. It also comes equipped with several pockets for your IC cards (for public transport) and a pretty gold chain to strap over your shoulder. It comes in three color variations: red, pink, and green, and is available for 3980 yen (or about $42).

There are a lot mobile phone accessories and decorations in Japan — some weird, some cute, some very convenient. This product reminded me of a past initiative by Softbank Selection, where they turned to Facebook to find out what kind of things women prefer for their mobile phones.

It’s great to see companies paying attention to women’s needs in this way. I’m sure it’s a strategy that will pay off with big sales, especially here in Japan.

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Japan’s impressions of the new Mac Pro: Tasty!

Rick Martin 2013.06.11

It has been less than 24 hours since Apple unveiled the new Mac Pro at WWDC. Since then, it hasn’t been hard to find wisecracks on the interwebs about the computer’s tubular (or Tubelor?) appearance. Maybe it’s a garbage can? A flower pot? Or maybe a long lost cousin of R2-D2? On the Japanese net, the conversation has taken a bit of a creative turn, with a number of observers pointing out that the new Mac Pro would make an awesome cooking pot. We’ve collected a few pictures from some of the matome out there, and presented them below. They don’t really require any translations as the pictures speak for themselves! [View the story “What Japan thinks of the new Mac Pro” on Storify]

It has been less than 24 hours since Apple unveiled the new Mac Pro at WWDC. Since then, it hasn’t been hard to find wisecracks on the interwebs about the computer’s tubular (or Tubelor?) appearance. Maybe it’s a garbage can? A flower pot? Or maybe a long lost cousin of R2-D2?

On the Japanese net, the conversation has taken a bit of a creative turn, with a number of observers pointing out that the new Mac Pro would make an awesome cooking pot. We’ve collected a few pictures from some of the matome out there, and presented them below.

They don’t really require any translations as the pictures speak for themselves!

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2012 was Apple’s first year on top of Japan’s mobile market

Rick Martin 2013.03.21

IDC Japan has released its figures on the Japan mobile market for 2012, and it will likely come as no surprise that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) held the largest share of the smartphone market at 33.1%. Readers may recall that it was just a year ago that Apple topped the smartphone market for the first time in the country. But what I find interesting here is the less imposing figure for the mobile market overall, where Apple now leads with 23.3%. If we compare this with IDC figures from 2011 (see below), it shows just how much progress the Cupertino company has made in Japan, leapfrogging Sharp and Fujitsu [1] for its first year on top of the entire mobile market. Anyone remember that old Wired article from a few years back? Yeah, that doesn’t age so well. [IDC Japan] In IDC’s 2011 report it was ‘Fujitsu/Toshiba’, as it was prior to Fujitsu acquiring Toshiba’s stake in Fujitsu Mobile, which occurred in April 2012. ↩

IDC Japan has released its figures on the Japan mobile market for 2012, and it will likely come as no surprise that Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) held the largest share of the smartphone market at 33.1%. Readers may recall that it was just a year ago that Apple topped the smartphone market for the first time in the country.

But what I find interesting here is the less imposing figure for the mobile market overall, where Apple now leads with 23.3%. If we compare this with IDC figures from 2011 (see below), it shows just how much progress the Cupertino company has made in Japan, leapfrogging Sharp and Fujitsu [1] for its first year on top of the entire mobile market. Anyone remember that old Wired article from a few years back? Yeah, that doesn’t age so well. [IDC Japan]

In IDC’s 2011 report it was ‘Fujitsu/Toshiba’, as it was prior to Fujitsu acquiring Toshiba’s stake in Fujitsu Mobile, which occurred in April 2012. ↩

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Apple announces paid content for iBookstore in Japan

Rick Martin 2013.03.06

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has released an update to its iBooks application, which finally introduces paid content for users in Japan from the iBookstore. The update also includes improvements for Asian language books, and ostensibly that includes Japanese. We heard early reports about this development back in December, with Nikkei writing that Apple had 80,000 titles ready to go from local publishers. We’re not sure what the official number of offerings is, but the iBookstore now offers a wide variety of manga and novels, including big name titles like One Piece. CNet Japan notes that publishers on board include Kodansha, Kobunsha, Gentosha, Shueisha, and PHP Institute. The Japanese ebook scene is a notoriously difficult one for Western companies to penetrate, and Amazon can attest to this as its Kindle ebook reader took forever to arrive. This was reportedly due to long, tedious negotiations with Japanese publishers who are are resistant to having their industry disrupted. Apple, no doubt, had work hard to get past those same issues. (Via Tuaw)

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) has released an update to its iBooks application, which finally introduces paid content for users in Japan from the iBookstore. The update also includes improvements for Asian language books, and ostensibly that includes Japanese. We heard early reports about this development back in December, with Nikkei writing that Apple had 80,000 titles ready to go from local publishers.

We’re not sure what the official number of offerings is, but the iBookstore now offers a wide variety of manga and novels, including big name titles like One Piece. CNet Japan notes that publishers on board include Kodansha, Kobunsha, Gentosha, Shueisha, and PHP Institute.

The Japanese ebook scene is a notoriously difficult one for Western companies to penetrate, and Amazon can attest to this as its Kindle ebook reader took forever to arrive. This was reportedly due to long, tedious negotiations with Japanese publishers who are are resistant to having their industry disrupted. Apple, no doubt, had work hard to get past those same issues. (Via Tuaw)

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Have a bubble wrap fetish? New iPhone 5 case from Japan has you covered!

Rick Martin 2013.02.26

Few among us can resist the simple pleasure of popping bubble wrap. Japan’s Bandai capitalized on this widespread public fetish a few years back when it produced its Mugen Puchipuchi keychain. And now, phone accessory vendor Strapya has just released a similar product, as its new Puchipuchi iPhone 5 case brings bubble wrap goodness to the backside of the Apple’s latest smartphone. Like Bandai’s keychain, the bubbles can be popped an infinite number of times, so you can keep popping for as long as you want — or until someone comes along and punches you in the face for making a racket, whichever comes first. Check out the demo video below, which shows some lucky fellow in bubble-popping ecstacy. The case is priced at 2,100 yen (or about $23) and can be ordered from the Strapya website. Of course that case only gives you bubble popping on the back of your iPhone. But if you’d like to take care of the front too, check out the Puchipuchi kibun application for iOS which lets you pop virtual bubbles on your screen. Similarly for Android users, there’s the Hatsune Miku-themed bubble pack + miku application available on Google Play.

Few among us can resist the simple pleasure of popping bubble wrap. Japan’s Bandai capitalized on this widespread public fetish a few years back when it produced its Mugen Puchipuchi keychain. And now, phone accessory vendor Strapya has just released a similar product, as its new Puchipuchi iPhone 5 case brings bubble wrap goodness to the backside of the Apple’s latest smartphone.

Like Bandai’s keychain, the bubbles can be popped an infinite number of times, so you can keep popping for as long as you want — or until someone comes along and punches you in the face for making a racket, whichever comes first. Check out the demo video below, which shows some lucky fellow in bubble-popping ecstacy.

The case is priced at 2,100 yen (or about $23) and can be ordered from the Strapya website.

Of course that case only gives you bubble popping on the back of your iPhone. But if you’d like to take care of the front too, check out the Puchipuchi kibun application for iOS which lets you pop virtual bubbles on your screen. Similarly for Android users, there’s the Hatsune Miku-themed bubble pack + miku application available on Google Play.

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Smartphone penetration at 40% in Japan, survey says iPhone most favored

Yukari Mitsuhashi 2013.02.08

If you hop on any train in Tokyo, you’ll notice that everywhere you look people are using a smartphone. But what is the actual smartphone penetration rate in Japan? I recently stumbled upon some data by Impress R&D where the company surveyed 85,000 internet users about their smartphone usage. According to the survey, the smartphone penetration rate in Japan was 39.8% as of November 2012. That’s a significant increase from 22.9% in October 2011, and about a 10% increase from May of the same year, as you can see in the chart above. Most men and women in their 20s own smartphones: about 58.9% for men and 58.5% for women. Men in their 30s are the next highest demographic at 53.7%, followed by teenage boys. Japan loves the iPhone ¶ So what kind of smartphone do they use? It turns out Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone is the most popular with 31.5%. It’s followed by an assortment of Android runners-up: 12.1% have Sharp’s Aquos phone, 12% have Sony’s Xperia, 7.2% are using the Samsung Galaxy, and 6.0% opt for Fujitsu’s Arrows. In terms of operating systems, iOS accounts for 33.1% and Android makes up 66.4% — that’s a 5.5% increase for Android…

If you hop on any train in Tokyo, you’ll notice that everywhere you look people are using a smartphone. But what is the actual smartphone penetration rate in Japan? I recently stumbled upon some data by Impress R&D where the company surveyed 85,000 internet users about their smartphone usage.

According to the survey, the smartphone penetration rate in Japan was 39.8% as of November 2012. That’s a significant increase from 22.9% in October 2011, and about a 10% increase from May of the same year, as you can see in the chart above. Most men and women in their 20s own smartphones: about 58.9% for men and 58.5% for women. Men in their 30s are the next highest demographic at 53.7%, followed by teenage boys.

Japan loves the iPhone ¶

So what kind of smartphone do they use? It turns out Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone is the most popular with 31.5%. It’s followed by an assortment of Android runners-up: 12.1% have Sharp’s Aquos phone, 12% have Sony’s Xperia, 7.2% are using the Samsung Galaxy, and 6.0% opt for Fujitsu’s Arrows. In terms of operating systems, iOS accounts for 33.1% and Android makes up 66.4% — that’s a 5.5% increase for Android since last year for those of you keeping score at home.

Impress also asked about respondents’ use of social media. 38.7% responded that they use Facebook (compared to 25.4% last year) and 37.9% use Twitter (40.6% last year). According to another survey focusing on Facebook usage in Asian countries, Japan ranked fifth with 16.35 million estimated users [1]. Surprisingly, more and more people are using Facebook, and many of them appear to be moving on from Twitter.

The ever-growing mobile chat application Line place placed third with 33.9% of respondents using the service. Although in a recent MMD Laboratory survey of 670 respondents, Line came out as the most favored social service.

The most common usage of smartphones is texting or email according to 28% of respondents, followed by browsing the web and talking 14.2%, followed by social media at 13.2%.

SocialBakers currently puts the number at about 13.8 million, so take both these totals with a grain of salt. ↩

apple

Apple in the pink for Japan’s cherry blossom season

Apple’s new iPhone 5C and 5s start hot in Japan [Photos]

With strong iPhone sales, Apple’s biggest regional revenue growth was Japan

In Japan, creative trash can mod yields faux Mac Pro

Can’t find your iPhone in your purse? Tunewear has the case for you

Japan’s impressions of the new Mac Pro: Tasty!

2012 was Apple’s first year on top of Japan’s mobile market

Apple announces paid content for iBookstore in Japan

Have a bubble wrap fetish? New iPhone 5 case from Japan has you covered!

Smartphone penetration at 40% in Japan, survey says iPhone most favored

Japan loves the iPhone ¶

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