SlashPhone » NTT DoCoMo

NTT DoCoMo Develops Mobile Phone Prototype Using Surplus Wood

Kim Poh Liaw — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 13:44:26 +0000

NTT DoCoMo has developed the mobile phone prototype made with the surplus wood of trees culled during thinning operations to maintain healthy forests. The prototype was created in collaboration with Sharp Corporation, Olympus Corporation and “more trees,” a reforestation project founded by musician Ryuichi Sakamoto and others.

The authentic cypress wood body of the prototype, which is named TOUCH WOOD, features excellent durability and resistance to water, insects and mildew thanks to special three-dimensional compression molding developed by Olympus Corporation. Conventional natural wood is not suitable for use as mobile phone bodies because they tend to wear out quickly.

The TOUCH WOOD is made from the surplus wood of trees culled during forest-thinning operations. This new commercial use for thinned wood, which traditionally has only limited applications, helps to preserve other wood resources while strengthening the health of overgrown forests.

[via k-tai]

DOCOMO, NEC, Panasonic, Fujitsu Push Ahead with LTE Mobile-Terminal Platform with 100Mbps link

Kim Poh Liaw — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:43:02 +0000

NTT DoCoMo, NEC, Panasonic and Fujitsu announced today that they are making progress with their joint development of “LTE-PF”, a mobile-terminal platform based on Long Term Evolution (LTE), a coming mobile communication standard for super-fast downlinks above 100 Mbps and uplinks above 50 Mbps.

The four companies have completed the development of an LTE-PF chipset engineering sample and are now evaluating its main functions. The sample will be exhibited at the NTT Group stand at ITU Telecom World 2009 in Geneva, Switzerland from October 5 to 9 and the DOCOMO stand at CEATEC JAPAN 2009 at Makuhari Messe, Chiba Prefecture, Japan from October 6 to 10.

NTT DoCoMo Announces New Solar Waterproof SH-08A

Kim Poh Liaw — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:09:37 +0000

To be available from September, NTT DoCoMo unveils its new Solar Hybrid SH-08A with waterproof protection. When the phone battery is used completely, you could have one minute of talkt ime with just 10 minutes of solar recharging via a panel on the phone’s body. The SOLAR HYBRID’s waterproof body is also resistant to water sprays from all directions and submergible to depths up to one meter.

Solar Hybrid SH-08A Specifications:

Dimension: 109 x 50 x 17.3 mm
Weight: 140 grams
Display: 3.0 inches (480 x 854 dots) 16,777,216 colors
microSDHC card slot
8.0 megapixels CCD camera

DOCOMO and PacketVideo Form Strategic Alliance for Mobile Multimedia Software and Services

Kim Poh Liaw — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 14:23:56 +0000

NTT DOCOMO and PacketVideo today announced that DOCOMO has acquired a 35-percent stake in PacketVideo for $45.5 million. The all-cash transaction, effective immediately, is intended to strengthen DOCOMO’s position in advanced music and video services in Japan.

The strategic alliance will enable DOCOMO to enhance its music and video service offerings while augmenting the competitiveness of both companies. In particular, the strengthened partnership will facilitate the efficient joint development of PacketVideo’s new technologies, ensuring a stable supply of increasingly advanced mobile applications technologies to DOCOMO.

Toshio Miki, Associate Senior Vice President, Managing Director of Communication Device Development Department for NTT DOCOMO, said: “PacketVideo has been a key supplier of software to DOCOMO and has made important contributions to the success of our services in the Japanese market. We are pleased to become an equity partner of PacketVideo and are very confident of the company’s continued growth and long-term success.”

DOCOMO to Launch Mobile Remittance Service

Kim Poh Liaw — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 06:48:46 +0000

NTT DoCoMo announced today a new service that will enable an individual subscriber to use their DOCOMO mobile phone to easily and quickly remit money to another DOCOMO user, beginning on July 21.

Customers of DOCOMO’s i-mode mobile Internet service on the FOMA 3G network will be able to remit up to 20,000 yen (about 208 U.S. dollars) per transfer, basically just by inputting the payee’s mobile phone number. The payee receives a mail notification via their DOCOMO mobile phone and is given the option of depositing the money in a domestic bank account or having the amount credited to their monthly DOCOMO phone bill. The payee can receive remittances totaling up to 200,000 yen (about 2,080 U.S. dollars) per month.

In addition to anytime, anywhere convenience, DOCOMO’s mobile remittance service does not require the payee to register for the service or open a new bank account. In addition, since the payer basically only requires the payee’s phone number to make the remittance, the payee does not have to divulge any private banking details.

The charges per payment (including consumption tax) will be 105 yen for the payer and 65 yen for the payee. The payee is not charged, however, if the remittance is deposited into a Mizuho Bank account or credited to their monthly DOCOMO phone bill.

DOCOMO’s European Subsidiary to Distribute Manga to Mobile Phones

Kim Poh Liaw — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:11:04 +0000

NTT DOCOMO announced today that its European subsidiary DOCOMO Netherlands B.V. will launch Europe’s first mobile-phone service for downloading Japanese comics, better known as manga, beginning today in France.

The service, named MANGA MODE, is expected to appeal to the growing number of people who enjoy reading manga, a popular form of Japanese pop culture.

Customers of French mobile operator Bouygues Telecom S.A. will be able to use the service to download French translations of famous manga into their mobile phones and view them panel by panel using a dedicated reader. A MANGA MODE mobile website where customers can sign up for the service will be accessible from Bouygues Telecom’s mobile web portal

DOCOMO, Tata Unveil New Brand for GSM Service in India

Kim Poh Liaw — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:04:03 +0000

NTT DOCOMO announced today the new TATA DOCOMO brand for a GSM service to be provided in India by Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL), in which DOCOMO owns a 26 percent stake.

TTSL plans to launch the GSM service in southern India this month and gradually expand it nationwide.

NTT DoCoMo Unveils 18 New Handsets in Japan

Kim Poh Liaw — Wed, 20 May 2009 08:05:13 +0000

NTT DOCOMO has just announced its lineup of 18 new handsets for launch on or after May 22. The lineup includes models in DOCOMO’s four main series of FOMA 3G handsets – docomo STYLE series, docomo PRIME series, docomo SMART series and docomo PRO series – and the new Evangelion Phone based on an upcoming anime film. HTC Magic will be launched as HT-03A in Japan, it will be the first Android smartphone for Japan users. Toshiba TG-01 windows mobile smartphone will be also available by July as T-01A in Japan language.

docomo STYLE series

Distinctive mobile phones designed like accessories and offered in a wide variety of fashionable designs and colors for individuals who want to project the latest “look”.

F-08A: Available in June 2009

Beautiful, softly contoured body with waterproofing for safe operation up to 1.5 meters underwater.

L-04A: Available in June to July 2009

Refined, esthetically clean slider phone with pressure-sensitive touchscreen that responds to fingernails.

N-08A: Available in May to June 2009

Elegantly slim body with colorfully illuminated keypad and powerful 8.1-megapixel camera.

P-08A: Available in June to July 2009

Swing/slider phone with stylishly ergonomic body and 8.1- megapixel camera for beautiful photos.

P-10A: Available in June 2009

Wide landscape screen and waterproof body for enjoyment of mobile TV in kitchen or bath.

SH-05A: Available in June 2009

Chic three-tone body with waterproof versatility and high-grade CCD 8-megapixel camera.

NTT DoCoMo Develops Spatial Audio Transmission Technology for Mobile Phones

Kim Poh Liaw — Wed, 13 May 2009 07:08:44 +0000

NTT DoCoMo has announced a new efficient mobile spatial audio transmission technology that enables a mobile phone user to assign a spatial position to each sound source when listening to multiple sound sources, such as during a game or a conference call. The processes are collaboratively performed on both the server and client sides. The server identifies the important sound components of each speaker’s voice, compresses them efficiently into a single stream and transmits it to the mobile phones. Each phone then decodes the received stream and simultaneously synthesizes spatial audio images.

The technology will enable a user listening with headphones to, for example, hear each speaker’s voice as if it were coming from a unique direction, creating a virtual face-to-face communication environment.

DOCOMO to Terminate 2G Mova Services in Year 2012

Kim Poh Liaw — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:20:23 +0000

NTT DOCOMO announced today it will discontinue its 2G mova service (including car phone and Pre-Call prepaid services), which began in March 1993, as well as its 2G DoPa packet communication service, which began in March 1997, at the end of March 2012. Associated services and related billing plans will also be terminated at the same time.

For mova customers who wish to shift to FOMA (3G), the company has launched a campaign offering discounts on the cost of purchasing a 3G handset and the waiving of any related administrative fees. DoPa Single customers making the transition to FOMA will receive cash back and will not be charged any administrative fees.