John R. Yamamoto-Wilson wrote:

> Hi. A lot of people will probably regard me as some kind of freak or
> dinosaur, but I've been living in Japan for fifteen years and never
> used a cell phone!

MY GHOD!  IT'S A FREAK!  (Happy?)

> Now, part of me says if I've done without one for fifteen years I can
> probably get by for another fifteen, but another part is beginning to
> find it increasingly difficult getting around the expectations of most
> other people (some of whom appear to recognise no other form of
> communication, and that includes actually meeting people and talking
> to them).

I procrastinated for many fewer years but, having taken the plunge, I 
opted for one of those Happy, Lucky, Monkey Cute Kitty phones that you 
can buy a prepaid card for and use only as needed.  But, with the 
Softbank Yen 900 campaign, they were offering to charge me less than I 
was spending, so I chose to give up and get a serious handset.

The odd thing is that I now find myself watching or reading something 
that takes place after about 1930 and prior to 1995 and wondering why 
the protagonist has to fight the Bad Guy alone when all he has to do is 
call his loyal side kick on his keitai ... before the little voice in 
the back of my head says "Oops!  Never mind ..."

> So, I'm thinking of taking the plunge. My wife says I should go for
> PHS, because it emits less radioactivity. For my part, if it's
> healthier (or less unhealthy), that's fine by me, but my main
> requirements are for a no-frills deal, that just lets me receive voice
> mail and text messages, with as little complication as possible.
> Preferably something with an English-language interface, but it
> doesn't matter that much.

If you believe all of that radiation and brain tumor crap, then you 
haven't been keeping up on your Lancet and New England Journal of 
Medicine reading.  Both say it is in the same category as Lamarckism and 
the belief that frogs are generated whole inside globs of mud.

However, you are an adult and free to follow any form of mythology your 
heart desires.

If you insist on PHS, then your choices are Willcom, Willcom, and ... 
Willcom.  Which isn't necessarily a Bad Thing.  Unless you intend to 
travel abroad and harbor any hope whatsoever of using your phone.  And 
if you don't mind portable phone temporary contract sellers in London 
telling jokes about you in Urdu while you stand there.

But, if you like internetting from the train or travel a lot, Willcom 
contracts can also include one of their AirEdge modems and "Tsunagi 
Houdai" service which is quite convenient for those three hour sits on 
the Shinkansen and when you're in a town where the only accommodation is 
a Taisho-jidai minshuku and the youngest person you met on the street is 
ten years older than your grandmother (think "Akita").

> Can anyone recommend a suitable model and give me some idea of what
> it'll be costing me to have such a creature? Being a dinosaur-freak, I
> have no idea what a typical contract looks like; is there a flat
> monthly rate, with an extra cost for actual calls made, or how does it
> work?

Handsets and service plans are quite separable.  You can have Hello 
Kitty or Bauhaus Modern with the same service contract.  Take a look at 
what you want / need and find the handset that gives it ... and be 
prepared to change your mind if you have to pay for the handset you want 
but can get a different model free.

Get the service guides for each of the providers and look at what their 
handsets do.  Pick out one that does what you want and wouldn't 
embarrass you to be seen with.

The really cheapest plan seems to be Softbank's White Plan at Yen 900 
per month.  But, be careful because that doesn't include the "rental" or 
24-month payment for your handset.  This will usually put you in the Yen 
2,400-3,200 per month area when you thought you were only signing up for 
Yen 900; but there are ways around.  Some sellers get rebates and 
kickbacks from the service providers and can get you a new handset free 
of charge, but you will have to shop around.

The big thing is, phones aren't just for talking in any more.  They're 
not going to let you get off that easily.

There are a couple of things you'll have to think carefully about before 
you jump in as they're mondo convenient ... at least for me they are. 
One is the ability to do Global Roaming and the other is the ability to 
load Suica / Pasmo credit.

Global Roaming is excellent if you travel a lot.  The main problem is 
that there are two types of phone systems out there and they are not 
compatible.  G3 was started by Vodaphone (Softbank) and is all over 
Europe and part of the US.  The other system, CDMA, was adopted by au 
and is used mainly in the Eastern US and Canada.  You have to decide if 
you want / need the service and also take a look at which type of 
service is available where you mostly go.  In my case, my mother and 
sister live six miles apart in the western suburbs of Minneapolis and I 
can only use CDMA from my mother's house but CDMA or G3 from my 
sister's.  Not all Japanese handsets even offer Global Roaming, so you 
have to check for the capability if you decide it is a feature you need.

The Suica / Pasmo interface is, for me, the greatest invention in 
history.  You don't need to carry a lot of cash, especially change, and 
you can travel a lot of places in Kanto, Kansai, and around Kita Kyushu 
just using the stored credit on your phone.  I don't go from my house to 
an office every day, but I have a lot of travel for client calls and 
other checks that requires me to get places as quickly as possible -- 
which, unfortunately rules out taking a car or motorcycle.  But, using 
the stored credit on my phone, I can take most trains, buses, ANA or JAL 
just by holding it up to the ticket gate or ticket dispenser.   When I 
fly, I can check in automatically using stored data in my handset.  In 
one business emergency, I was able to get on a train in Mito, go to 
Haneda, and be on the ground in Hakata in less than three hours using 
only my phone for payments the whole way.  When things ran too late, I 
was also able to get a hotel room and pay for it using only my phone. 
sometimes I think if I squint just right I can be James Bond for ... oh 
... ten or fifteen seconds at a time.

> Any advice welcome; remember, you're dealing with someone who hasn't
> got a clue about cell phones, so please keep it simple!

Two things I see no use for in Japan -- OneSeg (television) and 
Bluetooth.  I understand that singles in London and Frankfurt use 
Bluetooth to solicit anonymous sex encounters in odd corners of train 
stations, but I honestly have not seen any other use for the service 
that seems remotely interesting or useful and cannot be filled by 
something else less technological.

> Thanks in advance,

HTH.  Feel free to ask questions.

-- 
CL