The mobile future that wasn’t – Japanese Keitai Prototypes from 2000, 2001 and 2002
March 31, 2010 by Juergen Specht · 2 Comments
Back in the year 2000, the Japanese mobile phone market was the most advanced market in the world. DoCoMo’s newly launched service i-mode started practically the mobile revolution and Japanese handset makers became incredible creative in inventing new mobile device prototypes.
Latest since 2007 with the launch of the iPhone by an california based fruit company, all new phones became the long sought after smart phones the Japanese companies predicted back in the early years.
Flip-able mobile phone prototype by Hitachi, 2001
It’s time to look back at these early years, because many of the ideas and concepts integrated so successful into the iPhone where already available as prototypes back then, but only Apple was so bold and knowledgeable enough to integrate most of the good ideas into one single device.
We remember: In 2000, no mobile phone existed with full blown Internet access, there was no GPS and the integration of memory cards into a phone was an engineers dream. Even color screens were the future back then.
Mobile phone prototype with CCD camera and oddly shaped screen, 2000
In the years 2000-2003 I used to go to every mobile technology related trade show in Japan and photograph the newest utterly fascinating prototypes for my former “Showcase of Japanese Keitai Technology”, one of the first tech related blogs about new technology in Japan. The blog was shut down in 2003 after it was acquired by ValueClick Japan, which by itself became a LiveDoor company in a hostile takeover short after. The showcase was the first of many victims of this acquisition.
Enough time has passed now and I am able to show some of the prototypes I photographed between 2000 and 2002.
Panasonic mobile phone prototype with integrated GPS receiver, 2001
Nobody really predicted an practically button-less touchscreen device, so most of the prototypes contain many buttons, which take away valuable screen real estate.
Clam-shell type mobile phone prototype by Hitachi, 2000
Its also obvious that there was a trend to oddly shaped or even curvy screens, while today we practically only have conservative rectangle shaped screens on our phones.
Sanyo mobile phone prototype, 2000
Toshiba mobile phone prototype with oddly shaped screen, 2001
This device below was a rather strange device between strange devices…egg shaped, double screens and a phone, a game console and a media-player all in one. Today all of the concepts exist in one device, but nobody ever used an egg shape.
Egg-shaped mobile phone prototype with double screen, 2002
Another one of the oddly shaped screens, which even today are hard to create.
J-Phone mobile phone prototype with camera and oddly shaped screen, 2001
Bluetooth was also new back then, so many of the prototypes consisted out of 2 parts: the main handset and an additional device like here, a camera and screen to be worn on your wrist.
DoCoMo mobile phone prototype with external wrist camera and screen, 2000
Another Bluetooth enabled device consisting out of 2 parts.
Fujitsu mobile phone prototype with external headset and screen with rotatable camera, 2000
Hitachi mobile phone prototype, 2001
Some of the suggested shapes never saw mass production. I guess its obvious why.
NEC mobile phone prototype, 2001
AU slide-up style mobile phone prototype with rotatable camera, 2000
This Internet enable device with an integrated mobile phone was probably the closest back in 2000 what an iPad is today. Sony had so many chances to be where Apple is today, but they never made it.
Sony mobile Internet device, 2000
This one is just plain silly.
Hitachi mobile phone prototype with media player, 2001
And this prototype is rather stylish, but not a good phone.
NEC mobile phone prototype with media player, 2001
The Trium series demonstrated mobile ecommerce on all their prototypes, but honestly, who buys a teddy bear for $100US without even a picture?
Trium mobile device prototype, 2000
DoCoMo mobile phone prototype, 2000
If you cannot create one big screen, 2 will also do!
Sanyo mobile phone prototype with double OLED screens, 2001
This Panasonic prototype borrowed some elements from the PlayStation.
Panasonic mobile phone prototype with integrated games, 2001
Mobile phone prototype with music player, 2000
Hitachi mobile phone prototype with tall screen, camera and GPS, 2000
Mobile phone prototype with curvy screen, 2001
Trium Internet device prototype, 2001
Oddly shaped mobile phone prototypes by J-Phone, 2001
Panasonic was at it again, they wanted to create a game console, but also integrated a phone. It never left the prototype stage.
Panasonic game console and mobile phone prototype, 2000
And there was even a time where Nokia was creative!
Nokia mobile phone prototype, 2001
I guess this photo needs a longer explanation. DoCoMo introduced this working prototype of a wrist-worn phone, which used the bones of your hand as a conductor. When somebody called you, all you needed was to put your finger into your ear (!) and the handset used your bones to transmit the sound from your wrist to your finger into your ear. I was able to try it and it really worked, but it was not the most practical solution ever invented and you looked rather dorky when you started to talk with a finger in your ear.
DoCoMo wrist mobile phone prototype with bone conducting headset, 2000
Internet enabled device prototype, 2001
CyberBank mobile phone prototype, 2002
Mobile phone prototype, 2001
Mobile phone prototype, 2002
Another phone for your wrist. Practical, but unfortunately very little screen real estate.
Wrist style mobile phone prototype, 2001
NEC mobile Internet device prototypes, 2002
NEC mobile phone prototype, 2001
NEC also predicted the iPad back in 2002, but their emphasis was video conferences…we all know how popular this even 8 years later is.
NEC Internet enabled device prototype, 2002
Another device with a simulated GPS and traffic info system, which was very innovative back in 2000.
Toshiba mobile phone prototype with SD card and camera, 2000
Quite interesting topic.
Hopefuly a lot of these were dropped.
now i know where chinese phone cloners got their ideas. LOL