I finally pulled the trigger and did the switch from NTT Docomo to AU. The Media Skin is the latest of AU’s designer keitais. Up until yesterday, I only saw pictures of the orange version and since I hate the color orange I wasn’t too interested. But my mind changed after seeing photos of the black one on K-Tai Watch and on Eddie’s Blog. Generally, I’m not into these fancy unconventional designer phones but I liked the fact that this one is made of black, rubbery, matt plastic and matches my GR Digital. It has an industrial feel to it that I like and absolutely no bling. In terms of specs, to my surprise, it does everything my SO903i can do and also has one-seg (digital tv) which is something I’ve been wanting but have not been attracted to any of the one-seg phones out there. The Media Skin is the thinnest one-seg phone at the moment. It’s a lot smaller than it appears in photos. Just a tad bigger than the S0902i and a bit smaller than the Apple iPhone.
The Media Skin is quite solid and more durable than it looks, although I’m not going to test that theory. The flap can be set to start and end calls when you open and close it, so it does serve some functional purpose. Thankfully, there’s no retractable clumsy antenna for the one-seg like the other phones so in order to watch TV you have to attach the headphone adapter cable, which doubles as the antenna. It also has FM radio, GPS, FeliCa, 1.3 MegaPixel Camera, Music Player and uses MicroSD so you can record TV for later viewing. I put in a 1GB card and can record up to 5.5 hours. Yay! The design doesn’t seem to have any Japanese characteristics and looks like it might have been made my Bang and Olufsen.
Switching to AU, I chose the closest package to what I have been paying on Docomo and it turned out to be almost ¥5,000 cheaper per month. And they gave me some nice Nakama Yukie goods too. On the down side, I still don’t like EZWeb and prefer I-Mode. It’s hard to find anything in the EZWeb menu. In terms of design and every day use, the receiver hole is right at the top edge so it’s a bit uncomfortable to the ear when talking on the phone. I can get used to it, I guess. The display is gonna get scratched to hell. For the first few days I’m usually very careful and then I end up throwing my phone in my pocket with my keys and spare change. This time I will buy a protective sheet. Another minor dislike is the backlight color for the keys. Why did they use that ugly amber color and not white? Also lacking is the ability to remotely lock your phone if you lose it. Although this wasn’t a deal breaker since I’ve never lost my handphone.
After playing with it all afternoon and evening I have to say that I’m liking this phone a lot more than I expected. It is a very beautiful handset and unlike other designer phones it has specs that are comparable to most of the best mobiles currently out there.
UPDATE: I discovered that it does have all the security features to lock the phone if you lost it. Also, it’s the first phone to have the key tone OFF by default.
Wow, saw that the other day, its certainly an interesting phone, its only 4 months since you got your last one though right? LOL..
It looks cool… but the only thing i dont like is the plastic feel of the thing.. matches the GR well though (I have a GR too by the way which is how….why? i found your blog in the first place) I wish there were more phones made of aluminum in Japan.. the plastic is a real turn off…..
Youre happy with it anyway? If so thats the main thing….. at least until the next one comes out ;-)
Damn, Roy, you really don’t need to think before buying things do you?! You’ve only just gone out to see it today and you’re already home with one! Hahahahaha… you rock!
You’re gonna have to gimme your new keitai mail address. Brought your phone number over or started fresh?
[可愛い] かわいい ですね.
nice… i thought my samsung a707 was cool until i see roy’s wonderful ケイタイ…
I really like this model, and in term of design AU is really better.Good choice!
I was looking at this yesterday but think the buttons are too close to each other.
It was bigger than I thought too.
This looks great. Was wondering though- does it have a Japanese-English dictionary built in? My old vodafone has one and I tend to use it a lot… If this were to have it then the switch is as good as done.
Aquarius, yeah I don’t like plastic much either but the black one feels more like rubber. Call me weird but I want cellphones to be made of industrial material and look like walkie talkies and communication devices. Not cheapo plastic cosmetic accessories. The similarities with the GR was one of the things that drew me to this as well as the fact that it is the thinnest one-seg.
Eddie, you have to make a decision quickly and then act on it immediately. Otherwise someone else will beat you to it. Same number, same email except different domain.
jonas, do not worry. The Apple iPhone will be available to you soon.
simon, thanks! it seems many people really dig the design of this phone.
Danny, I actually thought it was smaller than I expected. But agree that the buttons are too close. Still trying to get used to it. The price you pay for “design”
Mark, No it doesn’t seem to have a dictionary built into it. But you can find good dictionary services in both EZWeb and iMode so I wouldn’t worry about it.
Dang! You guys get all the good stuff. Let’s see if we ever get anything close to this over here in the States!
Hrrrphm…. I feel so old. I’m getting a RAZOR phone this week from work and it’s old and dated compared to this thing.
Stoneman
Good choice of wallpaper! I like the design a lot. Enjoy yourself!
Please let me know where I can find the Media Skin phone….my boss is going to kill me if I don;t get my hands on it!!!
Thanks! Connie.
hi, does anyone know if i can buy one of these in the uk, if it would work in the uk when unlocked, and if anyone outside the uk would be interested in helping me out by me sending you the money and you sending the phone?
please email me or post back here - thanks for your time.
Japanese cell phones are all tied to their carriers. There is no sim-lock/unlock feature like in other countries. So unless you live in Japan you really can’t use any of the phones here.
you can’t even unlock them like a normal phone?
i saw this handset at the london design museum, it’s so nice - i want to give them, not apple, my money when I buy a phone!
Hi , can you tell me if the Media Skin phone can be use in any other country outside of Japan ? is there such thing like you can unlock the phone so that the phone can be use outside of Japan ? If so where can i buy the phone in Tokyo . Please revert . Thank You
Regards
Farish