Japan

I didn't see this one coming, but it's not bad news.

Despite a slow start in the land of the rising sun, the iPhone is now apparently holding 46% of the smartphone market in this Japan, making this one of Apple's top markets.
A recent report has indicated that iPhone carrier Softbank has been aggressively marketing the device and offering it at a discount. Docomo, which carries both Android phones and BlackBerry devices has not done the same thing for those brands, where an HTC Android model is the #10 phone and the BlackBerry Bold is #11. 

For a brief time and quietly as a ninja, game developer Capcom released a port of Resident Evil 4 to the Japanese App Store. The app was only up for a brief period of time before they pulled it again, but not before the people at one Japanese iPhone website managed to record a video of gameplay and grab a few screenshots. You can check it out after the break.

In what appears to have been an attempt to draw in readers with sensationalist tactics, it has been found that the Wired article from last week claiming that "Japan Hates the iPhone" was incorrect, and the writer, Brian X. Chen, misrepresented the views of his sources, falsely drawing the conclusion that the iPhone is unpopular in the country without having any supporting evidence to back it up.

What don't the Japanese like about this feature-rich device that's forcing SoftBank, the official iPhone carrier in Japan, to have to literally give it away to get them out the door? Not enough bang for the buck and local brand loyalty, according to Global Crown Research analyst Tero Kuittinen. While the iPhone is considered the top of the heap elsewhere, Japan finds it unfashionably underwhelming.

SoftBank, the official carrier of the iPhone in Japan, is offering new users a free 8GB iPhone 3G or a 16GB for ¥11,520 (~$120) when they agree to sign up for a two year contract for basic, premium, or student plans as part of their "iPhone for Everybody Campaign". There is a catch, however. Instead of paying up front, users have to pay an additional ¥480 (~$5USD) on each monthly payment as part of the plan.

A new app has recently popped up in Japan's App Store that lets you use your iPhone as a web server. Called "ServersMan@iPhone" (translated to English), the app lets it host files on the web to be accessed or uploaded through a web browser using the webDAV protocol. When on the same network as the iPhone, a PC can connect to the device directly. Otherwise, the device uses FreeBit's VPN software make the connection.

Texas Instruments has announced the release of their DLP Pico projector. The device, described as the "world's smallest / lightest" projector, will go on sale in Japan on December 1st in Apple Stores for use with the iPhone and iPod for around ¥50,000 ($511). It comes with a dock connector, and offers 2 hours of battery life, an integrated 0.5 watt speaker, and is lit by a white LED that can project a 60-inch 480x320 pixel image up to 8.5 feet away. Video after the break.

Japanese website Nikkei Trendy claims to have confirmation from SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son himself that emoji, or the wide range of very popular and commonly used Japanese emoticons, will be available for the iPhone in Japan in the future. He also commented on an accessory they're currently working on that will both serve as a mobile TV receiver and extended battery pack for the iPhone.

While for a time it was believed that it would overcome it's shortcomings in the Japansese market, one analyst is now says that sales may fall very short of the predicted 1 million mark. Despite having enough to go around, its lack of features and high price could cause it to sell just half a million units.

Before the iPhone 3G was launched in Japan, some analysts were saying the iPhone would have a difficult time gaining ground in Japan due to it's lack of 3G and the cultural elements like scanning QC codes or a way to enter Japanese characters, or Sony's RFID-based "FeliCA" swipe chip for using Japanese vending machines. While this all may have been true for the iPhone, the iPhone 3G is enjoying great success.