Japan's unique feature phones, known as gara-kei, are facing extinction as smartphone adoption reaches 98% and carriers sunset 3G networks. Once integral to daily life with One-Seg TV, contact sharing, and IC card payments, these durable clamshells are losing relevance. NTT Docomo's shutdown of 3G data service this March, following au and SoftBank's earlier retirements, affects over 400 phone models and half a million users.
An aging population and government-led digital literacy campaigns are accelerating the shift to smartphones, marking the end of an era for a generation that grew up with tactile keypads and lanyard accessories.
Source: Engadget · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing