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Its the newest wireless internet service. Its like WAP and 3G but it really is a competitor of those two. and its better (as one ad in Europe says, “its better than WAP”).

i-mode is a mobile email and Internet service launched by Japanese mobile communications leader NTT DoCoMo, Inc. in February 1999. Today it is used by more than 47.8 million subscribers　in Japan. Through NTT DoCoMo’s global partnerships, it is also available to mobile subscribers in 15 other countries in Asia and Europe.

I didn’t know what i-mode was so i did some research.

Now,  if i understand it correctly, its Japan’s way of saying we don’t want WAP (or 3G?)  because we have something better. => Then, other providers from other parts of the globe noticed it.. And now, SMART is bringing this technology here in the Philippines.

i-mode is now a global system where operators design the compatible handsets, give strong editorial and usability rules to content providers, and propose an open business model to them. i-mode uses open standards as technologies: a light version of HTML is used for producing content, the i-mode mail is interoperable with e-mail, images and sound formats are the ones used on the Web. i-mode users have access to various services such as e-mail, sports results, weather forecast, games, financial services and ticket booking.

i-mode was developed as an inexpensive method of packet-switched high-speed communication. “Packet-switched” means that i-mode communications are “always-on”, unlike voice calls which are circuit-based and only function after dial-up. Packet-switched data transfer remains relatively inexpensive as it is charged according to the number of individual packets of data sent and received.

-wikipedia

BUT….

Smart is not offering this to everyone yet… It’s EXCLUSIVE for Smart GOLD subscribers. Meaning.. for those under a plan. They’d get to try out this hi-tech service.

What services? Well not much for now…

Under the i-mode service, Smart Gold subscribers will have access to i-mail, allowing them to send email via their handset in the same simple way SMS messages are sent, and at the same cost of only P1 per message. As technologies develop and user-lifestyles evolve, Smart plans to make available more attractive and practical content and information to i-mode users in the Philippines.

- smart

Now i think this service has been present since year 2001… where you can send emails using text messaging. I just can’t remember how, what, and where.

Anyways, now you see the difference with using WAP/3G and i-mode. With WAP/3G, you need to enable/connect first to wap/3g - which will cost you 10.00 for first 30 mins of use. But i think with i-mode, sending text messages to emails is just like sending an ordinary text message. I’m not sure of this yet. Maybe they’ll give more details when they roll this out on March 15.

According to NTT DoCoMo’s website, here are the functionalities of i-mode

• automatically update the news and weather forecast displays as well as to play new games
• enables the user to check the weather forecast, traffic and store information and other convenient information for local areas as well as the map information to the user’s current location
• video distribution programs for i-mode mobile phone terminals and the contents
• transfers video captured with an i-motion compatible mobile phone via e-mail
• supports transfer of still images captured with an i-mode compatible phone
• distributes the latest news, weather forecasts and other information to i-channel compatible i-mode phones. The information is displayed on a standby screen without any special operation and users can access to more detailed information with a press of a button

Another big BUT…

The International Herald Tribune has this article saying that i-mode is now on its way OUT of Europe:

The British unit of O2 said it would phase out its i-mode service - used by only 250,000 consumers in Britain - by mid-2009.

the mobile operator  [O2] decided to phase out i-mode in England because it could not obtain enough handsets with the necessary i-mode software.

I-mode’s major drawback, Nicholas said, was that it was a closed system, requiring users to obtain i-mode software and forcing mobile content providers to adhere to rigid i-mode rules for designing Internet data and games for i-mode devices.

“I-mode is a good technology but it appears to be turning out to be a transitional technology,” Nicholas said. “The world is moving away from the ‘walled garden’ approach to the Internet to the totally open Internet experience, much like on your PC.”

Unlike the Web browsers found on most mobile phones, i-mode technology comes attached with technical strings, which limited its popularity among consumers, operators and the creators of mobile games and content.

Ok, so it looks like to use i-mode, you still need an i-mode compatible device? Wikipedia has a list:

* NEC 343i
* NEC 411i
* Samsung S500i
* Samsung Z320i
* Samsung S400i
* Sony Ericsson K550im
* Sony Ericsson K610im
* Motorola SLVR L7 i-mode
* Motorola SLVR L6 i-mode
* Nokia N95i

If this is true, its a big set back of this technology. Well, lets see.

For those who will be able to use it, please leave a comment here and share your experience. ok?

i-mode pic from source

Posted by: MiGs on the Buddy Blogs