
IPad’s Arrival in Tokyo Causes Japanese to Reflect - asnyder
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/27/ipads-arrival-in-tokyo-causes-japanese-to-reflect/
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CrazedGeek
"Other industries are being shaken up by Apple’s latest export. Once solely
focused on creating games for dedicated consoles like the Wii from Nintendo
and more recently, for cellphones, the Japanese game developer Konami Digital
Entertainment, released an iPad version of its popular Metal Gear Solid Touch
this year. Capcom has followed suit, saying it will reformat its BioHazard 4
game for the iPad."

I'm not sure how porting a game to a different platform counts as shaking up
the industry. It seems more like an extension of the companies' previous
mobile phone strategies.

Also, just in case anyone didn't know, Biohazard is the Japanese name for
Resident Evil.

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pwim
_Then came ‘‘iPhone shock,’’ which sent Japan’s cellphone companies — long
used to scoffing at the clunky offerings from their overseas peers —
scrambling to develop similar smartphones._

Really? I have yet to see any Japanese concerted effort from Japanese carriers
to create an iPhone like device. Since the iPhone, it has been more or less
status quo in Japan, with the Japanese devices focusing more on new gimmicky
features like solar powered recharging or a "3D display", rather than focusing
on improving overall usability.

Sure, Japanese TV covered the launch this morning, showing people lining up to
buy the iPhone. But that's just because Japanese TV likes to show people
lining up for things, be it the opening of the hottest new fashion store, or
some ramen shop. Furthermore, because the line between advertisement and
actual programming is so thin in Japan, I would not be surprised if Apple or
SoftBank (the official carrier of iPhone and iPad) had something to do with
this.

So all in all, unlike these stories we've been seeing in the West, I don't
believe Apple products have had much of an effect on the Japanese market. And
that's unfortunate, as Japanese companies could learn something from them.

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BonoboBoner
When reading the title I thought the news was about the IPad's glossy screen
and its reflection outside...

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Jun8
Most important takeaway for me is: "The hype around the iPad in Tokyo
highlights what has become a sobering reality for a country once considered
the technological trend-setter; Japan now frequently looks overseas for
innovation."

Anyone has a theory as to why this happened? Japan seemed unstoppable so
recently? Yes, their economy is in a recession for years but it seems such
things have little effect on the American innovation engine (in fact
innovation benefits when economic hardship acts as natural selection effects).

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potatolicious
It's really an isolated Apple thing I suspect - it's not as if Japan has
suddenly gravitated towards American or European products in a bigger way than
before.

Asian tech cycles run a lot faster - in my experience people are willing to
sink a lot more disposable income into gadgetry. My fashionable relatives in
Taiwan routinely sink contract-free prices once or twice a year into phones
just to stay on the bleeding edge - and these aren't tech geeks either.

It's no wonder that a culture/economy that treats technology as a fashion
statement would gravitate towards stylish devices. Apple out-styled the likes
of Sony, that's all.

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Jun8
That's a valid point but I don't think the answer is as simple as that. About
2 months ago HN had a submission about why Japan didn't invent the iPad
(<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1197702>). To me many of the points made
in that post (totally different innovation cultures) sound like a better
explanation.

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joubert
iPad wasn't invented by a country

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_delirium
Apple, at least, seems to play up the iPad as an American device pretty
heavily--- lots of "Designed by Apple in California" on packaging. Of course,
there are marketing reasons for that.

~~~
joubert
They don't say designed in America.

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stuntmouse
Why doesn't the Times capitalize iPad correctly?

