I'm definitely open to the idea of foldables or even flip phones (perhaps even enthused!). I'm gutted that the Japanese "Galapagos syndrome" keitei are becoming extinct with fewer and fewer releases each year. The ones that are newly available tend to run Android 10 (yikes). The keitei were always very tasteful, ergonomic, and sensible. Sure, not always flashy in specs, but they didn't need to be when they prioritized the form above everything. Would love for the rest of the world to pick up this dropped ball and run with it.
I've also been interested in this but a little at sea when it comes to navigating the alternate dimension of Japanese flip phones. Do you have any recommendations when it comes to identifying the last best example of the Japanese flip phone?
The first and foremost thing is checking the radio frequencies it operates on. Depending on where you live (or travel!), you might not be able to use it. Each device is different, so don't fall in love with it before you've checked the frequencies on the spec sheet.
Then, realistically, you need to make sure that apps you do want to use do still offer functioning Android builds for what's almost certainly going to be an older version of Android running on a keitei. You might really struggle with banking apps due to this (despite plenty of keitei having NFC!), it depends on your bank's policies. You might also struggle with any official government apps if they force a recent version of Android.
If it's Android, you can almost certainly run it in English, but beware any obscure outliers who heavily customize their ROMs and save space by removing other languages (few and far between, but they apparently do exist and can bite you on the ass if you don't read Japanese!).
You'll probably really struggle to make it work for you overall if you don't live in Japan where this kind of phone is still expected to be supported. There's some beautiful phones, absolutely gorgeous designs in fact, but the above are a total pain in the arse and is what's made it non-viable for me (what forced me over to a Pixel 6a on release). The Pixel 6a getting a firmware update today that affected my battery (https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/16340779?hl=en) is why I'm pining after another keitei, but I don't think there's anything that can tick the necessary boxes for me. I'm gutted!
There are some nice ones that have dual-screens, touchscreens, and touch-sensitive capacitive keypads for scrolling or navigation. Some can be folded to be used like a standard touch-only candybar style phone if you don't want to use the keypad. Some allow the display to be rotated, but those are very uncommon these days.
I hear Gen Z loves retro flip phones as they are less intrusive and more sensible with swappable batteries, built-in screen protection et al, so perhaps there's a potential market fit for something in the West that ticks these very specific boxes.
The funny thing is that I look at the average side-opening book-style wallet-esque case for candybar style touch phones in the West and they're basically recreating the beefits of flip phones with the hinged screen cover cases, but without much of the impact protection.
I'm not a luddite by any means, I'm not even nostalgic for flip phones in any way, I just think that I've realized there's pros and cons to both, and the current offerings available in the West don't really suit me.
Most popular phones in Japan these days in terms of units sold? iPhone and Pixel. That's what's killing the "Galapogos syndrome" keitei in terms of new models! A few friends I have in Japan find the candybar form-factor to be novel and cool, and others want larger screens for media, specific iOS-exclusive apps. or just enjoy the Apple ecosystem as they use a Mac for their work and play. They do tend to agree that there's pros and cons to both though! Pixel trails after the iPhone in numbers BTW.
It's interesting to see someone bring up ThinkPads!
I have been saying for a few years now that I want the "classic ThinkPad of phones" with readily available parts, sensible design choices (drainage holes on ThinkPads were a boon! Same with quickly swappable battery handles!) and some kind of afterlife that goes beyond whatever the manufacturer or OS developer decides it is going to be.
To my knowledge of keitei, there aren't any Richard Sapper-ish ThinkPad-styled ones, but you do occasionally see red flourishes like the ThinkPad nurple/TrackPoint, but they're usually on things like a SIM card tray, but not generally contrasted by black, but similar impact to Sapper's distinctive style.
I love me some utilitarian industrial design—I think that's what I'm searching for in modern phones. Sadly, I think that mentality is leaving us as the likes of Sapper pop their clogs and take the mindset with them. It's definitely somewhat oldskool values buried amidst all this.
Sent from my modded classic ThinkPad next to Richard Sapper's '70s Artemide Tizio lamp with an aftermarket LED upgrade to make it energy efficient. :- )
