GaijinPot

Cell Phones

The mobile phone is an incredible piece of technology, changing the way we keep in touch. Nowhere is this more true than in Japan, where keitai are constantly glued to people’s ears or – if they’re texting – fingers. Indeed, for anybody living in Japan who wants a social or professional life in any sense, the cell phone has become an indispensable tool.

Cell phone numbers usually take the form 090-1234-5678, always with eleven digits.

Getting Started

In order to have a working cell phone, you need both a handset (the physical phone itself) and cell phone service. You’ll need to first go to your local cell phone service provider. Below, you’ll find a list of service providers in Japan, along with links to their websites. From there, it should be easy enough to find a location where you are, since stores like Softbank, AU and Docomo are ubiquitous throughout the country.

At the store, you’ll first have to make a choice: contract or prepaid. Choose contract if you’re going to stay 2 years or more, prepaid if you’re going to stay less than a year. The area in between is tough, since most of the cell phone companies won’t offer any significant discount on handsets unless you sign up for a 2-year contract, but doing prepaid for more than a year doesn’t quite make sense. With prepaid service, you’ll probably miss out on Internet and other cool features on your phone.

Whatever you choose, you’re going to need to show ID (gaijin card) to prove you’re 20 years old or over – this is the legal age for signing up for a cell phone. Also, your gaijin card might be required to show the company that you’re in the country for a while and won’t skip out on the bill. Some companies may also ask for your Proof of Address form (from your local city office) and even proof that you will be in the country for at least 2 years (if you’re doing a 2-year contract).

Also, if you’re doing a contract, you’re going to need to have a Japanese bank account and all the info with you.

Cell Phones Explained

Cell phones in Japan are used just for calling or texting but also to access the internet to check time table for trains, email or read the news. i-Mode was developed first by NTT in Japan and is basically Internet and email for mobile phones. It is very popular in Japan now and many Internet sites also have i-Mode capabilities.

Cell phone manners

In Japan you are not allowed to talk on the phone on the subway or on trains as well as a number of other places. You are also asked to have the cell phone on manner mode to avoid disturbing those around you. Manner mode is basically the same as silent mode and is used not only on public transportations but by many whenever being in public environments. So when you buy your cell phone make sure to ask how you turn on manner mode and don’t forget to turn it on when you are using public transportations.

Dialing

For local calls, just dial the number as it’s shown, with area code. One important thing to remember is that cell phones cannot call toll free numbers (with the “0120″ prefix). 0120 numbers are only free to call from landlines.

Compatibility

There is no GSM network in Japan, so if you’re thinking about bringing your own phone from home, remember that it must be a 3G model. Even then, there’s a good chance it might not work because of network differences.

Also, it is generally not possible to use a Japanese phone with a foreign service provide. Most don’t use SIM cards and the few that do are locked and are difficult (if not impossible) to unlock. Also, Japanese phones are programmed to work with only a particular service provider. As a result they are not interchangeable even between Japanese service providers.

Expert Tips

• Softbank is known for being a little more gaijin-friendly than other service providers, often providing service in English. Also, because of this reputation, you’ll probably find that more of your gaijin friends are Softbank users. This means big discounts on texting with your gaijin friends if you sign up for Softbank.
• Often, there are off-market, pirate stores located around the corner from the big service provider chains that provide the same cell phones for much cheaper. You’ll still have to go to the service provider to get them activated, but if you’re planning on doing prepaid service, you’ll save on your handset.

Checklist

1. Gaijin card
2. Proof of Address
3. Over 20 years old
4. Japanese bank account (for contract)

Text Messaging

Text messaging is very common in Japan. When signing up for a contract or a prepaid telephone ask the the company to apply and activate the e-mail function on your phone. Rather than sending messages to the cell phone number, messages are sent to a cell phone email address. If you like you can send emails from your cell phone email to your normal email as well as receiving emails sent from internet email to your cell phone email address. If you have a prepaid card choose a difficult address as you otherwise risk having your inbox stacked up with advertisement email. If you have signed a contract you can usually apply for a spam filter on it.

Landlines

With around 75% of all Japanese people owning a cell phone, one might expect landlines to be heading the way of the Dodo. Although the cell phone is king, landlines are still an important part of everyday life here, and even payphones are easy to find and use.

Japanese phone numbers usually look like this: (012)-345-6789, with the numbers in parentheses referring to the area code. The area code can vary in length from two to six digits; however, the phone number always has ten digits regardless of the length of the area code.

Getting started

Your home or office’s landline must be bought or rented. A new phone line costs around 35,000 yen, but you can buy secondhand phone lines for less. You’ll also have to decide on a monthly service package, which will be a contract that will cost you more. Rented phone lines may not allow you to make international calls. Telephone lines are handled by NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone). To apply for telephone service you can either call NTT or go down to one of their service counters. After you have signed the contract and paid the fees they will install your phone.

Landlines explained

Landlines are a more conventional calling system than cell phones, and virtually all homes and offices in Japan are hooked up to the country’s nationwide network of telephone lines, run by NTT. Because all the landlines are run by one national company, the choices and prices do not vary nearly as much as with cell phones.

Dialing

For local calls, always just dial the number as it’s written. If you are calling from a landline to another landline in the same area code, you can lose the area code, but you don’t have to. Toll free numbers has “0120″ as prefix and are free to call from landlines.

Expert tips

• Internet-based phone services (VoIP) are also widely available, and are a much more economical choice for domestic or international calling. VoIP services are offered with Internet services, like Yahoo’s YahooBB and NTT’s Hikari Denwa. With today’s fast optical and cable internet services, it’s now easy to get a phone without buying a traditional phone line.

Checklist

1. Alien Registration Card
2. Money to pay contract fee and subscription fee

Faxes

Faxes are still commonly used in Japan especially when conducting business. If you do not have your own fax you can go down to a FedEx Kinko ’s where you can both send and receive fax, both domestic and international ones. If you want to send international faxes you need the country prefix, to Japan it is 81.

International Calls

Although calling internationally to and from Japan is simple, reliable, and straightforward, it can be expensive. Using just the most direct methods outlined below will cost you the most. Japanese phone companies offer international calling packages, which are well worth looking into if you plan on making a lot of international calls.

International Calls Explained

No!! Believe it or not! Not all Japanese land lines can dial to international numbers. If you have a rented phone lease then you sometimes can’t dial international. What you should do instead is use one of the many call back services. You dial the access number then your id number and then the number overseas. Many companies use Internet lines so the connection sometimes isn’t so great but it is VERY CHEAP!!

Call Back is a great way to save money using a system which circumvents having to pay Japanese phone companies. It’s a little bit of a hassel, but most companies claim you can save up to 80% on international phone calls. If you regularly call home you should definitely be using this service.

From Japan to abroad

1. Dial the international dialing access code: 010
2. Dial the destination country’s country code
3. If the number starts with a 0, drop the 0 and dial everything else

So, if you want to call the US number (123) 456-7890, dial 010+1+123-456-7890. This will work from any Japanese phone, but it’s the most expensive way to make an international call.

From abroad to Japan

1. Dial the international dialing access code (usually 00, 011 or 0011)
2. Dial Japan’s country code: 81
3. If the number starts with a 0, drop the 0 and dial everything else

So, if you want to call the Japanese number (012)-345-6789 from the US dial 011+81+12-345-6789. To call the Japanese mobile phone number 090-1234-5678 from Australia dial 0011+81+90-1234-5678. Remember that this is the most expensive way to make an international call.

Expert Tips

• Contact your service provider for information on international calling packages, as they will provide you with some serious discounts over direct dialing.
• Internet-based phone services (VoIP) are also widely available, and are a much more economical choice for domestic or international calling. VoIP services are offered with Internet services, like Yahoo’s YahooBB and NTT’s Hikari Denwa. With today’s fast optical and cable internet services, it’s now easy to get a phone without buying a traditional phone line.
• International calling cards are widely available from companies like [Brastel]. You can pick one up at a convenience store or vending machine. Shop around a little, because some cards offer better rates for certain countries.

Payphones

Even though the number of public phones has decreased in recent years due to the popularity of cell phones, there are still plenty around, especially in the cities. You can make local calls from any public phone, but international calls can only be made from certain phones.

Getting Started

Buy a calling card (terehon kaado　テレホンカード) at a convenience store, kiosk, or vending machine. Once you have the card, insert it in the phone and dial normally. There are two main types of public phones: green and grey. International calls are possible from some green phones and most grey phones. Coins or phone cards can be used in both. You might also run into some of the old-school pink phones, which only accept 10-yen coins.

Pay Phones Explained

Calling from a payphone costs 10 yen/minute for a local call. For inter-city calls the charges vary depending on distance. At night and during weekends and National holidays the charges for domestic calls are cheaper. Change will be given back if you use 10-yen coins but not if you have used a 100 yen coin. So for example if you put in two 10-yen coins and talk less than a minute one of the coins will be returned but if you have used a 100-yen coin you will not have any change back.

Expert Tips

• There is a display on payphones that accept calling cards that shows you how much money you have left on your card. Make sure you have enough before you start your call to avoid being cut off.
• Usually, the phone card will have a small hole punched through the side, indicating how much money you have left.

Checklist

1. Phone number
2. Calling card OR…
3. Coins (no 5- or 1-yen coins)

Telephone Cards

Telephone cards, such as KDDI Super World card can be used both when calling from payphone as well as if you use a cell phone or landlines to call from. You can use the card to call both domestic and international card. Since it is prepaid and you will not be billed later for the calls made from landlines or cell phone it’s a great way to keep telephone charges seperate from a room mate or to get better controll on your calling costs. The cards can be bought from vending machine as well as in most convenience stores. There are of course a number of different telephone cards, some which you can buy online.

Important telephone numbers

• Police Department: 110
• Fire Department: 119
• Ambulance: 119
• Directory Assistance: 104
• Domestic Collect/credit card calls: 106
• JR’s English Language Telephone: (03)3423-0111
• Postal Services Information (in English): (092) 752-8504
• Telegrams Domestic: 115
• Telegrams International: (03) 3344-5151
• Telephone Repairs: 113
• Time: 117
• Weather: 177

TV

There are three types of television broadcasting services available in Japan. NHK public broadcasting that operates by TV license fees paid by all who owns a TV. There are also commercial broadcasting supported through sponsors and finally paid broadcasting that is provided only to those who subscribe.

TV license & Getting Started

According to The Broadcast Law of Japan everyone who owns a television set is required to pay receiving fee (TV license).This law applies to all residents in Japan including foreign nationals.

A NHK Broadcast Receiving Contract is signed by each household. You only pay one receiving fee per household regardless of number of TVs in your home. However if you have more than one residence you need to pay a receiving fee for each residence.

You are required to pay the receiving fee from the month you install your TV. You can either make the payments to NHK by having payments slips mailed to you and then pay them at a bank or at the conbini. You can also have the fee paid from your credit card or from your Japanese bank account. You can choose to pay every two months, every six months or on annual basis. If you choose six months or annual payment there are discounts that apply. To sign a contract with NHK you can contact them directly but you can also sign up with the NHK representatives that goes around and controls the TV use.

If you want to have Cable TV you can usually pay the license fee to the Cable TV company instead of making payments directly to NHK.

Cable TV

To be able to watch Cable TV you need to sign a contract with a Cable TV Service provider. Each city or ward has its own cable TV service providers. Some companies service several cities or wards. Usually the packages offered are quite similar between companies. To get Cable TV contact your local provider and ask them to send application for, some companies have applications that you can fill out on their web sites. When applying you will need to fill out credit card or bank account details. Once your application is submitted the cable company will come and install the cable, this is usually done within a week.

Digital Broadcasting

In 2003 digital broadcasting was launched in Japan and currently all main prefectures are covered. Digital broadcasting enables viewers to receive higher quality video and audio signals then with the conventional analog TV. Services such as news and weather forecasts at all time and electronic program guide are also some of the advantages with digital broadcasting. Analog television broadcasting will be cease transmission on July 24th 2011.

To receive digital TV broadcasting these are your options after 2011:

• Purchase a digital TV compatible television
• Purchase a digital tuner
• Receive digital broadcasting via cable TV company