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Answerman - Why Do You Still See Flip Phones In Anime?


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HeeroTX



Joined: 15 Jul 2002
Posts: 2046
Location: Austin, TX
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 4:35 pm Reply with quote
In Japan, I know there are people that just like them more. I went to a lot of effort to track down a SHARP 007SH several years ago (one of only 2 models of Android+TouchScreen+FlipPhone I was aware of), and I am still a little disappointed that the standard slab smartphone kind of pushed that design concept out entirely (it seems). But I compared phones with friends over there and a few had both, and mentioned LIKING the flip-phone more, but using the smart phone also. I think if you need features like email especially, the newer phones are more necessary. Many flip phones HAVE a lot of features you simply won't find in the US on that form factor, it is cheaper, yes, BUT it's not always the "bargain basement" phone type like it would be here.

(I've always just liked the form factor because I KNOW my screen is protected and I don't need to worry about "butt-dial" with it, but eventually I had to upgrade to a more conventional smart phone due to app-obsolescence)
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Mohawk52



Joined: 16 Oct 2003
Posts: 8202
Location: England, UK
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 4:58 pm Reply with quote
In actuality a smartphone is just another name for a tablet that's small, or a small tablet, because the "smart" bit basically a hand held PC that you can also call or text someone on, isn't it?
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Aquamine-Amarine



Joined: 13 Jul 2014
Posts: 276
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 5:01 pm Reply with quote
It could also be because the manga (or light novel) was written years ago when there were still flip phones around, and when they finally get an anime adaption they keep it faithful to the manga/light novels and leave them as flip phones instead of making them smartphones.
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TheAncientOne



Joined: 06 Oct 2010
Posts: 1868
Location: USA (mid-south)
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 5:20 pm Reply with quote
Aquamine-Amarine wrote:
It could also be because the manga (or light novel) was written years ago when there were still flip phones around, and when they finally get an anime adaption they keep it faithful to the manga/light novels and leave them as flip phones instead of making them smartphones.

It is interesting is when you get an anime based on a manga that was started when cell phones were rare (i.e., Parasyte), and the anime set in the current time has to change a plot point to explain why a character simply didn't call on their cell phone.
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Zin5ki



Joined: 06 Jan 2008
Posts: 6680
Location: London, UK
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 5:55 pm Reply with quote
Vaisaga wrote:
Could have sworn this question was answered already...

I do seem to recall that it was at one point.
Mohawk52 wrote:
Feature phones are still sold here in the UK as well. I'm too dumb for a smartphone nor do I really need one as all I ever use a phone for is calling and texting,

Likewise! While I do own a hand-me-down smartphone, I only use it for social media purposes. Any calls I receive are on a more basic model with a physical keyboard. (That said, I receive remarkably few calls...)
Quote:
In actuality a smartphone is just another name for a tablet that's small, or a small tablet, because the "smart" bit basically a hand held PC that you can also call or text someone on, isn't it?

Quite so. The hardware architecture and operating systems used on either device format are typically of the same kind, though there are numerous tablets nowadays that contain the same innards as a laptop.
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Top Gun



Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Posts: 4566
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 6:22 pm Reply with quote
Honestly, I'd just about kill for a legit smart flip-phone. I finally had to give up my ancient and beloved little candybar Sony Ericsson phone this past month, since AT&T is apparently killing off its 2G infrastructure as of December and kept sending me dire voicemails about needing to replace it. I wound up going for a Blackberry Priv, since it's about the only smartphone left with a legit physical keyboard, and I seem to be one of the disturbingly few people who loves having legit tactile feedback and thinks that typing on a touchscreen is absolutely godawful. What really gets me about the modern smartphone market is that just about every single phone out there looks exactly the same. I'm not sure how a bland rectangular slab is the be-all and end-all of design; it just makes me miss the days when flip-phones were in their heyday and you got awesome-looking stuff like the classic Motorola Razr.
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H. Guderian



Joined: 29 Jan 2014
Posts: 1255
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 6:52 pm Reply with quote
Flip phone user here. I have no want or need of anything higher than my plan's 'free' category. When all i can get is a smart phone, maybe I'll get one. Seeing people become more addicted to their phones than their surroundings is much more common with 'smart' phones, which make me desire one even less.
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Dfens



Joined: 08 Feb 2013
Posts: 459
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 7:40 pm Reply with quote
All I can say is my smartphone was a godsend when I was on vacation over in Japan about a month ago.

One little device and I was able to get around without getting lost, being able to communicate with my friends through texts, call home to check in every day, internet where Wifi was available. Plus all my notes typed and saved on my phone on the fly when ever I needed them you can't do that all in one unit what is known to some as the dumb phone or flip phone.

After 1 day of lugging a camera around I just used my smartphone and it took just as good pictures without the extra bulk and weight.
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configspace



Joined: 16 Aug 2008
Posts: 3717
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:22 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
Additionally, the Japanese language is far better suited to keypad entry than English is. Each row of kana - A/I/U/E/O, Ka/Ki/Ku/Ke/Ko, etc., gets its own number key, and to type a letter you simply hit the button to cycle through those five letters. It's very easy to pick up and fairly fast to type, simply because the language makes text entry much more intuitive. When the iPhone first came out, many people thought a virtual QWERTY keyboard was much harder to type on.


This seems to me the main reason why flip phones are still attractive to some in Japan, especially if you're primarily calling and texting or emailing. Even when smartphones now have emulated this input method -- using virtual number pads for inputting kana -- the tactile buttons of flip phones just feel better and probably allows for faster typing, especially without looking, than a virtual keypad.
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Gwydion



Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 155
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 8:32 pm Reply with quote
I have had my flip phone for 10 years now. Anime hyper It still works with no problems, and as I have no desire to have anything but calling or texting at my fingertips at all times, it's all I need. I know I'll have to switch eventually, but I'm gonna keep it as long as I can. I know how easily distracted I can get, and I don't want that temptation in my pocket. Anime smile;;
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Afezeria



Joined: 20 Aug 2015
Posts: 817
Location: Malaysia, Kuantan.
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:02 pm Reply with quote
I remembered seeing smartphones being used by characters in airing anime like Long Riders, Watashi ga Motete Dousunda, Yuri on Ice!!, Monster Strike (hell, the game that the anime originated from seemed to be only operable on a smartphone), Mahou Shoujo Ikusei, and Ajin 2nd season. That's a few title at hand already.

As a side note, I relied heavily on my old Samsung S4 (not much of a fan of getting every newest model in market nor do I have the capacity for upgrade), used it a lot to browse the web and currently typing this using the phone as well as using it to used Whatsapp. I rarely make call any way and people don't want to call me either so smartphone is suitable enough for a daily use. Alas, old phones had a very small keyboard that doesn't suit my huge thumb.
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AnimeLordLuis



Joined: 27 Jan 2015
Posts: 1626
Location: The Borderlands of Pandora
PostPosted: Fri Nov 04, 2016 11:15 pm Reply with quote
The last time I had a flip phone was when the IPHONE 4s came out and than the IPHONE 5 was released and I finally upgraded to the 4s and never looked back. Smile
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leafy sea dragon



Joined: 27 Oct 2009
Posts: 7163
Location: Another Kingdom
PostPosted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 12:02 am Reply with quote
Heh, my phone is a non-smart kind, and I've had it for at least 8 years (but I'm certain it's longer than that). I'm neither proud nor not proud of it, just that when I get something, I intend to use it for as long as it remains functional. I have a tablet for art, which covers what I want mobile-wise, but I think it shows how little I really care for the mobile app market in that I still only have a row and a half of apps, most of them being art and animation apps and a few games here and there, like Sonic CD. There are more apps it came with, most of which I don't use, than I've added.

My lack of a smartphone kind of got me in a tiny pickle earlier this week though, when my boss sent me a text message with information in a way my old phone is unable to receive. I have no plans on switching over until my phone is rendered unusable though. But it shows how people kind of assume you have a smartphone now.

Mohawk52 wrote:
Depends on when the anime was produced and released or what time in history it depicts as well. Some of the older ones show people using a payphone keosk, or booth obviously before mobiles/cells. I still use a "feature" phone, a black clamshell Nokia. Feature phones are still sold here in the UK as well. I'm too dumb for a smartphone nor do I really need one as all I ever use a phone for is calling and texting, However having said that if and when it dies I'll probably get a smartphone then. Which ever dies first that is. Laughing


Same here, though I don't text much. According to the phone bills, I use my phone less than 10 minutes per month.

Tenchi wrote:
I don't currently use a cell phone because I don't need to (and being able to know when the next bus is coming isn't worth the monthly fees), but, if I ever needed to use one again, I'd see if I could just reactivate my old Samsung flip phone because I wouldn't use it for anything other than making phone calls. (I'm old-fashioned and am absolutely fine with "the Internet" being something that I only ever use at home.)

I like that flip phones are ultra-compact and don't easily break if you accidentally drop them.


What I'm concerned about are the touch screens these smartphones have. If I get a smartphone, it MUST either have a case that covers the screen, as my keys and pencils scratch right through those plastic screen protectors, or is sturdy enough to protect it being squeezed between my wallet and my 3DS.

My sweat is also mildly corrosive. I recently replaced my wallet a couple months ago because my sweat had torn holes all over it, and the less said about my steel keychain, the better. Already I am seeing powder coming off of my new wallet, the same initial damage my previous one had gone through before it became tears and holes. Any phone that stays in my pocket throughout the day MUST be able to take this corrosion.

Aquamine-Amarine wrote:
It could also be because the manga (or light novel) was written years ago when there were still flip phones around, and when they finally get an anime adaption they keep it faithful to the manga/light novels and leave them as flip phones instead of making them smartphones.


Reminds me of how in Hunter X Hunter, one character has a weapon that's essentially a supernatural iPod (with the ring-shaped touchscreen and all), in which he can steal powers and select them out of a playlist. In the 2011 anime, it was 2013 by the time they reached that point, and the device looked exactly the same as in the manga. I thought they were going to change it to an iPhone looking thing with powers as apps, but they're remaining very faithful, it seems.

Top Gun wrote:
Honestly, I'd just about kill for a legit smart flip-phone. I finally had to give up my ancient and beloved little candybar Sony Ericsson phone this past month, since AT&T is apparently killing off its 2G infrastructure as of December and kept sending me dire voicemails about needing to replace it. I wound up going for a Blackberry Priv, since it's about the only smartphone left with a legit physical keyboard, and I seem to be one of the disturbingly few people who loves having legit tactile feedback and thinks that typing on a touchscreen is absolutely godawful. What really gets me about the modern smartphone market is that just about every single phone out there looks exactly the same. I'm not sure how a bland rectangular slab is the be-all and end-all of design; it just makes me miss the days when flip-phones were in their heyday and you got awesome-looking stuff like the classic Motorola Razr.


Strange. I'm using a Samsung SGH-A777 that runs on AT&T and I never got any of those.

I looked it up, and it seems it runs on 2G and 3G. Maybe that's why I haven't had any of those notifications.
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Hikarunu



Joined: 23 Jul 2015
Posts: 950
PostPosted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 1:26 am Reply with quote
Mohawk52 wrote:
In actuality a smartphone is just another name for a tablet that's small, or a small tablet, because the "smart" bit basically a hand held PC that you can also call or text someone on, isn't it?
Smartphone exist for a long time already. It was called as PDA.

I actually hated smartphone since I dont quite like touchscreen. But since I finally bought cheap Android phone with decent specs, I came to love it. I thought typing words on touchscreen is hard but nope. I only hate short battery life which like most smartphones on market do. I dont like bringing powerbank outside either. Too much hassle to recharge and bring a heavy powerbank.

Btw I still keeping my non smartphone Sony Ecrisson C510 I bought on 2009. Still working till today. Totally a tough phone(it survived from road accident!)
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Kadmos1



Joined: 08 May 2014
Posts: 13541
Location: In Phoenix but has an 85308 ZIP
PostPosted: Sat Nov 05, 2016 2:04 am Reply with quote
A good thing about flip phones is that they can help lessen the occurrences of butt-dialing.
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