May 17th, 2011

Video: KDDI's iida INFOBAR Android Handset Boasts Unique Design, UI [Update: New Video]

Japan’s second largest mobile carrier KDDI au unveiled its summer line-up of cell phones today, and one of the 15 new models is particularly interesting: the so-called INFOBAR A01 [JP], which is part of KDDI’s designer sub-brand iida. The biggest selling points are the Android phone’s pretty unique design and UI. → Read More

October 26th, 2010

Video: Hands On With KDDI's Transparent X-Ray Cell Phone

Last week, we reported about the new cell phone line up of Japan’s second biggest mobile carrier, KDDI. The company unveiled no less than 19 new handsets, and among those, one model stood out because of its unique design: the aptly named X-Ray. → Read More

July 13th, 2010

Light Pool: Japan gets a new designer cell phone

Japan’s second biggest cell phone carrier KDDI (over 30 million subscribers) rolls out quite unique handsets from time to time, mostly under their iida sub-brand. The company today in Japan introduced [JP] another “lifestyle” cell phone, the so-called Light Pool. Technically, the device isn’t anything special – but it’s rather pretty. → Read More

September 9th, 2009

Video: The iida Polaris is a cool mix between robot and phone

Japan is the nation of robots. Everybody knows that. It’s also the nation of cell phones. So why not mix robots and cell phones? That’s what the country’s second biggest mobile phone provider KDDI au thought and today presents the iida Polaris, a robotic cell phone [link in English], for the first time (click here for my iida concept photo report from April). → Read More

September 9th, 2009

iida Ply and Prismoid: Japan gets two new designer cell phones

Japan’s No. 2 cell phone carrier KDDI au is stepping up its efforts to promote its iida sub brand of designer cell phones (here‘s my photo report of some iida concept phones from back in April). Not only did it present its robotic cell phone Polaris today, it now gives us another two (more conventional) phones.

And these you can actually buy soon (if you live in Japan). → Read More

April 10th, 2009

Hands-on with Sony Ericsson's G9 and the KDDI iida mini projector

I had the opportunity to test Sony Ericsson’s newest mobile phone, the G9, in Tokyo today. The device is the first KDDI au is selling in Japan under the so-called iida brand. It’s not officially on sale yet, but I could lay my hands on finished versions for a few minutes in a KDDI showroom. The G9 will be available in Japan next week. → Read More

April 10th, 2009

Photo report: Japan's KDDI au presents new designer brand for cell phones (iida)

KDDI, Japan’s second biggest mobile phone carrier, currently showcases a number of cell phone design prototypes (and a working one) in their five-floor Design Studio [JP] in central Tokyo (where I went today). The cell phones (and peripheral devices) are part of the so-called iida brand [JP], which is supposed to be focused on the development of unusual handsets only. → Read More