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What Japan thinks is an interesting blog that translates consumer surveys in Japan. While many surveys could be classified as pop, there’s quite a bit of interesting information to be gleaned here, especially concerning the mobile market.
Among them that keitei (mobile) email has strengthened parent/child relationships though this seems to be just in communication and not in building trust – there’s a lot of peeking going on (more than 1 in 10) of eachothers emails and call records.
Japan does not use SMS. Well, it is available, but it is almost never used – keitei email kills SMS hands down in both convenience – being able to send a message to your friend’s phone from your PC mail app, as opposed to going through a SMS gateway, and in number of characters and attachments allowed. Heavy use is also made of a Japanese blend of emoticons called kaomoji as well as built in graphic icons (as in the picture above) and decor mail – a kind of html mail. http://whatjapanthinks.com/2006/04/06/mobile-smilies-ヽ▽ノ/
Interestingly difference in emoticon design may have a deepermeaning than just cuteness, http://japundit.com/archives/2007/05/15/5989/
Another interesting acticle concerns Voice Over IP phones. Almost everyone who has an internet connection has a high speed connection in Japan, yet the ability to make free VOIP calls has not really effected phone habits