Over Obon, it became clear that my in laws could be doing better than the phone they have now. Phones, basic cordless house phones, seem to be dominated by the old guard of Japanese blue-chip companies, all starting around ¥7,700. Have phones always been treated as something precious? I did notice upon moving here how few outlets there are for phones, so there’s part of my answer already. Please fax me your thoughts on this and other inexplicably expensive items.
30 comments
The solution you’re looking for is called a mobile phone
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The transceiver needs to be locally certified to comply with the Radio Law – the transceivers in most foreign made sets are too powerful and under Japanese law would require a radio operator’s license to use.
There used to be plenty of import options available, but with the decrease in demand for landlines, it’s no longer economically viable for foreign manufacturers to produce a separate model for the Japan market.
I have not used a house phone since 15 years. And I sure ain’t starting now
Domestic electronics are overpriced. They sell $1000 rice cookers for god’s sake.
They were much more expensive back in the days and many household would have to rent one from phone companies rather than own one
TIL 7700 yen is “expensive” for a cordless phone.
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I would expect that house phones available now are very sophisticated though. In addition to answering machine functions they can record calls and block calls from callers who do not provide caller ID.
I had one listed on Yahoo auctions with a ChatGPT description in Japanese a cordless phone with fax etc made in Japan for 1100 yen. I listed it three times and no one bid after the third time of listing it for the minimum that I’d be prepared to put in a box and walk this popular Amazon product to the post office. I put it in the trash! You could always try a junk shop. My local junk shop has too many! 1100 yen nobody bid!
NTT. Not sure if it was still the case but they used to have to approve all hardware you could connect to their network, so there’s probably some license fee the manufacturer has to pay.
I looked into getting a landline at my place but the prices NTT charges for a basic phone are over twice my mobile phone bill and that has 15GB of data as well, so fuckit.
Overpriced equipment is only a tiny part of the landline scam in Japan. Your inlaws probably paid 80,000yen for their landline back in the day, and will never get it back. NTT did the biggest rugpull of all time.
Anyway, as hoon has pointed out, there are regulatory differences here, plus the language issue, so cheap imported phones really aren’t a thing.
I don’t think 8000 jpy is very expensive, given that most cordless models are DECT. Mine even has wifi and an app so I can use my mobile phone to make land line calls (which are much cheaper than mobile calls).
On Amazon there are several under 4000 yen.
“Please fax me your thoughts”
Okay, I did not expect that.
That gave me a chuckle.
7700 yen is like 52 USD. That’s…really not very expensive at all for an electronic device, at all. Any cheaper and it’s likely to fall apart in your hands. I just bought a rice cooker for $30, and all it does is turn off and on. I’m just not sure why your expectations were that it would be significantly lower. Second hand? Definitely can find it cheaper. But new? Nah
There are a few reasons why cordless house phones are inexplicably expensive in Japan.
First, the Japanese market for cordless house phones is relatively small. This means that there is less competition among manufacturers, which can lead to higher prices.
Second, the Japanese government has strict regulations on the safety of cordless house phones. These regulations can add to the cost of production.
Third, Japanese consumers are willing to pay a premium for quality products. This is especially true for products that are seen as essential, such as cordless house phones.
As a result of these factors, cordless house phones are often more expensive in Japan than in other countries.
Recycle shops often have dirt cheap landline phones
Why not just get a stand for your mobile phone…
Cause only boomers with too much money buy them.
How is 7700 yen expensive??
Anyone 40 or younger stopped bothering with landlines so you get to pay the Old Person Price
You are one step closer to buying a fax machine
Why use a “house phone” when mobile phones are right there?
I don’t know how it’s in English but get 親機and子機 sets
Is 7000 yen expensive?
It’s not the cordless house phones, it’s the washroom area renovations for seniors that are an absolute ripoff. Don’t judge and feel
sorry though. NHK should create an info graphic news article about how seniors are paying ridiculously way too much for kitchen and washing machine/vanity room renos.
Pop0ppppppp⁰ppppppppp0
Like many things in Japan, you may have no idea of the price but someone will surely have one to sell for 10,000¥.
Clamshell mobile phones. Even old people can use them, but yeah, they have to charge them every 5 days or so.