Trends, trials and tribulations of mobile phones

K. Basrie, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In Jakarta, a cell phone is the most easy-to-grab and easy-to- resell item for thieves, particularly the notorious kapak merah (red axe) street gang.

The ever-burgeoning appeal of the mobile handset has been greeted by outlaws worldwide. In Britain, for example, a handset is stolen every 45 minutes, according to a report, forcing the British government to blame the cell phone industry for not doing enough to make mobile phones less attractive targets to thieves.

But who wants to produce and buy a cell phone the size of a car battery, like the first handsets introduced here in the early 1990s?

What the market has today is a vast range of models, sizes, functions and prices. The old-style clunky handsets are no longer available on the market, but a mobile phone with the price of a brand new car will be ready in the next few weeks.

Dubbed "Vertu", named after Nokia's new subsidiary, the handset embedded with jewels is offered at US$4,500 (stainless steel), $11,000 (18 carat yellow gold), $13,000 (18 carat white gold) and $20,000 (platinum).

Coming with a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal face and ruby bearings for smooth and precise keystrokes, Nokia claims the phone isn't only about looks. It embodies 'Evolutionary Technology', which allows the technology in the phone to be upgraded seamlessly with new advancements, while keeping the external casing the same.

If that doesn't convince you, maybe the reception and voice quality will. Boosted by a new antenna for extra sensitivity and a hi-fidelity audio system speaker for rich full-bodied sounds, the phone promises to be an aural experience.

A Vertu user will have access to receive expert information on travel, entertainment and make hotel reservations by pressing the dedicated key.

Vertu, Nokia said, will work within the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific.

Although it was unveiled four months ago in Paris, dealers in Roxy and Casablanca -- two popular spots in Jakarta for guaranteed, not guaranteed and secondhand handsets -- said they can't wait to see the gadget.

"Don't underestimate Indonesians, because wealthy locals here are willing to spend an enormous amount of money to show off," commented a visitor at Casablanca.

As exclusive as its price, Vertu, however, is only available through Vertu Galleries and by personal appointment at Vertu Private Client Suites, located at certain high-class shopping areas around the world. Thus, Vertu is clearly designed for top- class celebrities and figures.

As the global mobile phone market is said by many analysts to have started facing a gloomy signal, the Finnish giant Nokia and its rival handset makers -- Siemens, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, -- are speeding up efforts to successively introduce new products with their eyes focusing in certain prospective spots in Asia, particularly densely-populated China.

Since last year, China has overtaken the U.S. to become the country with the largest number of mobile phone users.

According to the country's Ministry of Industrial Information, China, at the end of July last year, already had 120.6 million mobile phone users, or about 10 percent of its 1.3 billion population.

The Chinese government even expects the total number to hit 260 million by the end of 2005.

It means that the country offers a huge potential opportunity for both mobile phone operators and handset producers, as only one in 10 people in China own mobile phones, compared to four in 10 people in the U.S., and one in two in Japan and Europe.

Analysts say the growth in China is fueled by increased competition, lower prices and the rise of prepaid services.

The trend in China also illustrates the rising mobile phone usage across Asia. During 2000, the number of people using mobiles rose by 50 percent to 230 million across the region. Analysts expect this to continue, pointing out the growing trend of new stylish cellular phones and strong demand for mobile Internet services.

In Indonesia, home to a population of over 210 million, the number of people who have gone wireless totaled 6.57 million last year, almost double the 3.67 million users in 2000. In 1996, the number of users was just 567,000.

It is believed that cellular phone users will soon outnumber fixed-line customers, who, according to state telephone monopoly PT Telkom, totaled 7.2 million at the end of last year.

In the past two years, the Jakarta market alone witnessed the arrival, as well as the departure, of dozens of new models from major players such as Nokia, Siemens, Samsung, Sony, Ericsson and Motorola.

Many come in tempting styles with a slim shape, various colors, awesome features and stunning accessories. Some others are only able to make a touch-and-go attempt, due to the lack of response from the market, which has become extremely tough and selective.

A stylish appearance, long battery life, easy-to-use and user- friendly keypads and functions, up-to-date software, durable, wide bandwidth, comfortable aftersale service with inexpensive spare parts, lower radiation and Internet accessibility are among the common considerations that most new or veteran cellular phone users should have in mind.

Jargon such as GPRS, SMS, MMS, WAP, 3G, Kbps, Mbps, FOMA, VCDMA, W-CDMA, CDMAOne, remains just jargon for many people here as most of the cellular phones currently used in Indonesia rarely use such facilities.

"It's too slowly and very costly," admitted Dwi Septiani, an entrepreneur, referring to wireless access to the Internet via cellular phones. "I just consider its appearance and functions, that's it," said Dwi, who regularly purchases newly arrived products and resells her old collection at the secondhand market in Roxy and Casablanca.

In London, Reuters reported last Thursday that tens of millions of new mobile phones trade on the secondhand market worldwide every year because phone makers cannot make accurate forecasts of consumer demand.

Last year alone, some 30 percent of all phones produced could not be sold to consumers at the official price tag, because they were either too expensive or too simple and clunky or featured an unpopular design or the wrong color, the report quoted a market research by Mloop, an independent Internet-based trading point for cell phones.

Stock imbalances, resulting from erroneous demand forecasts for the overall global market, as well as for specific models, amounted to almost 80 million handsets in 2001 with a combined value of $8 billion, it said.

Two-thirds of the 80 million phones were heavily discounted, mostly by operators offering a free or cheap handset with a new subscription. The rest were bought by traders, who tried to find buyers on the global secondhand market.