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Do you wish Japanese smartphones were more popular in the West? (poll results)

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By Chris P.

Updated: Nov 03, 2015, 9:29 AM

Do you wish Japanese smartphones were more popular in the West? (poll results)

Japanese devices make up a decent portion of phones we highlight within our regular, biweekly Monsters from Asia column. That's for a good reason: from near bezel-less designs, through compulsory dust- and water-proofing, down to unique features such as iris scanners, Japan is home to a few makers that are rather obscure in the West.

That's why, yesterday, we asked you whether you wish that these manufacturers' handsets were more popular outside of the home island(s). And nearly 1,600 of you took the opportunity to speak their mind through our poll. The results are in and we're ready to share them with you.

By and large, most of you folks would be jubilant were more Japanese makers to enter Western markets, with a lion's share of the votes standing at just shy of 80%. Woah! The remaining ~20% is split between those among us that wouldn't say no to more variety, but don't necessarily feel they'd be compelled to pick one (14.7%), and them people that simply don't see a reason for the likes of Sharp and Fujitsu to to bother (5.43%).

However you look at it, there's no denying that Japanese devices, exotic as they may be, tempt smartphone buyers even thousands of miles away. Them being exotic, precisely, is probably why that is — to this date, Japan's makers push out some pretty different phones from what's widely available here. Of course, whether this is simply a case of the majority of us looking at what they can't have through 'pink' glasses is unclear, but not unlikely.

Do you wish Japanese smartphones were more popular in the West?

Absolutely!

79.87%

Meh! Won't say no to more variety, but probably wouldn't end up buying one...

14.7%

Nope. We have it good enough as it is.

5.43%

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Chris Panayotov is a former mobile tech reviewer of phones, tablets and wearables at PhoneArena. However, his contribution to PhoneArena content includes not just reviews, but all kinds of regular and experimental features, such as news stories, buying guides, and an exclusive column on the most notable phones out of Asia.