This query is somewhere between Japan and Travel Technology. Given that Japan is fairly unique I'm posting here in hopes that somebody's got direct experience.

I've got an 3G iPhone and will staying for a bit over a week in Tokyo. It's leisure, so I don't need to be connected for work, but would like to be able to make some outgoing phone calls (that aren't outrageously expensive), send email, and check out the internet.

I'm staying in an apartment with free ethernet/LAN, so I'm planning on using an AirPort Express to generate wifi while I'm at home (as I gather there's no way to connect directly with an iPhone). I plan to make outgoing calls using TruPhone (one of the voip apps you can get at iTunes for the iPhone) for $0.06/minute to landlines or $0.30/minute to mobiles. Unfortunately you can't yet use it for incoming calls, but that shouldn't be an issue---I routinely travel without any sort of phone at all.

While out and about I'd like to be able to use wifi to do various web-based sorts of tasks, and here's where the big question comes up: how much wifi is there? My general impression is "not much", but then I found this press release from Boingo: http://www.boingo.com/pr/pr156.php

The content is summed up by the headline:

"BOINGO BLANKETS METROPOLITAN TOKYO THROUGH ROAMING AGREEMENT WITH JAPANESE NETWORKING GIANT LIVEDOOR" with metropolitan Tokyo being described as "within the Yamanote line" (so hardly all of metro Tokyo, but not bad).

So, does anybody have any firsthand experience with Boingo in Tokyo? They're presently offering a free one month trial of their Boingo Mobile product (normally $7.95 a month, http://mobile.boingo.com/?= ), so there's not much risk to signing up, but it would be nice to know that the coverage actually is pretty good.

I have a 3G iPhone and it works, in Japan, as it would anywhere else in the world. The days of Japan and South Korea being seperate from the rest of the world are long gone now that 3G has been adopted world wide (they have been 3G for 8 years, and are now onto 4G). To keep the roaming charges down, I use www.jajah.com to make calls, similar to TruPhone.

I haven't used Boingo because I have found it to be confusing and troublesome to use. I use Hotspot:

http://www.hotspot.ne.jp/en/index.html

Pre paid cards are purchased at any Family Mart through their ATM kiosk.

I find it easier to get working, and the number of locations between providers are more or less the same. No matter where you are there will be something near by. I make a PDF map of their hotspots, copied from their website, and keep it on my phone for easy reference.

3G phones won't work in China as there has been no deployment, so it is still not true that your phone will work worldwide. 4G in Japan has not yet been deployed and will not be for some time, since workable 4G equipment doesn't exist yet. Weirdly, the next generation is not being called 4G right now, the actual "official" term worldwide is 3.9G!

Thanks for the info, SfumatoPants. I'll try the Boingo option first, as it's free for the first month in any case, and unlike the Hot Spot doesn't charge a registration fee. On line registration is only available if one has a Japanese address in any case. Looks like a day pass (at Y500 per 24 hours) from Family Mart will work if Boingo doesn't work out. There is this somewhat disquieting note at the Hotspot site: "* Please note that 1-DAY PASSPORT can not be used at Tokyo Midtown and roaming service areas." Any idea what this means? There's no search function on the English version of the Hotspot site, but there may be more info on the Japanese version.

I'll post back about my experience when I return.

Hotspot does not require registration, or an address in japan. Hotspot does not ask you for a credit card number.

step 1 -You pay at the cashier, cash

step 2 - enter your receipt number into the ATM (you can select instructions in English)

step 3 - the ATM prints your card (not a card really, but a paper receipt printed by the machine that has a username and password on it)

step 4 - go to a hotspot location, search for wifi, and open safari. The login page pops up and you enter the username and password from your receipt.

hotspot locations - http://www.hotspot.ne.jp/en/servicea...rvicearea.html

...as for lack of service in one building, Midtown, don't worry about it. It's just one location, and should you find yourself in desperate need of WiFi while at that ONE building (unlikely in the extreme), you can find another spot within blocks.

Ah, Midtown is a building. Where I live Midtown is an entire section of town, and a pretty large section at that.

Hotspot does offer a monthly subscription service to residents of Japanese, similar to Boingo's subscription service, and that's what I was referring to. The pay-as-you-go 1 day pass sounds painless. Thanks for the detailed instructions.

iPhone 3G works fine in GSM networks which are available in China.