Decoden

Asked this lady to lemme take pics of her keitai (mobile phone) - spotted it when she was taking pics of me in armor ^^;
This type of keitai is known as "Decoden" [デコ電] (also spelt as "Dekoden") which is short for "Decoration Denwa" - "Denwa" meaning "Phone."
Many folks buy these shiny jewel like plastic parts at places like Dekoden.com and decorate their keitai themselves. Some places sell sheets that come with decorations on them already which you can just stick on your mobile - some at King Deco from about 4,000 yen.
And then there are places who will make to order.


And its not just keitai that folks decorate - check out the NDS decorations below - and the G Shock...






And a video below of a charisma decoration artist showing off some of ther Nintendo DS and keitai art.
Other images from:-
http://item.rakuten.co.jp/ginza-ls/deco-etc10/
http://swarodesign.cocolog-nifty.com/blog/ds/index.html
http://maisha.ti-da.net/c129269.html
http://cocoa.decorat.shop-pro.jp/?cid=18577
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http://darkdam.deviantart.com/
I might decorate my cell phone, but no to my PSP, probably for a DS, they look pretty pain.
デレデレ ハンター, Bullet Grazer
I must say it looks great but will definitely cause problems when sticking it in pant pockets.
Disc Jockey, Storeman, Computer Tech, Misc.
notice the big hole in her handbag, fits in perfectly lol.
流浪人
While neat to look at, I wouldn't want all that stuff on my NDS... ^^;
Student
Would make the whole thing look pretty bulky. Might hinder proper grip too or maybe the pebbles can fall off when you grip it too tightly or over long term of use
Tech Support Officer - Network Security Engineer
http://burugureibi.blogspot.com/
wow - there is definitely some overkill going on here
it would suck if you bumped it into something hard and snapped off some parts
Student
That and those look ugly, seriously.
Student
http://anime.scripts.mit.edu/miteiru/
So cute! The Harro Kitty's kinda bulgy but other than that it looks cute! ^___^
Disc Jockey, Storeman, Computer Tech, Misc.
i think if people started doing that here in australia, they would think your some crazy person or something. lol..
Wage slave by day, semi-pro blogger by night
http://fivecentstencents.com
I think the pieces will fall off after some time due to wear and tear?
Not very practical for guys who can be quite rough with their mobiles and gadgets? :-(
houkouonchi
http://www.flickr.com/photos/red_mango/
I was also wondering about practicality. I looks nice but won't those shiny things fall off easily?
University Student
http://shikinami.wordpress.com/
I find it too exagerated.
Magi 2nd network assistant
Japanese have strict social rules, but when it comes to fantasy there is really a lot of proud display of own's creations.
I like this.
Young Grasshopper
http://miragestrike.blogspot.com
The NDS ones looks nice, but i would much rather have it on a case so it's easier to detach like the one in the video in case you feel like reverting back.. ^^;
Student
i won't put any of those deco on my phone,psp nor nds.
i prefer the original look.
Otaku / Student in Networking
http://hayasaki-kun.blogspot.com/
maybe just a small deco on my cell. I don't want something big like the 1st pic
University Student
http://emimilove.blogspot.com
I love decoden! I should make a post about my old keitai, and my new one once it is complete!
Pokemon master
http://thecococafe.wordpress.com/
I decorate my gameboy, calculator, cell phone, etc with stickers. But in only in moderation so it doesn't look cluttered.
Dance Trooper: DCX-001 O.D.E. (Order of the Dancing Empire)
http://dannychoo.com.my
it certainly make it bulky........ good for the eyes, but not practical ^^;
Student
http://kokost.deviantart.com/
Maybe the "Nori" ds but I'll be blunt, they look bad. If you have to decorate your gadget that badly, it must mean it looks horribly bad without the shiny surface the owners have now applied.
Student, otaku
Wishing my keitai was a clam shell model.......
huhu.......
however I'll decorate it moderately.......
University's Slave
Aaaah! It's an invasion from Hello Kitty Hell, run away!
That aside, the DS with the flower looks surprisingly good--the off-center layout works really well for that design, despite it being a sparklefest of rhinestones. The food ones in the video I find incredibly tacky though.
Software Engineer
http://hanifnorman.wordpress.com/
I think all of them look tacky...but I agree that the DS are the best looking ones.
It's like this kind of things only belong on the DS. Also, the DS looks like a small lady's handbag now...
Student, Goddess of the Blue Star
the decor is cute but the decorated DS after the "Nori" design is waaaay overdone. I prefer putting protective skinz over my nds and phone, other than anything else tho.
Student/ Anime Club Leader at St. Joseph Secondary
http://haruhiist.blogspot.com/
same here. great designs but i prefer protective covers or some customized skins ^0^
IT-Technician, sole proprietor
http://www.chrizu.se/blog
My girlfriend loves doing this, she decorated both our Ipods, her DS and some other things
student
http://zephi-san.deviantart.com/
If you like to showoff, I think decorating your handheld devices is good. I would do it, but wouldn't make it as bulky as that hello kitty ketai. Those NDS are made very well.
Professional Panhandler
http://theinfernoproject.com
WOW, that is too amazing for words. If I was a girl, or brave enough, I'd definitely decoden my phone with Miku or Kagamin. Hmm, will I even like Kagamin if I was a girl?
Student
I've seen people use these things on Plamo. It can look surprisingly good though. O.o
Dropping computers, starting all over again at Journalism
http://immalion.com
LOL, that's crazy!
I mean, don't see a problem for people that likes that kinda stuff... it's probably great to go into some character or something... but it certainly isn't for me.
The main problem I see is that this probably makes the cellphone like 3 times heavier! xD And I like light stuff.
Also, in Brazil, making something stand out that much is just asking to be mugged. :P
Student/Music Producer/Web Designer
http://www.youtube.com/user/LionBiscuits
I'm not a big fan of sticking things onto my belongings. Stickers, decals, anything... I'm too OCD. ^^;
三年せいとオタク
Wow the Hello Kitty one looks really cool but kindy heavy and I can see how it'd cause problems. I wouldn't mind doin somthing like that to me phone though.
pervert
i dont mind turning my handhelds into an ita handheld but adding all these stuff is going to make it heavy and bulky
Dirty Gentleman
http://cantstanzya.wordpress.com/
I am interested in seeing what kinda woman would carry around this kinda phone. Since her face is not in view I have to assume she preferred not to be shown. Uh huh...
???Confused???
Looks nice, but not practical...
Student
It's kinda neat but wow, the Hello Kitty thing made her phone like 3-4 times thicker o_o
デレデレ ハンター, Bullet Grazer
I think that you can hide health materials in it. ^^
Computer Engineering Student
http://ryan2006.deviantart.com
I guess the thickness wouldn't matter to a girl who carries her phone in a purse... I could never shove something that big into my pocket.
College Freshmen
If it's that big, it's too big to fit in your pocket, making it inconvenient, thus killing the point of a cell phone or mobile game device. A thin layer maybe.
I totally want to decorate my phone someday... but nothing excessive that totally changes its shape, just some cute stickers and shiny stuff, or maybe something like this.
http://i40.tinypic.com/24wx3iu.jpg
http://akari-nyan.deviantart.com/
Not too keen on the Big Hello Kitty's bulkyness, but the designs on the DS looks nice. I wonder what other designs could be put on my cell. >o<''
projectionist, artist
Sometimes these can look really nice, but often I see them go to far and it makes the device look uncomfortable to use... like that Hello Kitty phone... really, I couldn't imagine using it!
Blogger, consultant
http://www.netharuka.com
The phone decoration is amazing. Still, I don't know if I'd want to have a phone so nicely decorated. I tend to be rough on my mobiles. It also seems too bulky to stick in a pocket.
university film student | ecchikid | the Archivist
http://www.vimeo.com/longhim
The 3D Hello Kitty was impressive, but, uh, no thank you. I like my gadgets sleek and simplistic. That means minimal decoration and black, silver, or white.
This seems like a nice illustration of the differences in design philosophy between Japan (Asia?) and most of the Western world, which we discussed way back when the iPhone first launched in Japan. Japan likes to clutter things with as many features and text and colors and pictures as possible. Western design is, ironically, going the so-called "Zen" route and trying to make everything intuitive and simple.
Yahoo landing page vs. Google is another good example.
Bassist / Madman
http://www.myspace.com/thatbandyouhate
Do they make your phone bounce better if dropped? To me that is the only reason to put on any kind of covering no matter how shiny.
http://animaticfigmation.com/
It's nice that people could get away with owning such things, because doubtless in many other places flashing stuff like that around would be asking for someone to steal it from you. Leave it unattended for a minute and you'll never see it again around here at least. I would probably do something to my DS after all it's kind of boring, I like the DS being easy to remove for practicality issues.
Student, Writer
http://lecrit.tumblr.com/
So sparkly. o_0 Looks like a lot of excess weight hehe... I noticed that aside from those things, they also do a looooot of phone straps, to the point where they seem to be heavier (and bulkier) than the phone itself.. ><;;
http://pantsukudasai.deviantart.com/
They have this in America too, just not as popular as in Japan, and it's my first time seeing 3D versions that popup like that.
I remember a TV commercial about the sticker form of these several years ago.
They called it "BLING" and the commercial featured all white people, oh the irony.
The phone looks cute. But I don't think I would decorate anything though, unless I stick a small pvc figure onto the psp or cellphone, *brain storms* , hmm it might not be a bad idea after all, xD .
Student
i went up to lvl2 of a softbank store in shibuya and saw alot of these decorations....
and i saw the price, nearly 22 000yen. i thought hey thats not bad if it came with the phone, but...not it doesn't D:
just the decoration alone 22k? nowai
Pseudo-Graphic Designer, 触手 wrangler, H-Man
http://lightningsabre.blogspot.com/
Pretty cool, but a bit too much perhaps. If it's in moderation maybe. Didn't Minorin from Toradora offer this service to her classmates? ^_^
I'd decorate any of my handheld devices, but not as tacky as that.
Student
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kmyk88
there's stuff like this at strapya to buy ~
911 Emergency Services
If my wife wants to decorate her stuff, that's her prerogative. However she better not try to do that to any of my gadgets! LoL
don't like girlish fancy !!!!
Student
http://fruitjuicy.wordpress.com/
Pretty inconvenient for sticking into pockets but they're pretty to look at, dammit. Still, removable stickers would probably be a better decoration tool, IMO.
Student
http://chappypyon.wordpress.com/
That reminds me of Minorin. Haha. Seriously, i don't want that on my phone.
IT
http://davortech.wordpress.com
This is so ugly, it's hurting my eyes....
Student/Amateur Artist
http://poisondusk.wordpress.com/
Those are... kind of hideous, really. The amount of effort that must go into the specially made ones is impressive, but the designs are a bit over-the-top. The Hello Kitty phone just looks really impractical.
Family IT guy ...yes, NEET.
I wouldn't mind if Minorin wants to do it for me. ^^
Other than that, no..
a guy who cares (sort of...)
That is so... wrong >.<. I don't even have a strap on my phone. This is a serious overkill!
大学生
http://justaskeikaku.net23.net
Seen some before but nothing as big as that Hello Kitty one! Wouldn't mind one if it doesn't get in the way but seems more of a girly thing
dentist
http://penvara.com
I'm afraid that the cute decoden will hurt my face whenever I use my phone
Student
http://www.lesterho.com
I have noticed this popular Decoden when I came here. These are usually popular among young girls. Heck even my school has a special class that makes all of this things.
Student in Internet-based Systems
Uaah, not my cup of tea...
Mechanical Engineering student
http://sabekujikaneda.multiply.com/
I'll just settle with a camouflage-colored cellphone, thank you x_x
Student, Otaku, She-Geek(Sheek lol)
http://meimi132.wordpress.com/
The hello kitty adds a bit of size....kinda defeats the point of it being so small.....
Pretty deco though.
Student, Uncle & hopfully a good husband..
They got 'bedazzled'....
Student
Isn't this too heavy? Probably not practical at all..
Dental Technician, i make teeth!
http://antsizedman.blogspot.com/
Girl i know who worked in Japan disneyland bought aload of these kind of thngs back to the U.K. with her. Not my thing but i think they look good on girlie keitai, love the japanese word for a mobby.
High school student
http://www.animeraku.com
Lovely. Now I wonder, are there any otadens/itadens?
Student
That looks beautiful. I might do that to my phone when I get one!
Supreme Commander of NERV Co.
I want that on my cellphone with the NERV Co or SOS Brigade on it >_<
Student Game Development.
Hello Kitty :D
Scientist, unemployed.
http://fmphoenixhawk.livejournal.com
I bought my cell because I liked the color. And nothing else I own really needs decoration.
http://otakuposts.blogspot.com/
the digital watch looks like an epic fail with all those things on it! it looks like it developed boils or something!!
Daigakusei [Consular and Diplomatic Affairs]
http://dixinfernal.wordpress.com
woah~
Hello Kitty~ woah~ woah~ woah!
seems a bit much for a phone. of course my 13 yr old cousin would kill for it.
Student
http://theotakukid.com/
I don't see that point to decorate my cell phone. If I do something to my denwa and pull out in the public I will attracted a lots of unwanted attention from the crowd. Japanese and their cell phones decoration are getting crazier by the minute.
Student
I wonder if they have decorations that make things demonic! D:
Well, if they don't have evil-looking things and metal, back to using duct tape...
Student
I would love to decorate my phone like that, but I don't have the skills for it.
Programmer Trainee
http://jointsareokay.blogspot.com
While it's really cute I don't think I can do that
"jack of all trades" (master of none)
http://japanweloveyou.blogspot.com
Whoa! That is SERIOUS PHONE BLING!
student
looks heavy
Animator/SD Illustrator/Teacher/Spiral Knight
Won't you end up scratching your hands or damaging the interior of your handbags or something...