(Image Source: KCNA)
BY DANNY MATTESON
Residents of the so-called “Hermit Kingdom” might soon be phoning a friend. That according to new reports that North Korea has created its first ever smartphone.
Pictures of the new handheld named “Arirang” after a Korean folk song, surfaced Sunday on KCNA, the country’s state-run media agency. (Via CNET)
That was shortly after a visit from North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un, who reportedly toured the plant and received a briefing on the phone. (Via Motherboard)
The phones, which are said to be running a version of Android, are being touted as homegrown technology, by and for the North Korean people. (Via CNN)
Kim Jong-un reportedly told KCNA it was …
“… nice to see hand phones being successfully produced with indigenous technology … it is of educational significance in making people love Korean things.”
But many writers aren’t so sure the phones are as homegrown as they let on. (Via National Post)
One writer with North Korea Tech theorizes they may be made elsewhere and shipped into North Korea. He wrote …
“Workers are shown with finished products, inspecting them and testing them but no actual manufacturing is shown … they are probably made to order by a Chinese manufacturer and shipped to the May 11 Factory where they are inspected before going on sale."
And others are wondering what the so-called “smartphones” will be able to do in a country where the Internet is heavily-restricted. A writer with NBC points out …
“Even if the people of the republic did line up round the block to buy themselves a new device, it's a puzzle what they'll be able to do with them, as Internet access in Korea is restricted to a handful of government and military leaders.”
So if the phone is made in China and can’t connect to the internet, why create it all? A writer with The Washington Post has one theory …
“… the Kim regime rightly fears technological encroachment, which risks allowing outside information to seep into this carefully engineered society. And North Korean demand for smartphones has reportedly been rising.”
For North Korea’s part, they claim the phone is built to guarantee convenience and security for the North Korean people. According to KCNA, manufacturing on the telephones commenced “a couple of days in the past.”