Via KCNA
After years of cracking down on consumer tech, North Korea’s starting
to flirt with the idea of embracing new technology. But, like many the
egocentric suitor, it's only doing so on its own terms.
The latest pursuit came this weekend, when the the DPRK's state-run
TV network showed Kim Jong-un at a factory inspecting what's reportedly
North Korea's first smartphone. Only, there’s a strong chance the phone
won't connect to the internet, and it probably wasn't made in North
Korea either.
The Korean Central News Agency hyped the visit nonetheless, reporting
that the supreme leader “highly appreciated the creative ingenuity and
patriotic enthusiasm with which the officials and employees of the
factory laid a solid foundation for mass-producing hand phones."
He commented “how nice to see hand phones being successfully produced
with indigenous technology," and lauded its significance "in making
people love Korean things.”
But experts suspect the phone is actually manufactured in China, then
secretly transported over the border and inspected in North Korea, to
give the appearance the phone was nationally made. Workers in the
photos are shown with finished products, inspecting them and testing,
but not doing any manufacturing, North Korea Tech reported.
Meanwhile, Jong-un boasted how “mass-production of goods with DPRK
trademark can instill national pride and self-respect into the Korean
people."
At this point precious little is known about the smartphone
itself—only that it's Android-based, has a "camera with high pixels,"
and is named the “Arirang” after a patriotic Korean folk song. Still
there’s plenty of reason to doubt that the devices will be able to go
online.
For one, the country has an iron-clad grip on internet access. A
select few North Koreans outside of the government or the
military access to the World Wide Web. They have instead an internal intranet, the Kwangmyong,
that's accessible via dial-up, and serves up a handful of pre-approved,
state-controlled websites. Last month, when a tourist got his hands on a
North Korean Android-based tablet, he noticed the web browser
connected to the internal intranet only.
The latest pursuit came this weekend, when the the DPRK's state-run TV network showed Kim Jong-un at a factory inspecting what's reportedly North Korea's first smartphone. Only, there’s a strong chance the phone won't connect to the internet, and it probably wasn't made in North Korea either.
The Korean Central News Agency hyped the visit nonetheless, reporting that the supreme leader “highly appreciated the creative ingenuity and patriotic enthusiasm with which the officials and employees of the factory laid a solid foundation for mass-producing hand phones." He commented “how nice to see hand phones being successfully produced with indigenous technology," and lauded its significance "in making people love Korean things.”
But experts suspect the phone is actually manufactured in China, then secretly transported over the border and inspected in North Korea, to give the appearance the phone was nationally made. Workers in the photos are shown with finished products, inspecting them and testing, but not doing any manufacturing, North Korea Tech reported. Meanwhile, Jong-un boasted how “mass-production of goods with DPRK trademark can instill national pride and self-respect into the Korean people."
At this point precious little is known about the smartphone itself—only that it's Android-based, has a "camera with high pixels," and is named the “Arirang” after a patriotic Korean folk song. Still there’s plenty of reason to doubt that the devices will be able to go online.
For one, the country has an iron-clad grip on internet access. A select few North Koreans outside of the government or the military access to the World Wide Web. They have instead an internal intranet, the Kwangmyong, that's accessible via dial-up, and serves up a handful of pre-approved, state-controlled websites. Last month, when a tourist got his hands on a North Korean Android-based tablet, he noticed the web browser connected to the internal intranet only.
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