Freetel continues Japan's support of Windows 10 Mobile with Katana

Katana 02

If there's one country that seems to be getting right behind Windows 10 Mobile when it comes to new phones, it's Japan.

Carrier and phone maker, Freetel, has the Katana 01 and Katana 02, a pair of Windows 10 Mobile devices that its offering to its customers.

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Neither are what you'd describe as high-end, but the continued Japanese support of the platform is encouraging.

The Katana 02 is the higher spec offering of the two, with a 5-inch 720p display, quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage. Round the back there's an 8MP camera with a 2MP up front for selfies, all powered by a 2600mAh battery.

It's all plastic, but on the back there's a brushed texture finish, with a chrome effect side trim. It's pretty unassuming looking round the front, with nothing but a black rectangle staring back at you.

The smaller, lower-spec model is the Katana 01, which has a soft touch finish on the back. It's very much an entry level phone, with a 4.5-inch 480x854 resolution display, quad-core processor, 8GB of storage and 1GB of RAM.

Battery is 1700mAh and there's a 5MP camera on the back. But ultimately it's a way into the ecosystem for customers of Freetel in Japan.

And that's the bigger takeaway here. It goes to show that in corners of the world we may sometimes ignore, there's still support for new Windows 10 Mobile products. Limited markets, sure, but they're still happening.

And that makes for good news.

Richard Devine
Managing Editor

Richard Devine is the Managing Editor at Windows Central, where he combines a deep love for the open-source community with expert-level technical coverage. Whether he’s hunting for the next big project on GitHub, fine-tuning a WSL workflow, or breaking down the latest meta in Call of Duty, Forza, and The Division 2, Richard focuses on making complex tech accessible to every kind of user. If it’s happening in the world of Windows or PC gaming, he’s probably already knee-deep in the code (or the lobbies). Follow him on X and Mastodon.