The JALT CALL Journal » REGULAR ARTICLES The JALT CALL Journal, 2006, Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 3-14 Copyright © JALT CALL SIG (ISSN 1832-4215) — 3 Limitations of Mobile Phone Learning Wang Shudong Hiroshima Shudo University, Japan shudongwang@gmail.com Michael Higgins Yamaguchi University, Japan higginsm@yamaguchi-u.ac.jp In this article, we discuss weaknesses inherent in mobile phone learning, and factors that limit its viability. (We do not discuss other m-learning devices such as PDAs.) We conclude that, while e-learning has met with some acceptance among educators and is increasingly being implemented, it will be necessary to solve the problems that we discuss before m-learning can become effective, accepted and widely used. Educators who are interested in using mobile phones for learning with their students should be aware of the current limitations. M-learning: an Exciting Trend These numbers are indeed astonishing: There are currently 1.7 billion mobile phones in use around the world, while the total world population is 6 billion (Keegan, 2004). In the last 10 years, the development of mobile phone technology has been unbeliev- ably swift: from analog to digital, and from plain and simple cell phones to the current 3G smart phone which can serve as a mini-computer, telephone, or camera, and transfer data as well as video and audio iles. There seems to be a constant stream of new technology breaking into the mobile phone market (Attewell, 2005). In Japan, as of December 2004, the number of cell phone contracts (mainly with AU-KDDI, NTT DoCoMo and Vodafone) already exceeded 85,483,800, equal to roughly two-thirds of Japan’s total population. Considering that there might be several cell phones being used by members of the same family on a single contract (Japan Shikoku Area Telecom- munication, 2005), this represents a much larger percentage of the population actually using cell phones. If you walk onto any university campus in Japan, you will ind a major- ity of students carrying mobile phones. Many will be silently reading emails or c-mails and inputting information (Houser & Thornton, 2004). Up to the beginning of 2004, in China, 335 million Chinese had mobile phones and this number is increasing by 25% or