DoCoMo to upgrade 3G phones

DoCoMo is upgrading some 3G phones and replacing others

TOKYO, Japan -- Japan's largest mobile operator, NTT DoCoMo, said Friday it plans to replace 1,400 third-generation (3G) mobile handsets made by NEC Corp to upgrade them.

"We are replacing handsets to improve their function, not because of technical problems," said Takumi Suzuki, a DoCoMo spokesman.

DoCoMo, which began introductory 3G services on May 30, did not say when the 1,400 FOMA N2001 model handsets would be replaced.

Earlier in the week, the telco said it would begin replacing defective "DoCoMo by Sony" mobile phones.

Over 400,000 Sony SO503i handsets had been sold before the recall. Sales of the handset were suspended when a glitch in the product's imaging software was discovered.

Industry watchers said DoCoMo and Sony would share the cost of this week's recall. The handsets retailed at $164 (20,000 yen) each, indicating a total cost of $65.6 million (8 billion yen) for the 400,000 handsets.

According to DoCoMo, sales of the Sony handset would continue in late June, using bug-free versions already in stock.

Reuters contributed to this report.