{"id":829401,"date":"2026-08-29T04:36:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-29T04:36:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/829401\/"},"modified":"2026-08-29T04:36:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T04:36:17","slug":"250-north-korean-smartphone-qr-payments-and-taxi-hailing-possible-but-this-feature-is-missing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/829401\/","title":{"rendered":"$250 North Korean Smartphone…QR Payments and Taxi Hailing Possible, But This Feature Is Missing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n No Wi-Fi Connection: Only North Korean Intranet Available
Automatic Screen Capture Prevents Viewing K-Dramas\n <\/p>\n

An analysis of smartphones used in North Korea has revealed that these devices do not have global internet connectivity and frequently capture the user\u2019s screen, automatically saving images in a \u201cScreen History\u201d folder.<\/p>\n

\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\"A
\n\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

A smartphone used in North Korea frequently captures the user’s screen and automatically saves it in the ‘Screen History’ folder. Photo captured from The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).<\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\tView original image
\n\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

On August 28 (local time), the U.S. daily The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) released a video analyzing the North Korean smartphone \u201cHaeyang 701.\u201d Ryu Sunghyun, a North Korean defector and former soldier, explained that such smartphones can be purchased in North Korean black markets for about $250 (approximately 350,000 won). However, since the monthly wage of a North Korean military officer is less than $1, he noted that obtaining one is extremely difficult.<\/p>\n

The WSJ stated that \u201cthe use of smartphones is expanding not only in Pyongyang but across North Korea.\u201d However, Ryu added that \u201conly about 10% of North Koreans likely own a smartphone.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Haeyang 701 is a mid-range North Korean smartphone produced in 2023. Like other smartphones, it allows users to make voice calls, send and receive text messages, and offers various applications (apps).<\/p>\n

It also enables QR code payments similar to China\u2019s Alipay, and users can transfer funds to others. The transfer screen is divided into \u201cdomestic currency\u201d and \u201cforeign currency,\u201d indicating that transferring U.S. dollars is also possible. Additionally, the financial app includes a function to hail taxis.<\/p>\n

There is also an \u201cOffice Processing\u201d app with an icon resembling Microsoft (MS) Word. A soccer game called \u201cInternational Soccer Federation Contest\u201d featuring the famous Argentine footballer Lionel Messi can be played, but \u201cSouth Korea\u201d and \u201cthe United States\u201d are omitted from the list of selectable countries.<\/p>\n

Above all, the key characteristic of this smartphone is that the North Korean government\u2019s system of resident control is embedded in the device itself. The smartphone has no capability for global internet connectivity. Even if the Wi-Fi button is pressed, wireless internet does not activate, and the device can only access the intranet network managed by the North Korean authorities.<\/p>\n

Censorship is also applied when writing. If one enters the name of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, it is automatically displayed in bold text. If \u201cRepublic of Korea\u201d is typed, it is replaced with \u201c(forbidden word).\u201d When entering the slang term \u201cnamchin\u201d (boyfriend), it is automatically corrected to \u201cnamjachingu\u201d (the formal word for boyfriend), presumably because \u201cnamchin\u201d is a term often heard in Korean dramas.<\/p>\n

Additionally, Ryu stated, \u201cWith this device, it is impossible to access K-dramas or American content.\u201d This is because the smartphone automatically captures the screen and saves it in the \u201cScreen History\u201d folder. It is impossible to disable this feature or delete the saved screenshots. According to North Korean law, watching South Korean or American content results in five years of reeducation through labor (imprisonment), and those who distribute such content face execution.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Hot Picks Today
\n
\n \""Still
\n “Still No. 1?” New Snacks Keep Coming, but Korea\u2019s Beloved Snacks Sell 130 Billion Won Even After 50 Years
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

The WSJ pointed out, \u201cSuch use of smartphones occurs only within the limits set by the all-seeing state.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.<\/p>\n

\u00a9 The Asia Business Daily. All rights reserved. Unauthorized AI training and use prohibited.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"No Wi-Fi Connection: Only North Korean Intranet Available Automatic Screen Capture Prevents Viewing K-Dramas An analysis of smartphones…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":829402,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[26164,18591,25954,165,3,10287,111,1247,1866,74,351286],"class_list":["post-829401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mobile","tag-economic","tag-issue","tag-korea","tag-mobile","tag-news","tag-newspaper","tag-politics","tag-society","tag-south-korea","tag-technology","tag-the-asia-business-daily"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/829401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=829401"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/829401\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/829402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=829401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=829401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=829401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}