how to buy a mobile phone?

hello guys/girls this is some kid from osaka working as univ intern.

compared to canadian phones, i'm in love with japanese phones' superior design and functions. so I was actually thinking of buying a mobile phone and take it to canada, unlock it and stuff.

I know that you need to sign up with yearly contract kind of things to get hold of a phone, but since i would be leaving next year, that seems somewhat inconvenient.

so i was wondering if it's possible to buy a cellphone
in softbank or denden town and akihabara.

your reponse would be greatly appreciated.

thank you and have a great day.

You can't buy a new phone at a reasonable price without contract.

Due to strict regulations you will not be able to purchase a cool phone without a contract.

Pre-paid phones do not use SIM cards and therefore cannot be used overseas. Also, stores like Softbank will probably not be selling unlocked phones.

You should also keep the technology in mind. The US and Canada do not operate on the same 3G frequency. Plus J-phones that can operate on GSM do not utilize GSM 850, which will greatly diminish the signal quality when operating in Canada.

Not to mention many of the cool functions found on the phone might not work in Canada as well.