You might find photos to include in your profile movie! The au event for 【Garake Restoration】 is currently being held 🤳🏻

2023.12.05 published

I Have No Photos for My Profile Movie...

"I have no photos to use for my profile movie! I can't find any!" is one of the common worries that couples face while preparing for their wedding.

It's often said that childhood photos are developed and at their parents' house, and recent photos are on their smartphones, but they're struggling with the lack of photos from middle school to the early years of adulthood!

(Especially the husband's photos!)

I believe there are several reasons for the lack of photos (if they weren't taken in the first place, they won't exist…),

but many people might say that they don't have photos because they were using flip phones at that time!

Most brides in the current generation probably used flip phones from middle school to their early years in the workforce.

(By the way, the first iPhone was released in Japan in 2008. I got my first iPhone in my second year of university, which was in 2011. In 2011, the number of people with iPhones at university was still a minority (about 20%?). I remember it was relatively rare and exciting to say, "I just got an iPhone!")

So if you could restore a flip phone and find some photos from middle school to the early years of adulthood, you might discover a few photos that could be used for your profile movie, don't you think...!?

The Flip Phone Makes a Comeback!

If the flip phone and charging cable are still intact, and it powers on after charging without issues, and you remember the password, then everything should be fine.

However, I think it's more common for people to have problems, like not being able to turn it on because the charging cable is missing or it won't power on even when the charging cable is plugged in.

In such cases, the first thing I recommend is attending the "Omoide Keitai Saikido" event organized by au.

This event helps revive flip phones using specialized equipment for free, and it works even for phones other than au's!

The au store in Ginza, "GINZA 456 Created by KDDI," plans to hold this event three days each month from January to March 2024!

➡ Events are held nationwide! Schedule information for the Omoide Keitai Saikido event

This video shows friends attending together in hopes of finding photos to use in their wedding!

If there’s an au event nearby, it’s worth bringing your phone to try. If that doesn’t work out, contacting a data recovery service might be a good option.

Data recovery services for flip phones can extract data for around 20,000 yen!

Feedback from Those Who Attended the Event♡

I asked a friend who went to au's "Omoide Keitai Saikido" to share their experience!

They brought three flip phones with them. Fortunately, all three had no battery issues, and they powered on just fine, but…

Two out of the three had PIN codes set, and they ended up not being able to access those because they forgot the codes.

Note that au doesn’t assist with unlocking passwords, so be cautious!

One phone that was successfully powered on allowed them to view photos and emails, and they had a great time reminiscing with family who went along with them! (It took about 40 minutes.)

They were particularly delighted to find old photos of their pet dog when it was a puppy (12 years old now)! 🐶

The au Omoide Keitai Saikido event also offers a service where they print out about three photos from the data folder on the spot and give them as gifts!

You can also project old photos on a wall and take a picture with them!

By the way, there's no service provided for transferring or moving data from the flip phone to a smartphone.

If you want to transfer to a smartphone, you will need to purchase a dedicated charging transfer cable compatible with your model and then transfer the data to a computer!

(Cables are around 1,000 yen, so as long as you can power the phone on, it's cheaper than using a recovery service!)

➡ Check out charging connectors for flip phones on Rakuten

Using Photos from the Flip Phone for the Profile Movie♡

If you're worried about not having photos for your profile movie, why not try reviving a flip phone?＊

Not only can you potentially find photos to use for your profile movie, but you might also come across cute, loving emails from your partner whom you've been with for years!

That said, be careful as you might unexpectedly find photos of old flames or emails that feel like embarrassing history if you go with someone! 😂