Electronic dictionary sales keep falling in Japan amid declining birthrates and widespread use of smartphone apps.

After the first domestically made model was launched in 1979, sales of electronic dictionaries expanded thanks to strong demand for the gadgets as gifts for those starting school or entering the workplace. Their shipments in the country reached 2.805 million units in 2007, according to the Japan Business Machine and Information System Industries Association.

But since then, the market has constantly shrunk. In 2023, domestic shipments totaled 385,000 units, only one-seventh of the peak.

The diminishing sales forced many manufacturers to pull the plug on the market. Sony, now Sony Group, withdrew from the business in 2006, while Citizen Holdings, currently Citizen Watch, and Seiko Instruments both terminated production and sales in 2015.

A few remaining players include industry leader Casio Computer and Sharp, the Japanese electronic dictionary pioneer.

But even Casio, which made a foray into the market in 1981 and found success with the release of the high-performance Ex-word model in 1996, announced last month that it would no longer develop new products.

"Behind the decision is the increasing use of personal computers at schools along with the adoption of information and communications technology," says Casio Executive Officer Seiji Tamura.

While continuing production and sales of existing models, Casio is now focusing on developing software for PCs and smartphones. It has released "ClassPad.net," a comprehensive study-aid app that offers not only dictionary functions but also a digital notebook that can be used to input handwriting.

"Taking advantage of our electronic dictionary know-how, we are shifting our attention to software for contributing to education," a Casio official notes.

Sharp is also putting its hopes on dictionary apps. Its "Brain+" has English-learning support functions including one that allows users to search for definitions of words in web articles by simply copying those words.