[Firebird]

Well, im in Tokyo now and i got 2 main Questions.
As said before i will stay 1 year in Japan so ill get a Bank account and a mobile phone.
Bank account: What i will use it for: Transfer the Money from Germany that i saved up for this year and be able to withdraw it in many places. Also get my payday once i started working. Thats bassicly it.
So i have been reading alot and till now i think my best bet would be the Post Office, because they dont have high charges and they are bassicly in every Town. I will mostly pay cash and plan to use my card just or withdrawl wich should be free. If i´m wrong please correct me and give me some advise. And do you know if i´ll need my Alien Registration card to register it?

Now, more complicated mobile phone:
Well i dont use my mobilephone alot back home, but here i will need one. im mostly sending messages because it is cheaper, so i thought it would be a good option to get a softbank prepaid phonr (message 5 yen, email 15 yen). Now i just wonder, if i get emails, will i need to be online and will get charged extra (on top of the 15 yen) or is that included? Is there any option for a cheap one-year plan? Would you recommend another company than Softbank?
Also i will need a mobile phone wich is in english. Im not fancy on camera and stuff, it just need to able to phone and to send messages, so i hope to get one cheap. Do you think it would be possible to get a used one and than just put in a prepaid card?

well thanks in advance
Greetings from Tokyo
Firebird

P.S. ive got some spare time, so if anyone wants to meet, ill be happy to! Im close to Ueno and Asakusa.