Foreign visitors to North Korea are for the first time being allowed to take their own mobile phones with them into the country, according to reports.
Previously, all foreigners had to leave their mobiles at the border and collect them when they left.
Visitors can now buy a SIM card at the airport, which will let them make international calls. But they cannot make local calls or go online.
Most North Koreans have limited or no access to the internet.
China's state news agency, Xinhua, said the changes had been in place since 7 January this year.
A report of phones being allowed in came from a China-based tour group, Young Pioneer Tours.
A spokesman said they had been preparing to hand over their mobiles as they entered North Korea, but a border guard simply asked whether the devices were equipped with GPS and then indicated they should carry them through regardless of the answer, BBC News reported.
