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Japanese
Something for everyone with NTT DoCoMo's new mobile phones
By Darren Quick
21:50 November 16, 2009 PST
Japan’s biggest mobile phone operator, NTT DoCoMo, has unveiled a raft of new phones – 19 in all – along with a 3G-capable digital photo frame. The new lineup includes the waterproof F-02B (complete with snap-on perfume holder), four models packing a 12.2-megapixel camera and the world’s first phone with a separable two-module body. Read More
‘Nice Cup In Bra’ - the world's weirdest golfing accessory?
By Darren Quick
21:19 November 16, 2009 PST
There seems to be a rush on inventive underwear this week with our second - and even more impractical - example coming from Triumph International Japan, who twice a year unveil a concept bra that highlights a popular trend or draws attention to social issues. Earlier this year saw the Konkatsu Bra designed to help Japanese women on the hunt for a man. The latest bra is designed to appeal to the growing numbers of female golfers in Japan looking for a unique way to practice their putting. Read More
Curio Avventura Stroller is designed to fit just about anywhere
By Jude Garvey
23:52 October 29, 2009 PDT
It can be very frustrating to discover that you can’t fit your stroller through the supermarket checkout, especially if you have already unloaded all the shopping from your cart. And trying to get your pusher through some train station automatic turnstiles is nigh on impossible. The Curio Avventura stroller was specifically designed to fit through narrow Japanese train station turnstiles and is also automatically collapsible if you need to carry it on to the train, meaning getting both you and baby out of any tight situations is a simple affair. Read More
Casio to release Exilim CA003 phone with 12MP camera
By Mick Webb
17:13 October 20, 2009 PDT
Those who like a camera phone to pack some serious specs will be very pleased to hear of Casio’s upcoming release of the Exilim CA003, featuring a 12.2MP camera with autofocus and a 28mm wide angle lens with 3X optical zoom. The phone will boast a 3.3” WVGA OLED screen as well as GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and FM radio. It supports microSDHC cards up to 16GB and will be available in four fashion colors including “champagne gold”. Read More
Time to think globally - the wn-2 Earth watch
By Mick Webb
12:22 October 5, 2009 PDT
Much like the recent spherical Eris watch, here’s another way to tell the time that is a little “out of this world”. Japanese not-for-profit organization Think The Earth has released the wn-2 watch, featuring a tiny replica of the Earth that rotates in the same direction and at the same speed as the real thing. By offering a view similar to that seen from orbit, the creators hope the wn-2 (which stands for “watch Northern Hemisphere”) will encourage the wearer to put things in perspective and consider the world around them. Read More
The world's oldest hotel - open nearly 1300 years
By Loz Blain
02:19 October 2, 2009 PDT
It's said that less than one in five businesses started today will be around in five years' time - which puts this story into perspective. Hōshi Ryokan is a hotel and spa in Komatsu, Japan. It has been owned and run by the same family for 46 generations so far, and its famous hot springs have been refreshing and revitalizing its patrons for no less than 1291 years. Founded by a Buddhist disciple whose master had the springs' location delivered to him in a dream, Hōshi is the world's oldest hotel and also the world's oldest continuously-operating business. Read More
Fragrance abuse - the next internet phenomenon
By Paul Ridden
17:26 July 7, 2009 PDT
Japanese telecommunications company NTT Com is currently seeking volunteers to test a pungent bit of kit which produces different smells at the request of programs downloaded from the Internet. There will be two separate trials of the i-Aroma conducted in Japan from mid-July to the end of August. One course will send out smells matching "the rhythm of daily life" while the other will release odors based on an ancient astrological system. Read More
Robot does it by the book
By Darren Quick
21:52 June 22, 2009 PDT
Too tired to read the little ones a bedtime story after a long day? Japanese researchers may have had the time-poor parent in mind when they developed Ninomiya-kun, a robot capable of reading aloud from that most ancient of random access mass storage devices - a book. Read More
Concept bra to help Japanese women on the hubbie hunt
By Darren Quick
02:27 May 19, 2009 PDT
“Concept” and “bra” aren’t two words you’d typically expect to go together too often. After all, a bra is the epitome of simplicity. As Seinfeld's George Costanza once remarked, “Two cups in the front, two loops in the back. How do they do it?” Well, Japanese lingerie maker Triumph International has complicated the humble undergarment with its concept “Konkatsu bra” – a bra that is designed to help Japanese women search for husbands by proudly declaring they're on the hunt. Read More
HAL exoskeleton can boost strength 10 times
By Darren Quick
19:01 April 15, 2009 PDT
Anyone who has seen Aliens will remember the exoskeleton forklift that Ripley wears to fight the alien queen at the end of the movie. Well, Japanese company Cyberdyne has unveiled a robotic suit that works on a similar idea of a robotic suit capable of augmenting human motion and strength. The Robot Suit Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL for short) is a wearable robot that uses a “voluntary control system” first to interpret the wearers' planned movement and then assist them in it. Read More
Robot supermodel takes to the catwalk
By Kyle Sherer
18:10 March 18, 2009 PDT
Japanese researchers on Monday unveiled the HRP-4C robot in a mock fashion show, which showcased the versatile facial expressions and motions of the bot, rather than the outfit of the month. The petit, 158cm tall robot has 42 motion motors in its body, and can imitate a variety of facial expressions. Read More
Terotech
- November 21, 2009 @ 19:38 UTC
