| Date | Title | Description |
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| May 28, 2009 | Hello Kitty photo frame is almost too cute to be true | We blogged about a number of particularly cute digital photo frames in the past, but this Hello Kitty model beats them all. Announced in Japan by Sanrio [JP] today (Sanrio is the corporation behind the cartoon cat), the device goes on sale ... |
| May 22, 2009 | The newest USB stick weirdness: Cat ears | We covered USB sticks shaped like cat tails, mini cats, humping dogs, puppies and countless other weird things, but cat ears [JP] are new. And the Japanese maker (no, not Thanko this time) suggests you buy two of them for enhanced cuteness.... |
| May 20, 2009 | Japanese company sells retarded Godzilla gadget for bathroom use | You can see that a given nation, in this case the country of Japan, has an over-saturated market for gadgets if one these things actually goes on sale: A godzilla figure [JP] that you hang on your bathroom wall, that can be shot at with a w... |
| May 18, 2009 | Puppy-shaped speakers prove not all USB dogs have to hump or crunch to be cute | Humping or crunching USB dogs are out. The newest fad (at least in Japan) is owning puppy-shaped and USB-powered speakers [JP] for your computer. They are brought to you by Japan Trust Technology (what a name), a Tokyo-based Thanko competit... |
| May 18, 2009 | Yamaha's BODiBEAT player lets you jog to the music | In case you are an avid runner and don’t like to carry an iPod with you during your exercise, Yamaha Japan might have developed the right device for you. The so-called BODiBEAT (notice the small “i”) portable music player is specifically ge... |
| May 15, 2009 | Mini aircrafts: The Honeybee series gets two new models | Japanese toy maker CCP is selling two wireless, remote-controlled mini model aircrafts that are part of the company’s so-called HoneyBee series of palm-size flying aircrafts. The Skyvehicle [JP] is designed to look like a helicopter but fea... |
| May 6, 2009 | Dog-shaped robot recycles pet poop, is expensive | Japan-based Tohoku Kankyo is selling the Samu [JP], a robotic trash can that’s shaped like a dog and can get rid of “natural garbage” like food leftovers and pet poo in a biologically acceptable way. Users can turn 600 to 1,000g of bad stuf... |
| May 5, 2009 | Lingo: Can a mouse be too small? | There are quite a few mini PC mouses coming out of Japan, but now Tokyo-based TEC is saying their Lingo, a wireless device, is the smallest of them all [JP]. The Lingo weighs only 23g and is sized at 27.5 × 60 × 19mm so the claim doesn’t so... |
| May 4, 2009 | Mplayer+: iriver's Mickey Mouse MP3 player gets an upgrade | iriver’s Mplayer, a super-cute portable MP3 player, is on sale for about 2 years now and has proven to be a big hit particularly in East Asia. Now, the player that’s shaped like Mickey Mouse’s head gets a quite important upgrade and is rena... |
| May 1, 2009 | Would you please STFU: Mute Karaoke mic for Nintendo Wii | You own a Wii? You like Karaoke? But you suck at singing or you are so loud that you annoy everyone in your vicinity? No problem anymore, since Tokyo-based Japan Trust Technology (JTT) comes to the rescue with the so-called Mute Mic for the... |
| Apr 30, 2009 | Japanese company sells portable USB turntable | Here is something cool from Japan for the many vinyl fans still out there: A portable turntable for your old records [JP]. The device, made by a Tokyo-based music and DJ equipment maker called Vestax, not only plays your records but also di... |
| Apr 29, 2009 | Good idea or not: Netbook stand with built-in DVD super-multi drive | In case you own a netbook and miss watching your movies on it or burning data on DVD, there is now solution from Japan. A Tokyo-based company called Century has come up with a netbook stand that doubles as a DVD super multi drive [JP].
The ... |
| Apr 28, 2009 | This super-mobile hand trackball might save you a lot of space | Japan-based PC accessory maker Sanwa Supply is selling a tiny point-and-click device that can possibly save a lot of space in your work area and might be handy during presentations. The device is sized at just 35×30×30mm, can be used held i... |
| Apr 27, 2009 | Japanese company sells USB-powered mini Zen garden (video) | This is an odd USB gadget that doesn’t come from Thanko for a change. A company called Japan Trust Technology is selling a mini Japanese style garden [JP] (OK, it’s just a couple of plastic bamboos) that includes a watering system and is po... |
| Apr 24, 2009 | iPod dock + HDD media player kit = Movie Cowboy Box | Japan-based Digital Cowboy today announced the Movie CowBoy DC-MC35ULI [JP], a device serving as an iPod dock and an HDD media player that’s compatible with 3.5-inch SATA HDDs (sold separately). Users wanting to watch movies from their hard... |
| Apr 23, 2009 | Transformers in cute: Optimus Prime and Bumblebee as mini robots (Robo Q) | The highly anticipated Transformers 2 – Revenge of the Fallen is just around the corner and it seems Japan can’t wait to see it as well. Takara Tomy is introducing two of the most popular Transformers, Optimus Prime and Bumbleebee, as so-ca... |
| Apr 23, 2009 | E-series: Sony's new walkman looks like a USB candy bar | Sony in Japan has announced the Walkman E-series [JP], which (technically) looks pale compared to the recently unveiled OLED touchscreen Walkman, but can score with some interesting designs. The USB stick-type player will be available with ... |
| Apr 20, 2009 | Orgel Spa: Hear music in your bathtub, feel extreme relaxation | Sega Toys in Japan is selling a waterproof “music ball” that helps you relax while you take a bath. Dubbed Orgel Spa [JP], the small device (8cm in diameter and 6cm high) is part of the company’s toy series that’s geared towards grown-ups a... |
| Apr 16, 2009 | Still own cassettes? Digitize them with this new gadget | I doubt there are still many music cassettes around but if you happen to own some and want to save your childhood memories on your computer for eternity, you might like the MV-CM001U. The retro-style device was announced by a Japan-based co... |
| Apr 13, 2009 | Juice camera: A camera, which is shaped like a, well, juice box | FUUVI [JP], a Tokyo-based design company is selling a point-and-shoot camera that comes in the form of a juice box (of all things). Design-wise, you can choose between five flavors: Sunny, Strawberry, and Supermarket Mania (either as Europe... |
| Apr 8, 2009 | Facebank 2: The creepiest piggy bank ever? | Creepy gets an upgrade. The first version of the Facebank wasn’t really a picknick for the eyes, but now Japan-based toy maker Banpresto not only decided it’s time for an update but that their piggy bank must even get scarier. How? By just ... |
| Apr 7, 2009 | Weird PC mouse displays LED messages, cools off through built-in fan | Offered by a Japanese company, slightly over-engineered, USB connection and senseless but kind of cool. What sounds like the typical Thanko product, is offered by another company in Nippon: A computer mouse that can not only display LED mes... |
| Apr 2, 2009 | Just in time for summer: Super-cute Hello Kitty ventilator | There is a big number of gadgets available that feature Hello Kitty, the super-cute cartoon cat and love of millions of teenagers worldwide. There are Hello Kitty-branded digital cameras, alarm clocks, cell phones and even notebooks. Until ... |
| Apr 1, 2009 | Another whacky USB gadget from Japan: Mini beach sandals and surf board memory cards | I don’t know what made Tokyo-based tech company Greenhouse announce (or even produce) these gadgets in early April but they did anyway. For some reason, the company will start selling USB memory cards shaped like beach sandals and surf boar... |
| Mar 18, 2009 | Lancerlink's USB to HDMI converter is now also available for Macs | Tokyo-based electronics company Lancerlink [JP] has added Mac support to the Grand HD Cinema, a dongle that allows users to view media files stored on their computers on their TV by converting USB to HDMI. The PC version of the device, whic... |
| Mar 16, 2009 | amadana SAL: Japanese company rolls out stylish mini pocket camera | A Tokyo-based design company called amadana today announced the amadana SAL [JP], a palm-sized video camera that can be pre-ordered in Japan starting April 17. Non-Japanese people interested in the stylish gadget can ask Japan Trend Shop, G... |
| Mar 13, 2009 | Castrade CV-MP02: Another mini projector from Japan | A Japanese company called Castrade today announced the CV-MP02 [JP], a mobile LCOS projector that’s able to project an image of up to 50 inches( aspect ratio of 4:3). The device is Japan-only, but you can ask the Japan Trend Shop, Gizmine o... |
| Mar 4, 2009 | Slimstick: Seiko's walking aid gadget gets an update | Seiko Japan’s Slimstick [JP], a pedometer, hit stores in Nippon last year and proved to be a huge hit among body-conscious Japanese girls. Now the company added five new colors to the three existing ones (zebra gold, silver, pink, white and... |
| Mar 2, 2009 | Meet pyuuun, your new palm-sized sidekick robot | Tokyo-based Robo-Engine started selling a mini robot [JP] that’s supposed to become your sidekick and keep a record of your daily life. The so-called pyuuun is marketed in Japan as a “life log robot”. Contact either the Japan Trend Shop, Gi... |
| Feb 17, 2009 | "Locky Memory": A USB stick that protects your important data via a numeric password | The USB stick with the built-in Post-It pad from Japan was weird but this one looks quite useful. A Japanese company called Rinso Do [JP] is now selling a USB stick that comes with a numeric keypad that allows users to set a password to pre... |
| Feb 10, 2009 | New Hello Kitty alarm clock looks cute, runs away to annoy you | I covered quite a few alarm clocks with annoying features from Japan in the past months, i.e. one that’s shaped like a railroad crossing sign, one that wakes sleepers with helicopter engine sounds and Bandai’s brilliant Gun o’ Clock.
But no... |
| Feb 5, 2009 | Japanese company sells USB stick with built-in "Post-it" pad | I am doubting that the original Post-it brand is really behind this, but a Japanese company called Actbrise [JP] (slogan: “Seven falls and eight rises.”) is selling a USB stick with a built-in sticky note pad [JP].
The USB 2.0 stick can hol... |
| Jan 28, 2009 | Useless and Japan-only but cute: Mini USB construction site | Wiz, the Japanese toy maker behind great stuff like the Flying Ultraman and the consolation money pocket calculator, today unveiled their newest stroke of genius, a mini USB construction site [JP, PDF].
As most USB gadgets, it doesn’t serve... |
| Jan 27, 2009 | Too much stress? Don't have a car? Try the Sound Accel Pedal | Japanese gadget companies DO have a strange attitude when it comes to answer the question of how to relieve stress for Nippon’s exhausted salary men and house keepers.
In the past, CrunchGear covered a stress-absorbing vase, a healing heads... |
| Jan 19, 2009 | Kana micro: New, cute and inexpensive DAPs from Greenhouse | Greenhouse in Japan will start selling the Kana Micro, nothing-special-but-cute mini DAPs [JP] from the beginning of next month (ask this shop if they offer the players anytime soon for Non-Japanese people).
The device is available in seven... |
| Dec 30, 2008 | Webcam/Mirror promises fun, excitement, a look at my boiling, seething soul | This $89.99 mirror promises more than just the ability see myself while I record webcam video – it promises the ability to see what a horribly vain and truculent person I really am. By enabling me to see my face in full resolution as a emot... |
| Dec 11, 2008 | New Hello Kitty point-and-shoot camera available in Japan (but not in pink) | Tokyo-based Exemode is selling a new digital camera [JP] that has been designed with French design company Courrèges and Japanese toy giant Sanrio. The 5.17 million megapixel camera features the cutest cat in the universe, Hello Kitty.
The ... |
| Dec 10, 2008 | Photty = cool key holder + mini photo frame from Japan | Japan-based Kairen [JP] is selling a key holder that doubles as a mini photo frame, which is 1.5 inches in size and features a 128×128 resolution.
The so-called Photty [JP] is available in pink and white, comes with 16MB of memory and can b... |
| Nov 26, 2008 | GizMine: All the crazy Japanese crap you could want in one sexy website | Helllloooooo Nurse!
Looking for the poking box? A bathroom speaker shaped like a bloody tear? A Mir:ror? You are totes in luck because the boys who brought you Dynamism, the number-one source for cool little Japanese laptops, are pleased to... |