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The Japanese Snuggie Devolves Humans Into Giant, Two-Legged Tadpoles
Say hello to the Japanese Snuggie. The Two-Legged Sleeping bag. The Human Larva. Say hello to...this. There is no pitchman charismatic enough, no paid spokesperson straghtfaced enough, no model poised enough to give this the informercial it so clearly deserves.More »
Augmented Reality Used By Red Cross To Target Japanese Nerdlingers
Man alive, even Japan's Red Cross Society is technologically-savvy. Commuters rushing through Akihabara station recently were treated to an augmented reality campaign urging them to donate blood. Anime girls in short skirts = instant win for the blood bank. More »Dead or Alive, You're Learning With Me
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According to Impress, the iPhone has taken over 46.1 percent of the Japanese smartphone market. This is extremely surprising, because the Japanese are known for being impervious to alien cellphones, preferring their weird mobiles. The two top spots are Apple's: More »Robovie II Helps You Load Up On Beer and Frozen Pizza at the Supermarket
I have to admit, a robot that would help you buy groceries at the supermarket would be awesome. But I think that Robovie II could be even better. More »Tell Us What You'd Shoot Using a Camera With 158 Lenses
The Guinness World Records doesn't just award insanely tall men and disgusting long fingernails, you know. Sometimes they happen over to our side of the crazy pool, to give recognition to things like the camera with the most lenses ever. More »For a Post-Christmas Treat, Order a Looky-Likey Android From Japan
What would you spend $225,000 on? An animated android, styled after yourself? Starting in January the Japanese store Sogo & Seibu will begin taking pre-orders for these "Actroids." They may not walk, but they can move their upper bodies. More »Canon 5D Time Lapse Video Is Perfect Viewing Material for Lazy Sunday Afternoons
This time lapse video out of Japan (Mt. Fuji, Iwate Prefecture, et al) enhances my calm while upholding my personal belief that HD video on DSLRs is one of the best things to happen to cameras in recent history. More »World's First Robot vs. Human Pro Wrestling Match Ends in KO
In one corner, we've got a spry, three-foot-tall robot, prone to floating like a butterfly and doing its damnedest to sting like a bee; in the other, a medium-sized Japanese pro wrestler in shiny silver short shorts. WHO WILL WIN?! More »Japan's Subway Etiquette Posters Warn of Drunkeness, Cuddling and Crying Women
Since 2008, Japan's subways have kindly asked that you do certain things at home, the beach or in your yard—anywhere but the train. But without reading the text, these images leave a lot of room for my misinterpretation... More »Chinese Woman Fools Scanners By Surgically Switching Her Fingerprints
Unfortunately for Lin Ring, her $14,600 surgical fingerprint switching procedure was able to fool the scanners, but could not prevent immigration officials from noticing the scars on her fingers. More »Augmented Reality...Wait For It...Vending Machines!
America is so lame. When you buy a soft drink from a vending machine here, and all you get is diabetes. In Japan, however, you get the whole augmented reality experience. More »Whatever You Do This Christmas, Don't Buy a Japanese Child a Console
PS3? Wii? Xbox 360? If you were to buy any of these systems for a Japanese child this Christmas, they'd be sorely disappointed. Game consoles are the LAST thing on their list—literally. So what do they want? More »YouTube Microwave Makes Cooking Hot Pockets More Entertaining
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Japan is a land of gadgets that are both marvelous and mystifying. If you can't go to the home of weird gadgets, why not bring some of the weird gadgets home to you? Here is a list of Japanese gadget gifts that will give you culture shock worse than Bill Murray in a Tokyo karaoke bar. More »Website With 30 Videos of Japanese Girls Apologizing, Or CD With 600 Girls Saying "I Love You"?
Are you looking for something "different" in your life? Watching Japanese girls apologize or say "I love you" turn you on? Simultaneously? Then you're strange, but hey, there is something that caters just to your tastes. More »Three New JVC Everio Camcorders, Still Remember What They Are, Flash Camcorder Users?
I've always been fond of JVC Everio camcorders, but with the latest round of pocketcams grabbing attention for far too long, it's about time we reverted back to a model with a decent sensor. More »Bandai's Mugen Tokoroten Repeats Niche Pleasure of Squeezing Sea Algae
Popping bubblewrap, or opening beer cans just not your obsessive compulsive cup of tea? Here's another toy for Bandai's Mugen range: the Mugen Tokoroten, which simulates squeezing a sea algae snack. 630 Yen for our Japanese brethren. [CNET Asia]I'd Call This Phone Cute, But I'm Afraid That It'll Hurt Me
I don't really know whether you can actually make calls on the Bandai Phone Braver 7, but I'm certain that I've never seen another cellphone that looks like it could karate-kick me for saying that it resembles a cute Transformer. More »