SoraNews24 —Japan News—

The Japanese are known for being incredibly efficient, so you’d expect them to also have the most efficient gizmos. Today, we’re looking at eight Japanese gadgets that we’ve become so dependent on, we can’t live without them!

Culture, Japan
(gadgets • Japan • made in japan • technology • Toilets)

Cool new alarm clock earphones wake you up not with sound, but vibrations

Casey Baseel
Mar 24, 2016

Never miss your stop on the train or make your bedmate get up earlier than necessary again.

Games & Tech, Japan
(alarm clock • clever • cool • earbuds • earphones • gadgets)

New heated clothes hanger will dry your clothes in any type of weather

Oona McGee
Dec 21, 2015

Raining outside? No dryer in the house? This new clothes hanger from Japan will dry clothes, shoes and boots at the touch of a button.

Japan
(clothes • cool • dryer • gadgets • winter)

Why squash bugs when you can trap them in this cool vacuum gun?

Casey Baseel
Jul 17, 2015

Humidity-loving bugs are just as much a part of a Japanese summer as fireworks festivals and barley tea. Dealing with the creepy crawly intruders in your home isn’t always easy, though, especially if you’ve got an aversion to touching them. Sure, you can use bug spray instead of doing the dirty work of squashing them yourself, but you’ll still have to use your hands to pick up the carcass and dispose of it after the poison takes effect.

Luckily, though, your options aren’t entirely limited to sharing your living space with bugs or touching them, in the form of this bug-sucking vacuum gun.

Japan
(bugs • cool • gadgets • home • technology)

At last, the solution to a warm can of beer: A cup that chills its contents instantly

Casey Baseel
Mar 13, 2015

With all it does for us, it’s hard to find fault with beer. If you wanted to be nitpicky, though, you could point to the opinion held by many that its flavor rapidly worsens as the beverage gets warmer.

At the same time, most beer drinkers are averse to dilute their beer by tossing ice cubes into it. So what do you do when you’ve got a rogue can of beer you forgot to stick in the fridge or cooler? Simple, you pour it into this new cup that instantly chills any liquid inside of it.

Japan
(beer • cool • drinks • gadgets)

Sonic Hour series returns with new portable device to make your beer foamy no matter where you go

Krista Rogers
Mar 13, 2015

Remember Takara Tomy A.R.T.S’ punnily-named product, the Sonic Hour (“hour” sounds similar to awa, or “bubbles” in Japanese) that we introduced you to two years ago? That device created a foamy head on a glass of beer in seconds, making it the perfect present for any beer lover in Japan.

Those same beer lovers now have cause to rejoice again because this time around, the Sonic Hour is back with a handy new portable version!

Japan
(alcohol • beer • cool • drinks • gadgets • Sonic Hour)

The 20 most wanted Christmas presents in Japan

Hayashi 'Fang' Hougi
Dec 8, 2014

Amazon Japan decided to hold its own Cyber Monday sale a few weeks after the North American counterpart. Through the campaign and sales data, they have announced the 20 most wanted Christmas presents in Japan. Clinching the top spot was none other than Sony’s PlayStation 4 which while not the dazzling success that it has been outside Japan has seen strong sales numbers since launch.

But what else do the people of Japan really want this Christmas? Check out the rest of the list below!

Japan
(Amazon • Christmas • electronics • gadgets • gifts • present)

Lotteria offers burger towers of USB power

Oona McGee
Oct 8, 2014

Fast food chains are always on the lookout for ways to steer us into their open arms, with limited edition burgers, unusual collaborations and exclusive accessories all weakening our will at some point, despite quiet pleas from our inner selves to look the other way.

Lotteria is one of the unabashed leaders in the field, offering us burger towers of mammoth proportions that have us handing over money just to lay eyes on the meaty beasts. Now they’ve unveiled two life-size versions of their famous multi-patty behemoths. But this time, they’re adorable USB memory sticks.

Japan
(fast food • gadgets • Lotteria)

Small hands? Japanese Twitterer gets creative and makes handy case for the wider iPhone 6

Megumi Matsuki
Sep 25, 2014

We are well aware of the lengths Apple fanatics go to for their devices, and while waiting in line for 48 hours may make for some precious memories, one fan’s devotion gave rise to something quite tangible and utilitarian. Whether you have small hands or inherited stubby fingers like Lisa Simpson, check out the clever case Japanese Twitterer and sound engineer Gusoh came up with so that he could still easily manipulate the larger iPhone 6 with one hand! That leaves the other five digits free for, say, coffee or an iPod Touch? (I’m sure you’ve seen these busy people on the train, right?)

Global, Japan
(gadgets • iPhone 6 • iPhone case • Japanese inventions • smartphone case)

Enjoy a holiday at your desk with a hammock for your feet

Oona McGee
Aug 25, 2014

When crazy ideas work, they can be genius. And if that little spark of genius makes our working day just that little bit easier to get through, it’s got to be applauded and shared.

So, without further ado, we bring you the foot hammock. With benefits for your physical and emotional well-being, there’s never been an easier way to rest your body and your mind while at work.

Korea
(design • gadgets • health • homewares • work)

We try out the upcoming R2-D2 virtual keyboard projector!

Master Blaster
May 5, 2014

A couple of months ago, we wrote about a set of *Star Wars-*themed notebooks sold over at the online shopping website Run@town. Much to everyone’s surprise, the fandom those little books stirred up caused a massive run that led them to being sold out within an single hour.

Now, Run@town is hoping that the force with strike twice with a new product that could tickle the fancy of Star Wars fans everywhere even harder. It’s an R2-D2 virtual keyboard projector! You read that right–a tiny droid beams a keyboard onto any flat surface for you to actually type on.

Japan
(gadgets • R2-D2 • Star Wars • virtual keyboard)

Mr. Sato takes a stroll in his USB Pollen Blocker: “Felt great but it was a struggle to order coffee”

Master Blaster
Jan 27, 2014

A few days ago we brought word of a revolutionary hay fever remedy from the folks at Thanko. Harnessing the mighty power of nylon and universal serial bus ports, the USB Pollen Blocker may be our savior for this impending allergy season in Japan.

To be sure, we picked one up in Akihabara and gave it to our resident ace-reporting guinea-pig Mr. Sato for a road test. Did it cure him of his seasonal sniffles or did it simply make him look like an demented bee-keeper on the streets of Tokyo? The following is his report.

Japan
(gadgets • Mr. Sato • Starbucks • Thanko • USB Pollen Blocker)

Go back to the 70s and 80s with a retro iRecorder for your iPhone

Oona McGee
Dec 8, 2013

There’s no denying that smartphones are awesome. They can send messages, let you browse the web, take photos and play thousands of songs, all while fitting into your pocket, ready to be used anytime, anywhere. But for some of us, none of that convenience can compare to the fun of fitting a cassette tape into a cassette player and pressing play.

Now there’s a gadget that lets us have the best of both worlds: the joy of thousands of songs combined with the lost art of old-school push button technology. Now that fluoro’s back in fashion, there’s never been a better time to pull on those leg warmers, download some Madonna circa 1985 and experience music the way it used to be.

Japan
(80s • gadgets • iPhone • music • retro)

Latest chitchat technology pairs your smartphone with your home phone for ultra-convenient use

Joan Coello
Oct 6, 2013

Panasonic announces the release of a digital cordless phone, VE-GDW03DL, which allows the use of a smartphone as a sub-handset over a wireless internet connection. The domestic chat device is set to hit stores on 14 November, and has an open price tag.

Japan
(gadgets • smartphone • technology)

China’s latest smartphone pushes the boundaries of innovation with its direct plug-in connectivity

Andrew Miller
Sep 10, 2013

Smartphones on the market today allow users to do all sorts of things that would have otherwise been unimaginable even a decade ago. You can listen to music while surfing the net or writing an email, watch movies, get live weather reports, and let’s not forget the phone’s original purpose of talking to people.

The bane of the average smartphone user’s life, however, is their device’s short battery life. And anyone looking to save their beloved device from a sudden black screen of death has to either cut down on the heavy-duty apps or carry a charging cable or battery charging unit with them. But what if we told you that you could cut out the middle man and attach your phone directly to the power outlet whenever and wherever you were?

China
(battery • gadgets • plug-in connector • smartphone • tech)

Sonic Hour: A Perfect Head of Beer at the Touch of a Button!

Oona McGee
Apr 10, 2013

On April 25, Takara Tomy A.R.T.S will release the “Sonic Hour”, the latest addition to their “Beer Hour” series of foaming products. Hour is a play on the Japanese word awa, meaning foam, or head of beer, and that’s exactly what this gadget delivers to the top of your glass. Retailing for 3,990 yen (US$40), this little portable device creates superfine bubbles in any type of beer, guaranteeing a smooth, creamy head every time. Even if the Japanese do prefer their beer with an enormous amount of head sometimes…

The secret to the sonic foam is ultrasonic oscillation. Simply put your glass of beer on the tray, press the button and the ultrasonic vibrations disperse evenly at the bottom of the beer glass, creating a gush of bubbles that rise and form the perfect head in an instant. And if that’s not entertaining enough, it also comes equipped with an eight-colour LED light-up display. To see it in action, check out the video after the jump.

Japan
(beer • drink • gadget • gadgets • Takara Tomy)

Japanese Super Mario Fans’ Most Wished-For iPhone Accessory

Philip Kendall
Mar 5, 2013

With almost 40 percent of mobile phones in Japan now smart phones, people are constantly striving to find new ways to jazz up their iPhones and Android devices. As we’ve seen over the last few weeks here on RocketNews24, the popularity of character-based earphone jack plugs continues to rise, with even Disney hoping to cash in on the trend. The imaginative video game lovers over at Japan’s Gold Rush, however, have something better in mind.