Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
technology (Page 39)
DARPA, the American agency commonly known for its hilarious supervillain-esque laser projects and weaponized dolphins, took time out of its wacky military inventions schedule to hold its Robotics Competition in Miami, Florida, where a humanoid robot from Japanese company Schaft, Inc. took top prize.
In May 2011, Nissan was selected to create and supply the vehicle that would be the exclusive New York City taxi.
That plan hasn’t worked out so well. A series of court decisions have blocked the City from approving the NV200 as the only taxi model, in part because it’s not a hybrid, according to the New York Times.
But Nissan still has the right to bring its taxi to the streets of New York, and it sold the first one at the end of October.
This week, the automaker invited me to get a closer look at the NV200 and take a spin around Manhattan.
Shimane Prefecture, located along the northwestern edge of Japan’s main island of Honshu, is commonly the butt of jokes. At best, it’s often confused with neighboring Tottori Prefecture, and at worst, it’s forgotten about altogether.
Despite its natural beauty and historical sites such as the Grand Shinto Shrine of Izumo, there’s no getting around the fact that Shimane is a quiet, rural place. Even in the prefectural capital of Matsue, there’s usually not much going on.
Except, perhaps, for a recent poltergeist attack.
Gamers in Japan who have yet to place an order but are hoping to pick up Sony’s newest console when it finally launches next February may well be disappointed come launch day. Amazon Japan is already reporting that it has sold out completely, and although it is hoping to guarantee more units soon might not be able to meet demand.
As with most new must-have items, numerous retailers offering the console at considerably inflated prices are already starting to appear online. Whether or not for its own gain, Amazon Japan has urged its customers via Twitter to be aware that those paying more than 40,000 yen (US$385) for a PlayStation 4 are being ripped off.
Now here’s something you don’t see every day – a bunch of enormous men in their underpants sitting in fiberglass pods that look like something NASA might fire out of a space shuttle.
Shared on Twitter earlier today by the Japan Sumo Association, these photos show some of the sumo community’s most famous faces attending a health check session prior to a series of upcoming bouts. They’re also kind of hilarious.
It’s IT Month in Taiwan right now, and the annual IT trade show just made its stop at the Taipei World Trade Center this week, boasting 350 exhibitors rolling out 1,765 booths showing off the shiniest tech-gadgets in town.
Sure, it’s nice to be in touch with the latest technology trends and stuff, but it’s even better when cute peachy girls are involved in the process, ain’t it! Who’s with me?
In Japan, only the largest of streets have names. Addresses aren’t sequential either, so as you walk down the road the numbers may go from 12 to 5, and then back up to 23. Since making it from point A to point B isn’t as simple as “turn left on Main Street, then right on Arrow Highway, and if you see the 1600 block, you know you went too far,” for most people, a good map is essential for getting where you want to go.
But what if your map-reading skills aren’t the greatest? Or how about if you’re looking for a person, like the girl you asked out to dinner and are supposed to meet up with in five minutes?
Thankfully, there’s now an app for that.
Scientists must often have a hard time explaining deep scientific concepts to the general public without resorting to a lot of wild gesticulating and exasperated sighs. We know we’d get around five minutes into a college physics lecture before giving up and drawing cat doodles in our notebooks for the remaining hour of class.
It’s no wonder, then, that Japan’s RIKEN national comprehensive research institution resorted to making this totally awesome anime to enthrall and amaze our stupid civilian minds with flashing lights and hot robot girls, so we’d sit still long enough for the institute to introduce its new and totally sci-fi sounding SPring-8 Angstrom Compact Free Electron Laser (SACLA).
We all do it, and we’ve all been irritated by others doing it: walking while checking something on your phone. You know that it’s dangerous, but when you are in a hurry and need to check an urgent mail or see if anyone liked your witty status update yet, it’s hard not to just give the screen a quick gander on the go.
Japanese mobile provider Docomo has developed a service to remove that very temptation from your life, though. By setting your Android smartphone to “safety mode,” it will give you an error message if you try to use it while walking. That’s right, cruise control for pedestrians is finally here!
Like a migratory bird made of carbon fiber and engine blocks, every two years the Tokyo Motor Show returns to give us all a glimpse at automakers’ visions of the future. RocketNews24 visited this year’s event, and we’re here to share with you our impressions and photos of the massive crowds, newest concept cars, and hottest current models (both automotive and female).
For many of the world’s greatest cuisines, there is a fine line separating a stellar example of a particular dish from a loathsome, gag-inducing failure. In the case of the humble french fry, that fine line is a few extra minutes from fryer to your eager food hole; let the fries sit for just a little too long and they transform before your eyes from hot, crunchy guilty pleasure to disgusting, squishy, limp waste of calories.
Apparently deeply affected by a soggy fry incident, the folks at China’s Beyondte Electronics Co., Ltd. set out to perfect a french fry vending machine that would produce hot, crunchy fries on the spot whenever you got a craving, eliminating the need to order them at your favorite fast food joint and carry them home and – a happy side effect – also eliminating the need to actually speak to another human being to get your fry fix.
The good people at Honda, seemingly having read our minds, introduced at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show this beautiful luxury chair-vehicle hybrid that we never knew we’d always been waiting for.
Gone are the days of actually having to get out of your seat to retrieve the remote, or that last broken chip from the Pringles can that somehow found its way into the seat cushion of that chair you never use. In fact, with the new UNI-CUB the only reason you’ll ever need to get out of your seat again is to give a standing ovation to Honda’s brilliant – and probably equally lazy – engineers.
Smartphones are great and all, but they require your hands, which can be a problem when doing work, sports or raising the occasional barn. Then, along came Google Glass, a brand of smart glasses with promises of a more hands-free future. Unfortunately, it’s hard to interact with people and not have them stare at your right eye the entire time.
There must be a way to combine the discreet practicality of a smartphone with the hands-free functionality of smart glasses. According to an invention filed with the U.S. Patent Office this year, Sony appears to be interested something that just might do that with the “Smart Wig.”
Every dog owner has experienced it: you want your dog to sit, speak, roll over and maybe shake, but your pooch has other ambitions. Bigger dreams. He wants to join the fire brigade (you know this because you taught him to speak), but you’re worried about your little buddy’s safety.
Finally, though, you can let your doggy chase both his tail and his dreams with this adorable doggy flame-retardant suit. Join us after the jump for more adorable photos!
While in recent years opinions have become increasingly divided on the gameplay in long-running video game series Final Fantasy, there’s not much room to criticize the franchise’s artistry. New installments of Final Fantasy are consistently among the most visually and aurally pleasing games at their time of release. Each title has a huge team of designers and software engineers who spend untold hours making sure the cut scenes are gorgeous, the interface slick, and the soundtrack stirring and crystal clear. And also, apparently, that the heroine doesn’t inadvertently flash her panties.
Protecting your privacy can be a difficult task in today’s world of information technology. With surveillance cameras on every corner and a recording device on every smartphone, there’s a good chance your image has been captured somewhere without you even knowing it. Safeguarding your mug in the future is set to become even more difficult with advancements in facial recognition technologies and wearable computers like Google Glass.
So what can you do to ensure your identity remains intact? In Western countries the answer would be simple: put on a pair of sunglasses. In Japan, however, sunglasses are a much less common sight, and many consider them to be worn only by those trying a little too hard to look cool, and in more extreme cases associate them with the yakuza lifestyle. Researchers at the National Institute of Informatics in Tokyo have addressed this issue by designing a non-threatening pair of white shades to protect both your identity and your public image, dubbing them the “Privacy Visor”.
There’s nothing particularly wrong with RocketNews24’s “.com” domain name. We haven’t declared ourselves an autonomious principality (yet), so .gov is out of the question. And while some (me) might argue that .handsomeandwittyreporterswhowritesuchgreatarticlesthatmenareinspiredandladiesswoon is the most accurate description of what we do around here, for some reason that’s not available for official use.
So we ended up with plain old .com, our only logical option out of the top-level domains recognized by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or ICANN. But if only RocketNews24 had come into existence a little later, we could have taken advantage of ICANN’s recent approval of .ninja as a domain name.
Sometimes ideas are too ahead of their time and get forgotten over the years. In 1978, Kawasaki released the Z1R TC, the first motorcycle to use a Turbocharged engine which gave it noticeably more power that other engines of the same size. However, after a brief love affair that lasted into the early ’80s, Japanese bike manufacturers turned their backs on the technology.
Now at this year’s Tokyo Motor Show from 23 November to 1 December, Suzuki is looking to bring it back with their new concept Recursion sports motorcycle which promises to go back and rectify all the problems that dogged turbocharged bikes of the past.
We here at RocketNews24 are no strangers to the lengths people will go to for the latest Apple product. And when we first heard about the new iPad Air, we knew we wanted to get our hands on one. But since merely buying the newest iPad was not enough of a challenge, we set out to buy an unlocked model that could be used on any wireless network in Japan.
Unfortunately, it seems like that is not an option in Japan, which led one of our reporters from RocketNews24 Japan, Takashi Harada, on a trip to Hong Kong to try to get one of the hottest devices of the season! It turned out to be quite the adventure.
As someone who feels lonely when his car doesn’t have a clutch pedal, the seemingly inevitable march towards self-driving automobiles isn’t exactly my favorite technological trend. Convenience is all well and good, but I can’t help but feel sorry for future generations that may never know the joy of a crisp-shifting manual transmission, or the amazing stress-relieving properties of a quick blast to redline.
Of course, there’s no pleasure to be found in navigating through a crowded parking lot hunting for a space. That’s why Honda is looking to take this task off drivers’ hands with an automatic valet parking system.
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Two food hacks take Japan’s convenience store fried chicken to amazing new sandwich heights
A Kyoto factory vending machine sells gourmet mystery meals at bargain prices
Licca-chan dolls released in North America for first time in nearly 60 years
Tokyo turns its phone booths into free Wi-Fi hotspots, and here’s how to use them
You can now visit Evangelion’s Misato’s apartment dining room in real-life Tokyo
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Japan now has stricter requirements for foreigners applying for citizenship
Japanese jam jar lids close on their own, as if by magic
Pikachu steals show at MLB opener, baseball stars introduced at Tokyo Dome with Pokémon music【Video】Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Famous Tokyo cherry blossom spot installs view-blocking screens to fight overcrowding[Video]
Tokyo’s best museum for foreign travelers finally reopens after being closed for four years
Pokémon lacquerware series expands for Year of the Horse with new handcrafted design[Video]
Japan now has a special desk for people who work at home with a pet cat[Photos]
Uniqlo announces new T-shirts for One Piece, Naruto and more for manga publisher’s 100th birthday
Picturesque Tokyo park plays host to millions of flowers and soap bubbles this spring
Tokyo subway and almost all Tokyo train lines now accepting credit card tap payments
Totoro and Calcifer become little light-up lanterns for Ghibli-style excursions or at-home decor
Fading Tokyo – Searching for signs of the Showa era as local neighborhoods evolve[Photos]Japan now has a special desk for people who work at home with a pet cat[Photos]Famous Tokyo cherry blossom spot installs view-blocking screens to fight overcrowding[Video]Uniqlo announces new T-shirts for One Piece, Naruto and more for manga publisher’s 100th birthday
Train station platform ramen store closes its doors on half a century of history in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the countryPokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Studio Ghibli releases Catbus pullback keychain that runs like the anime character
Krispy Kreme releases Super Mario doughnuts in Japan for a limited time
Japanese onsen egg maker from 100-yen store Daiso needs to be on your shopping list
Starbucks Japan unveils new sakura cherry blossom collection for hanami season 2026
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of JapanStudio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
You can now visit Evangelion’s Misato’s apartment dining room in real-life Tokyo
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Japan now has stricter requirements for foreigners applying for citizenship
Japanese jam jar lids close on their own, as if by magic
Pikachu steals show at MLB opener, baseball stars introduced at Tokyo Dome with Pokémon music【Video】
Shimane has a secret hot spring town that feels like stepping into an old Japanese film
You can now visit a recreation of Evangelion’s Tokyo-3 and live there in miniature form in【Pics】
The top 10 Studio Ghibli anime homes that fans would most like to live in
Pokémon lacquerware series expands for Year of the Horse with new handcrafted design[Video]
We visit the oldest remaining Komeda Coffee cafe in Japan for a retro blast from the past
Tokyo teahouse serves up a sakura matcha dessert you won’t find anywhere else
Japan’s new canned chu-hai with fresh lemon slice: disappointing gimmick or drink revelation?