The Wonder Football Robot

The World Cup always attracts immense amount of attention. Every four years, when it is held, the whole world stops in its tracks to follow what’s going on in the world of football. Of course, part of the reason for the large following (aside from the love of the sport itself) is the fact that tons of money is spent on advertising. That means that sponsors will not hesitate to advertise their own wares.

This time around, Castrol is jumping into the advertising bandwagon big time. Have you ever heard of the “wonderful” robot made by Castrol Japan? If not, then check this video out at the World Cup Blog.

So what can the robot do? If you took the time to watch the video, you would know that it can kick a football (just like a football player does when making a free kick). But it’s not just like any kicker – the machine can kick a ball at a top speed of 200 kilometers per hour! That’s 70 kilometers per hour more than the world record that is held by famous football player Cristiano Ronaldo! Of course, there really is no comparison (despite the allusions made by Castrol executives) here as Ronaldo is made of flesh and bone while the machine is, well, a machine (made of nuts and bolts?!).

In any case, this robot will certainly draw a lot of attention, if only for the fact that it doesn’t look anything like a football player and that it has awesome kick powers.

Hybrids Rule In 2009

Chinese astrology may have dubbed the year 2009 as the Year of the Cow, but it was something else in Japan. People have been calling last year as the Year of the Hybrids in the country. This is due to the fact that, for the first time, a hybrid car has gotten the distinction of being the bestselling car in the whole country.

I am talking about the Toyota Prius, of course. This car was launched with a lot of promises and much potential. It seems that it has lived up to its reputation – based on sales figures released in the past week, 208,879 units of the Prius were sold by Toyota in 2009. The figure makes the Prius the number one car in Japan. More than that, though, it is the number one hybrid car in the entire world!

Is the Prius as great as it seems or is there another reason for its success? Experts and consumers alike extol this hybrid’s virtues but there is another factor that has to be taken into consideration. The truth is that packages and incentives provided has made the price of the Prius so low that consumers are more attracted to it. With all the incentives, one might be able to save as much as 4,200 USD!

Aside from the Prius, another hybrid car sold really well in Japan last year: the Honda Insight. Compared to Toyota’s sales figures, Honda only had 93,283 – not even half. Still, overall sales figures support the fact that hybrids are very much on their way to being the standard.

Japanese Man Says I Do…With Video Game Character

Just the other week, some colleagues and I were discussing a woman who supposedly married the Eiffel Tower. Naturally, we were all bewildered by the whole thing. We just couldn’t fathom how a person could marry an inanimate object!

So when I read about a Japanese man marrying a video game character, I was not all that puzzled. In a news report published by Reuters, I learned about SAL9000 – that’s the Japanese guy’s online moniker – marrying Nene Anegasaki, a character in the video game Love Plus. I am not familiar with the video game, but from what I have been reading (and based on the name as well!), it is a dating simulation game.

SAL9000 says he is an “otaku,” which is the Japanese term for young adults who have an extreme passion (or even obsession) with video games and fantasy. I think it is also being considered as a sub-culture, and in their own world, it is acceptable to call characters their “wives.” SAL9000 says that since he has been calling and thinking of Nene Anegasaki as his “wife,” the logical thing to do was to marry her!

The couple exchanged “I do’s” several weeks ago, and they spent their honeymoon abroad – in Guam. They have been traveling the famous city of Tokyo as a couple, with SAL9000 documenting their dates diligently. As for the new husband, he says his wife can rest assured that he will never cheat. Ahh, where have I heard that before?

Japan LOVES The iPhone

I had always thought that Japan would be one of the first countries to embrace the iPhone. I was wrong – as were the other people who thought the same way. The iPhone has been out for a few years now, but it isn’t till recently that the Japanese welcomed the iPhone.

Countless people have speculated on the reason for the initial coldness the Japanese displayed towards the iPhone. Some say that maybe the mobile phone is simply too functional and lacks the glitter that the Japanese like. Others say that it could be that the Japanese were merely reacting to something Western and not made (and designed) in Japan. Whatever the reason, it is now moot as the Apple iPhone has captured countless Japanese technophiles – and is going strong.

You want proof that the iPhone is indeed making it big in Japan? This could very well be the biggest proof of all. Try visiting the app store. The chances are that you will be overwhelmed with the huge number of applications, and mind you, these are not your run-of-the-mill apps that you can find. They are the products of super creative Japanese minds, and from what I hear, these apps will blow your mind away. Another indication that the iPhone is starting to make waves is that more than apps, hardware is also being developed and released, not to mention the bling (stickers and accessories) that the Japanese is known for.

So for the naysayers out there, the iPhone looks like it is proving itself once again. This time, to one of the biggest and critical markets in the world.

Photo courtesy of The Telegraph

Twitter Mobile In Japanese

Twitter has fast become one of the most used social platforms in the world today. We have to admit that while a huge number of its users are English speakers (or writers, maybe?), the market for non-English speakers is just as huge. This is perhaps the reason that Twitter has expanded and created its first ever foreign language mobile version: in Japanese.

You may not know it, but Japan is one of the few countries which have not been penetrated by social networking web sites! This may be a surprise, but it is true nonetheless. The Press Association has the story:

Twitter teamed up with Tokyo-based internet firm Digital Garage in early 2008. It launched a Japanese-language platform for PCs in the spring of 2008, and hired a Japan country manager earlier this year.

“It’s an excellent opportunity for us to see where we can go in Asia in general because Japan represents a leading edge, with advanced mobile usage,” said Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, who travelled to Tokyo for the launch. “Mobile is in Twitter’s DNA.”

It looks like Japan is going to be only the first of many other foreign language platforms. In the same report, it was said that in the near future, we can expect versions in Spanish, German, French, and Italian. More than the language, though, Twitter is going to use the Japan site to test other features that are not currently available in the English site. I wonder how the Japanese are going to respond to this move?

3D Flat Screen TVs Are The Future

What is the number one past time in the whole world? I honestly do not have solid data about that, but I would go out on a limb here and say that whatever it is, it probably involves the TV. It could be watching TV shows; it could be watching movies on TV; it could be playing video games (which of course needs a TV screen).

This idea brings me to the conclusion that it is the reason behind the recent move of Japanese manufacturers – they are coming out with bigger and better TV screens. In a recent report by the Associated Press, they talked about big name brands in Japan coming out with 3D flat screen TVs. The CEATEC, the biggest consumer electronics show in Japan, showcased these TVs of the future. Jay Alabaster reports:

At the country’s biggest consumer electronics show, which opened Tuesday just outside of Tokyo, all the major makers had large 3-D prototypes on display. Visitors to company booths at the CEATEC show donned special electronic glasses and watched as soccer balls flew toward them in sports clips and virtual heroes dodged deep into the background of video games.

Sony Corp. and Panasonic Corp. have both said they will bring their first models to market next year. Details about what will be available to watch on the new TVs are still sparse, though the companies said they want to begin with movies and games.

Obviously, content is a big thing. It’s like the 1080p TVs of today – what use are they if what’s broadcasted on cable does not follow the standard? As such, we probably should not get too excited about the whole thing for now. We have to wait for the content providers to follow suit and provide 3D content before we shell out big bucks for this new TV set. Still, it is a portent of things to come – and it is looking good!

Photo courtesy of Gizmag

Japanese Inventors Create Unicycle For The Elderly

I still like the Segway, I think, but one cannot help but take notice of this new mode of “transportation” which was unveiled recently in Japan. Honda, which we all know for their cars and the robot Asimo, is the entity behind the unicycle.

Dubbed the U3-X, the unicycle can move up to 6 kilometers per hour – that’s about 3.7 miles per hour. How does it work? Riders sit on the unicycle and use their weight to steer it in any direction. This is in fact one of the novel things about the U3-X – it is the “world’s first omni-directional driving wheel system.”

The BBC tells us more about the U3-X:

The “Hot-Drive” system uses a series of small motor-controlled wheels connected together to form one large wheel.

This main wheel allows a rider to move forward and backward. The smaller wheels allow the device to move from side-to-side. A combination allows the device to move diagonally.

Honda is planning to showcase the U3-X at the Tokyo Motor Show 2009 on October 24, 2009.

If you don’t care much for the technical specs, let it suffice that you can move in any direction you wish to do so – much like moving on your feet. The target market for the unicycle is the elderly, although I can already see people below the age of 50 clamoring for it once it goes into mass production. While I said that I prefer the Segway, I wouldn’t mind having one of these, would you?

Japanese Scientists Unveil Sci-Fi Wheelchair

A new type of wheelchair has been developed by robotics experts in Japan, and it so advanced that it has been dubbed as something coming from sci-fi movies. The prototype of the wheelchair was unveiled by its creators last week. Dubbed the “Rodem,” the wheelchair does not look anything like its traditional counterpart. In fact, it looks more like a scooter than a wheelchair.

The Rodem has four wheels, and the user has to ride astride – much like riding a scooter. In order to steer the scooter, the user has to use a joystick, making the operation of the chair much easier for the user. More so, the design makes it easier for health care specialists to move their patients onto the chair. In fact, those who can move on their own will also find it easier to move onto and off of the wheel chair.

The inventors of the Rodem come from Tmsuk Co., a Japanese robotics company, and researchers from 10 universities and other research institutes. Makoto Hashizume, the head of Veda International Robot Research and Development Centre, says:

“I believe this is a whole new idea for a wheelchair. With this vehicle, users can move around more freely and more actively without much help from other people.”

Indeed, while the chair is primarily meant for health care purposes, the inventors say that it can also be used by people who simply want to ride. Veda says that they are not planning on manufacturing the chair commercially for now but that they will consider talking with private companies from various countries.

Hybrids: New Japanese Obsession

Japan has always been at the cutting edge of technology, and the Japanese have always had first dibs on the best technology there is. From video gaming consoles to computers to cars – they have it all. Speaking of cars, it seems that hybrids are fast becoming an obsession for trendy Japanese nationals.

The New York Times ran a report on how practically everyone in Japan has one thing in mind right now when it comes to cars: get a Prius. You would have thought that everyone in Japan would have a Prius by now, wouldn’t you? Apparently, in spite of the fact that hybrids have been out for several years now, it wasn’t until recently that they got the attention of the Japanese market. One reason could be that gas vehicles with excellent mileage were more readily available.

These days, however, more hybrid models have been rolled out of production. Of course, increasing gas prices also have something to do with this.

Then again, a big question hangs in the air: is this surge in interest in hybrids a result of real interest or just a short term trend due to the gas prices?

Japanese automakers say that this is for the long run. Perhaps they are right. After all, the Japanese culture taps very strongly into values such as conservation, and using hybrids is very much part of that. More so, the prices of hybrid cars are much lower than before.

I’m willing to bet that in the next few years, hybrids will be outnumbering gas vehicles on Japanese roads.

Wii Sports Resorts Make It Big In Japan

Japan is well known for their protectionist policy. From their language to their products, the nation always prioritizes their own over any foreign ideas and things. When it comes to video games, it is not much different. That is perhaps one reason that the Nintendo Wii has had unprecedented success since its original release.

No one can say, however, that the Wii is not worthy of its success. Anyone who has tried playing on this gaming console will certainly agree that the Wii is something else. The original game that came with the Wii was Wii Sports, which was meant to showcase what the revolutionary console could do.

Now, they have released a follow up to the game dubbed Wii Sports Resorts. It has only been out for a week in Japan and yet reports are already coming in – the new game is another smashing success! From June 22 to June 28, statistics show that the about 360,000 copies of the game were sold. This quickly propelled Wii Sports Resorts to the top of the charts.

The new game compilation has 12 different sports and comes bundled with the MotionPlus attachment. In fact, spokespersons for Nintendo have said before that the games are designed to make the most out of the new attachment.

As of now, the game is only available in Japan but for sure, foreign versions will be released soon. I think the US will be having its version by the 26th of this month.