While not as bizarre as this AI-powered human washing machine, two divers managed to capture rare footage of a live giant squid off Japan’s west coast. Yosuke Tanaka and his wife Miki run a diving operation in Toyooka city. They received a tip from a local fisherman who spotted the giant squid in a bay, so the couple set off to find it.
Photo credit: Factory-M
There’s Volkswagen’s motorized office chair, and then this amethyst one by Factory-M, which looks uncomfortable to sit on to say the least. Priced at $3,385 USD, this bizarre creation all started when founder Koichi Hasegawa traveled to the United States on vacation and saw a gigantic amethyst crystal in a shop that was shaped like a chair of sorts.
Underwater messaging apps may be helpful for some, while the AcryPhone aims to help cure smartphone addiction, especially considering that 40% of all consumers admit to using their devices too much. In a recent poll, 33% of teenagers admitted to spending more time socializing with close friends online instead of in-person. This acrylic block is shaped just like an iPhone, complete with rear cameras.
There’s the Tokyo Cafe with anime maid robots, and then this tiny L-shaped house that measures just 538-square-feet that spans three levels. New York City and Tokyo both are no strangers to cramped living spaces, but architecture firm SALHAUS spent countless hours turning this one into something fit for a family as well as a guest on the ground level.
File this under: rare gadgets. Only 5,000 Divers 2000 Series CX-1 TV sets were ever made and exclusive to the Japanese market. Not only did it function as a 14-inch TV, but this set had a built-in SEGA Dreamcast game console, complete with matching accessories, including a DreamEye camera, controller, keyboard and remote control.
There’s the Leica Cine 1 ultra-short throw projector for your home theater, and then the Leitz Phone 2, a smartphone with a massive 1-inch 47.2MP image sensor. Does it look somewhat familiar? That’s because it’s based on the Sharp Aquous R7 and also features a 6.6-inch IGZO OLED (2730 x 1260) screen with a 240Hz refresh rate, Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 mobile platform, 12GB of RAM, 512GB of internal storage, a 12.6MP front-facing selfie camera, as well as a 5,000mAh battery.
There’s Zotac’s VR GO 4.0 wearable backpack PC, and then an innovative new stretchable battery packaging that could be used in future wearable devices, like sensors that could monitor various biomarkers as well as for drug delivery. To make this possible, the team coated a thin layer of liquid metal onto a gold-deposited thermoplastic polyurethane film using the layer-by-layer method to create a flexible film with a high gas barrier.
Japan is known for many things, like this a TV that you lick to taste things, but Project Usoyaro might be one of the most unusual we’ve seen yet. During the 1970 Osaka Expo, Sanyo Electronics debuted an ultrasonic bathtub that cleaned and massaged its occupant in a 15-minute cycle. Science Co. Ltd. created a modern version they hope will be ready by 2025.
You’ve seen University of Tokyo’s self-driving gazing car, now check out the MasiRo Project, a cafe that employs three anime-inspired maid robots to serve customers. Located near Akihabara, there are three robots – Mashiro, Chiro, and Chiya – designed to entertain and serve patrons at the coffee shop. Visitors enter by scanning a QR code before Mashiro guides you to your table.
You’ve seen Google’s teacup computer keyboard, now they’ve followed it up with the Gboard Bar Version. This 5.4-foot computer keyboard may look absurd, but you can actually type with it, complete with a ‘bug removing module’ when two people share the device.