Transports : Six Wheel Car

Gadgets : Bust your own ghosts

Holy shit. This product could put an entire industry of Ghostbusters out of business. Created by toy company Solid Alliance, this "Ghost Radar" uses sensory technology and an internal bioclock to measure signs of an otherworldly presence, like changes in magnetic fields and body temperature. A set of 16 LED lights and spooky whooooo!-ing sounds warn ghost hunters of nearby spirits. Varying light patterns tell you what kind of ghost you're encountering so you know what to expect. Who's that knocking on my door? Is it Casper making a friendly visit or the Shining twins just being freaky as usual?

The Ghost Radar comes in black and white and is quickly selling out. Hundreds of successful hunters are posting their findings and haunt sites on an online bulletin.

Transports : Acura

Toyota announced their plan to take over the world. They plan to sell 9.8 million cars in 2008, which would put them ahead of GM. Japan on top of the US! Unthinkable, unless you're talking about the number of professional perverts there are. (Maybe.)

The main reason for Toyota's recent success and global dominance ambitions is the Prius, which has kicked ass against high gas prices. But those of us who have seen the ominous South park episode--where the "smug" from Prius owners destroys San Francisco--might opt for this oh so good looking Lexus LS460, introduced two days ago.

Electronics : LED Jellyfish, your ideal pet

Are you sick of your goldfish? Is a dog too high maintenance for you? You should consider getting a LED jellyfish tank. These five-toned silicone squirmers will float in and out of your dreams and automatically turn off after 2 hours. Cool huh? 14,000 yen. Comes out end of November.

Reserve yours here.

Gadgets : LED Scanner Pen cell phone strap

Remember those awesome doodles you made on your homework notebook in the 5th grade that you kept in your little secret treasure box forever? You've never drawn anyone as precisely as when the 11-year old you drew that mean-ass French teacher who threw chalk at your face. Well, now you can show off that and other impromptu doodles (I ALWAYS draw on restaurant placemats) with this LED scanner pen cell phone strap.

All you have to do is take the thing, slowly scan your image while pressing the yellow button on the top, and--when you're done--swing the pen back and forth to see the image pop up in front of you. Awesome, right?

The image you're scanning can't be larger than 20cm x 7.5cm, and you have to use a black and white pen/pencil that's more than 5mm thick.

Get yours here.

Robotics : Robot joins temp agency at $450/hr

This is Ubiko. Ubiko signed up with the temping agency Ubiquitous Exchange recently, and will soon be dispatched to companies at a whopping 50,250 yen an hour. ($450) That's a lot more than I ever got temping--and I have a masters degree! WTF?

Now that I think about it, I don't understand why anyone would hire Ubiko over me. She's 44 inches tall. She's made of plastic. She speaks in a high-pitched robotic monotone. Sure, she come with a camera and IR sensors, but I could totally get that stuff installed in me if I knew it would get me paid at those rates. And all she does is show DVDs on her forehead and hand out balloons with her wireless remote-controlled arms. Tsk, that's nothing.

Read more here.

Toys : Dragon Ball Z Character Flashlight

Having a miniature flashlight on your keychain is a really good idea. Having a miniature flashlight that flashes images of Dragon Ball characters on your keychain is an even better idea. This LED flashlight comes in four colors--Piccolo Green, Son Goku Red, Son Gohan Yellow, and Vegeta Blue. Each one flashes an image of its namesake when you push the little silver button on the side.


Available as both a keychain and a cell phone strap for 600 yen each. Get yours here.

Handphone : The simplest cell phone in the world

Tech blogs love to rave about the newest high-tech super-slim multifunctional Japanese cell phones, but when I go back to Tokyo, I just fish my good old Tu-ka S out of the closet. Marketed primarily to senior citizens for being as self-explanatory as those old-school rotary telephones, they have NO functions--NONE--besides on/off, talk/end, and the 12-digit keypad. Alright, gadget geeks, stop freaking the fuck out. The awesome thing about this phone is that you could throw it off the top of Tokyo Tower or forget to recharge it for an entire cycle of the moon, and it will still work. And it's still slim and silver, not like those bulky black things people used in America in the 80s.

Toys : Cell phone-controlled RC dinosaurs

KDDI won the portability race and Softbank got Cameron Diaz, but only DoCoMo's i-mode can manipulate a dinosaur!

These new miniature dinosaurs are only 14cm long, but they look like the real thing and can be controlled via IR from the awesome fossil-shaped remote control buttons or your i-mode. The creators carefully studied the movie Jurassic Park to perfect the overconfident swagger of the T-Rex and the wobbly head-shake of the Triceratops.

If your friend has an i-mode, too, you can even make Scary Lizard fight Horn-Face. Of course, we all know who's gonna win...

Available starting mid-November here for 1,680 yen.

Gadgets : Elecom's disc data crusher

I can't decide if this machine is utterly useless or...just a waste of space and money? This new product from Elecom Japan claims it can make any CD/DVD-ROM disc unreadable by putting scratches on it within seconds. It's powered via USB and is being marketed as an indispensable security feature for your office.

I'll let you decide for yourself if you want to buy one for 3,150 yen at the end of the month. Me? I'm just gonna continue using spent discs for stress release by snapping them in half and writing profanity on them with a Sharpie.

Gadgets : Star Wars character USB flash drive

I don't watch movies that have Star or Space in the title (Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Lost in Space, Space Odyssey), but I do know some people who would ditch their 6-gig Megadrive for this 256MB designer Star Wars flash memory stick in a heartbeat.

These stylish, metallic quarter-sized drives come with a full-body image of a Jedi, Darth Vader, Boba Fett, or Clone Trooper. Whoever the fuck those people are, I don't know, because I slept through Star Wars: Episode 1 and will never again waste $10 on that silly movie series again.



Get yours here.

Gadgets : Alien detector cell phone strap

We all know that aliens exist. We just never really figured out how to find them--especially not the ones that don't look like ET. That's why a Japanese alien specialist created this alien detector cell phone strap to carry around. Using this thing requires a little bit of extraterrestrial detection training. But here's the short version of what you have to do:


1. Go to a place known for suspected alien landings.
2. Lightly press the detector button. If there's a UFO nearby, the gadget will make a "Piko piko" noise.
3. You've found your alien! The rest is easy. Have the suspect put his/her/its finger on the button while pushing the metal piece on the reverse side. IF your new friend is really an extraterrestrial, the device will scream: "Hyun! Hyun!"

This way you don't have to do experiments on all your alien-like weird friends.

Most importantly, this device has the endorsement of Japan's number one alienophile, Junichi Yaoi.

Electronics: New transparent household electronics

Check out these cool new products from National Electronics' Invention Station, part of their new campaign hosted by these three hotties.


The dryer uses natural dry air instead of loads of energy to do its job, and the fridge has a special "low waist line" to facilitate the transport of heavy juice cartons and big pickle jars (if you're a pickle freak).


Just make sure you don't have your leopard thongs or moldy cheese or human body parts in there when you have your boss over for dinner.

Handphone : The Most Expensive Handphone

1.3 million dollar for this phone

Looks like created by Russian, it has a price tag of 1.3 million dollar for its diamond decoration.

Building : Olympic 2008 stadiums (Beijing - China)

The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, will be held in Beijing, China from August 8, 2008 through August 24, 2008, with the opening ceremony to take place at 8 p.m. on August 8th. The number 8 is associated with prosperity in Chinese culture. Some events, like beach volleyball, sailing, and swimming's new marathon 10km events, will be held in the coastal city of Qingdao.

On July 8, 2005, the International Olympic Committee announced that Hong Kong will hold the equestrian events at the site of the Hong Kong Sports Institute in Fo Tan, Sha Tin. The facilities of the Sports Institute may be moved to Wu Kai Sha. This will be the second time the same edition of Olympic Games has been hosted by two National Olympic Committees. (A similar arrangement was in place between Melbourne, Australia, and Stockholm, Sweden, for the 1956 Summer Olympics.)

Transport : The Airbus A380

Simply put it's the world's largest passenger plane. It is also the heaviest and the costliest commercial passenger aircraft ever built. The super jumbo is gigantic, like a Titanic in the sky. It's tail stands seven stories high; and the plane is as wide as a soccer field, stretching 260 feet from wingtip to wingtip. It is also as long as two blue whales.

The A380 was unveiled with grand fanfare at the Jean-Luc Lagardere Final Assembly Line Hall in Toulouse, France, on Tuesday. It can seat 555 passengers, about 30 per cent more than a Boeing 747; but it can actually hold 800 people. When fully loaded it will weigh up to 560 tonnes. It has an 118-tonne fuel supply, which is more than two fully loaded Boeing 717s in weight. Yet, it will be one of the fastest aircraft, capable of speeds of about 650 mph (0.85 Mach) and can fly up to 15,000 miles. If you wish to buy it, it will cost you $281 million, but big discounts are available.

Aircraft Dimensions Overall Length 239ft 3in (73m) Cabin Length 166ft 3in (50,68m) Fuselage Diameter 23ft 5in (7,14m) Max. Cabin Width Main Deck 21ft 7in( 5,58m) Max. Cabin Width Upper Deck 19ft 5in (5,92m) Height 79ft 7in (24,1m) Wheelbase 99ft 8in (30,4m) Track 46ft 11in (14,3m)
Wing Dimensions Wing Span (geometric) 261ft 10in (79,8m) Wing Area (reference) 9 100ft2 ( 845m2) Sweep (25% chord) 33,5 degrees

Design Weights Max. Ramp Weight 562 tonnes Max. Take-off Weight 560 tonnes Max. Landing Weight 386 tonnes Max. Zero Fuel Weight 361 tonnes Max. Fuel Capacity 81 890 USg 310 000 Litres Typical Operating Weight Empty 276,8 tonnes Typical Volumetric Payload 66,4 tonnes