The idea of a Spherical Flying machine may not be all that exciting at first blush, but if you hit the above video you’ll see that it is in fact an extremely agile aircraft.  Unlike a quadricopter, or more importantly a helicopter, this machine can travel forward using wings.  Conversely, it can land at any angle thanks to its spherical shape and roll around on the ground using the rotors to power it in any direction.

The machine was developed by Japan’s Ministiry of Defense for a little over $1000.  And while it appears to be largely a prototype, we can’t help but wonder if they’ll develop a version large enough for a human to fit inside.

This printer uses water instead of ink.

Last week Japan got shattered by an 8.9 earthquake.  While the events are unfortunate, to say the least, AT&T and Verizon have begun offering free calls to the country be it by US landline or cell phone.

AT&T’s offer lasts from March 11th to March 31st.   Text messages are free, and for those of you with a landline you can apply for a 60 minute credit.

Not to make this into a pissing contest, but Verizon is one upping them by providing unlimited free calls on both wireless and wired lines until April 11th.  Text and MMS messages are covered.  Verizon pre-paid phone card customers can expect the same treatment.

Our hearts go out to those in Japan.  It’s a life altering event that we can’t even begin to ascertain the strife involved.

VERIZON MAKES CALLS FREE TO JAPAN FROM MARCH 11 TO APRIL 10

Verizon Wireless Customers Can Text to Japan for Free

NEW YORK – To help its customers contact loved ones in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami, Verizon is making calls to Japan free for most wireless and residential customers through April 10.

All Verizon Wireless post-paid customers will receive free calling to Japan from March 11 through April 10.  Post-paid customers are those who receive a monthly bill from the company.  In addition, Verizon Wireless post-paid customers in the U.S. will receive free text and multimedia messaging to Japan for the same time period.

Verizon Wireless has also made it easy for customers to text donations to a host of non-profit organizations responding to the earthquake and subsequent tsunami.  Customers can easily make a $10 donation by simply sending a text message and may choose from 10 organizations aiding those in need in Japan.

All calls made from a Verizon residential landline to Japan will be rated at $0.00 per minute, from March 11 through April 10.  Customers with Verizon World Plan (300, 500 or unlimited minutes of long-distance calling) can call Japan without using any minutes from their time-allotment blocks.

Additionally, Verizon Prepaid Phone Card charges for all long-distance calls placed to Japan from the United States will also be waived from March 11 until April 10.

The company is also providing FiOS TV customers who are not subscribed to the channel free access to TV Japan through March 17.  The channel location is 1770.

* Only long-distance usage charges associated with calls made from residential landlines terminating to wireline or wireless destinations in Japan will be waived from Mar. 11 – April 10.  All other fees including taxes, surcharges, monthly recurring charges (MRCs), minimum spend levels (MSLs), monthly minimum charges (MMCs), etc will continue to apply.  Post-paid calling card charges to Japan will also be waived.

** If long distance calling fees were charged, credits will be issued in a future bill statement.

VERIZON MAKES CALLS FREE TO JAPAN FROM MARCH 11 TO APRIL 10 Verizon Wireless Customers Can Text to Japan for Free NEW YORK – To help its customers contact loved ones in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and tsunami, Verizon is making calls to Japan free for most wireless and residential customers through April 10. All Verizon Wireless post-paid customers will receive free calling to Japan from March 11 through April 10.  Post-paid customers are those who receive a monthly bill from the company.  In addition, Verizon Wireless post-paid customers in the U.S. will receive free text and multimedia messaging to Japan for the same time period. Verizon Wireless has also made it easy for customers to text donations to a host of non-profit organizations responding to the earthquake and subsequent tsunami.  Customers can easily make a $10 donation by simply sending a text message and may choose from 10 organizations aiding those in need in Japan.  All calls made from a Verizon residential landline to Japan will be rated at $0.00 per minute, from March 11 through April 10.  Customers with Verizon World Plan (300, 500 or unlimited minutes of long-distance calling) can call Japan without using any minutes from their time-allotment blocks. Additionally, Verizon Prepaid Phone Card charges for all long-distance calls placed to Japan from the United States will also be waived from March 11 until April 10. The company is also providing FiOS TV customers who are not subscribed to the channel free access to TV Japan through March 17.  The channel location is 1770.  * Only long-distance usage charges associated with calls made from residential landlines terminating to wireline or wireless destinations in Japan will be waived from Mar. 11 – April 10.  All other fees including taxes, surcharges, monthly recurring charges (MRCs), minimum spend levels (MSLs), monthly minimum charges (MMCs), etc will continue to apply.  Post-paid calling card charges to Japan will also be waived. ** If long distance calling fees were charged, credits will be issued in a future bill statement.

AT&T Offers Wireless, Wireline Billing Relief for Consumers Calling and Texting Family, Friends in Japan

DALLAS, March 14, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — AT&T* today announced it has implemented international calling and texting support efforts for U.S. residential wireless and wireline consumers trying to connect with loved ones in Japan, following last week’s tragic earthquake and tsunami.

Effective beginning last week, March 11, and continuing through March 31, AT&T wireless postpaid customers will not be charged for:

International long distance usage from the United States and Puerto Rico to Japan

Text messages to Japan, originated from a U.S. wireless number

In addition, and also effective March 11 through March 31, residential wireline customers can seek credits for up to 60 minutes of direct dial calling to Japan:

Upon receiving their wireline bill, customers may call AT&T to receive adjusted calling for up to 60 minutes. In other words, no charges for up to 60 minutes of call time from the United States to Japan between March 11 and March 31.

For any of the above activity, customers will either see no charges reflected on their monthly statement, or they will see a full credit applied to their statement for activity between March 11 and March 31.

“We want to help our customers connect with loved ones in Japan in anyway we can,” said Mark Collins, senior vice president, Voice and Data Products, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Connecting with family and friends is most important at times like this- we want to make it as easy and worry free as possible for our customers.”

Still available, AT&T wireless customers can text “redcross” to 90999 to give a $10 donation to help the Red Cross with disaster support efforts in the area. No text message fees apply.

And, TV Japan – the 24 hour Japanese news channel – is available for free through March 17 to all U-verse® TV subscribers, allowing viewers to follow the news and recovery efforts. TV Japan can be found on channel 3680.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

Now, I’m not saying you’re not gonna like this, I’m just saying it’s probably better suited for your 6 year old, though I have a feeling its Japanese makers have a more mature audience in mind.

To each their own, and if roaming the room with a little gadget in hand is the thing for you, and looking for virtual fishes superimposed on its camera feed sounds like fun, then by all means shell out 6,279 Yen for the Tahara Tomy “Virtual Master Real”.

So find out what the Yen exchange rate is, wait until July, then happy hybrid virtual/real fishing to you.

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We thought 12 megapixels for a camera phone was bananas, but apparently the monkeys at Sony Ericsson disagree.  (We hope you got the monkey/bananas reference).

Soon Japanese carrier KDDI will offer a 16 megapixel shooter inside SE’s latest S006 smartphone.  Under the hood is a 1Ghz Snapdragon processor, an Sony Ericsson OS, WiFi, FM tuner, GPS, Bluetooth and a 3.3-inch (probably touchscren) display.

Akihabara News says the camera phone maxes out at 12,800 ISO, which doesn’t sound quite right, but don’t shoot the messenger.

Why are we so obsessed with the Nintendo Wii and other video game consoles when they receive an all new finish?  After all, it’s about what is on the inside not on the outside, right?  You can put that one in your principal bank and smoke it.

Conundrum notwithstanding, Nintendo has released, in Japan only mind you, the Red Nintendo Wii to commemorate Mario’s 25th birthday.   It will cost $240 when it arrives November 11th.  They’ll also release a Super Mario Bros box set in the EU on Dec. 3rd that is replete with soundtrack, “retrospective DVD” and history book.

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There’s talk of the NITC’s 3D audio 62 channel system, and every writer is mentioning that NITC stands for National Institute of Information and Communication Technology. What they fail to mention is that we’re talking about Japan’s NITC, because no way something as crazy as 3D sound from a sphere reminiscent of the Death Star would come out of any other country’s government programs.

What you need to know about the NITC’s audio system is that it tries, and apparently succeeds in recreating the actual feel and spatial propagation of a sound – be it a voice or an instrument or some other kind of recorded sound. It uses 62 independently driven channels to achieve this effect, and its representation of sound even takes account of things like where a sound’s location in space should be and what its orientation and motion in time are.

The really good thing about this is that it will probably put an end to the debate about vinyl being so much better than digital, with the drawback of having to dedicate an entire large room to your sound system, and having to steal it from the Japanese government.

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We’ve seen some magic on the iPhone, but nothing compares to street magician Shinya’s performance on the iPad, which just launched in Japan.  I’m guessing he imported one when it was released in the US, but if not than this gentleman deserves an applause for his expedience in creating the accompanying video and tricks.

Like those wood paneled Plymouth Cruisers vying for that slice of nostalgia within the minds of the many, Sony of Japan is happy to announce their retro CFD-A110.  What would undoubtedly make a great bathroom stereo, the CFD-A110 also let’s you jam some karaoke and even listen to the audio from Japanese TV shows.

Embracing celluloid buttons for the cassette and CD player, I don’t see an AUX in for an MP3 player.  Let’s hope it has one as peoples tape and CD collections must have dwindled by this day and age.

No word on Japanese price or release date.  Most of us will just enjoy the picture and the quick rush of retro flavorings.

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Citizen’s latest Bluetooth watches are both cool and frustrating.  Why the odd combo you ask?  Well, cool because you can control a wide variety of options on your phone right from your watch.  Frustrating because they’re only designed to work with a select set of phones from Japanese carrier Softbank.

The I:Virt M series TM84-0351V and TM84-0352V Bluetooth-enabled wristwatches can let you read mail up to 210 characters in length, alert you of an incoming call, display your phone’s battery, deny a call and control the phone’s camera.  As you’d expect they’ll also vibrate in case you’re in a meeting or a loud bar.

No word on a price or launch date, but since they’re not iPhone compatible I really don’t care…do you?

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As a positive alternative to video games, Bandai has just announced their new Hyper Telescope for Japanese markets.  Capable of identifying over 1,000 objects, the Hyper Telescope uses a live “tracking system” LCD display to inform kids what they’re looking at while they’re looking at it. It’s sort of like a portable planetarium.

You can also hook it up to a TV so more than one kid can join in the fun.  Special background melodies and data are available for 300 stars making it more kid friendly and fun to use.  The price is set at $200 and the only set up required is an initial coordinate plug and the current time.  No word yet on a Western version but hopefully parents everywhere will take notice.

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Let’s file this under “cool but kinda creepy”: Hanako is a Japanese-built robot created by three universities and a robotics manufacturer whose purpose is for training dentists. Her mouth is filled with sensors that are designed to react to the dentist’s tools. She also sneezes, screams if poked too hard, and salivates in an attempt to recreate a regular patient’s reactions. Other actions involve rolling her eyes in pain, wiggling her tongue, and opening and closing her eyes.

It’s a cool idea — I just wouldn’t want to be near that thing in a dark room.

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This is by far the first set of Micky Mouse inspired MP3s to come from Japan and I’m sure they’re not the last.  But now you can score an S-series Sony Walkman adorned with everyone’s favorite Disney character.  Or if you so choose you can opt for Minnie or the two of them together. There is a variety of colors and even if you don’t need a new MP3 player they should make for a nice collectors item, that is assuming you’re really into Mickey Mouse crap. Course, you’ll need to travel to Japan or have someone ship you one.

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I think it’s safe to presume that you’re going to spend a significant amount of loot totally converting to 3-D TV and Blu-Ray.  Word from Sony Japan is that they’ve priced the TDG-BR100 and TDG-BR50 Active Shutter 3-D Glasses at $133 a piece.

You are also going to need the Infrared Emitter to get the glasses to work.  That will cost you $55.  They should be arriving around June in Japan.  This seems a tad late given that the post I did a couple of minutes ago detailing Sony’s new 3-D Blu-Ray Players, which arrive in the US by the end of the month.

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Talk about tawdry.  Looking like every Swatch Watch ever made mixed together, the Casio G-Shock Man Box has got to me to most cornea confusing watch there is.  At $225, it’s hard to imagine what kind of trustfund raver would throw down the cash for these when they could easily by a palette of glow sticks for the same amount.

Available only in Japan where it would look like everything else in downtown Tokyo.

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The RoboCar G could easily be mistaken for a golf cart, but it’s much more than that.  Using a combination of sensors, including stereo cameras, laser rangefinders, radar and sonar, as well as an inertial measurement unit, the diminutive sized vehicle can drive itself and can be controlled wirelessly using a computer.

Top speed of the vehicle is currently 37mph; it’s powered by a lithium-ion battery and a brushless DC electric motor.

The vehicle was developed in collaboration with Gunma University and industry partners, and will be sold in Japan to public facilities and hospitals.  There’s no word on a price, but they’re due to ship this November.

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I really don’t understand this product.  The Japanese made Smash Guitars are cheap instruments that are manufactured from 100% recyclable materials beckoning the question, if you care that little about your guitar to smash it why would you care enough to send the broken pieces back to the company to be recycled??

The company claims that they will take all those busted shards and construct a new guitar and donate it to charity.  The electric guitars are available in the Telecaster mold and only cost $60 each.

Can I get a WTF?

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Wheels, that’s so last year.  A research team at Japan’s Kobe Gakuin University have invented a wheel chair, or perhaps just a chair, that floats on a small cushion of air, sort of like a hovercraft, in fact just like a hovercraft.  A few problems, though: it can only carry up to 330lbs and won’t work on carpet or floor mats.  And what about propulsion?  A standard wheel chair can easily be self driven.  Check the vid below.

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Taking the message in a bottle concept and adapting it to a music in a bathtub type scenario, the Self Contained Waterproof Pomme Bath Speaker will help your tunes float by when taking a hot and steamy…bath.  Strictly Japanese at this point, the Bath Speaker is available in 3 different colors and is really easy to use.  Just plug your MP3 player into the 3.5mm jack and screw the top on and your ready to go floating!

You can buy one now from GeekStuff4You for about $33 and it will ship approximately 7-12 days from order date.

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Letting you either eliminate your dish cloth or your kitchen counter calculator, this odd combination gadget is sure to have fools WTF’ing all over the place.  Available in a myriad of different colors and patterns this could be a cutesy type of gift for Mother’s Day.

Pragmatically speaking, I didn’t see anywhere about this gadget being dishwasher safe so who knows how long it’ll last after you clean up some grease stain after your bacon party.  On sale now for $26 a pop.

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