It was like a known fact that fish prices really do sky rocket in Japan considering how much the public enjoys biting into the white meat. The latest on that front tells us that a giant bluefin tuna was sold for $177,000 at an auction held in Tskukiji. This is the world’s largest wholesale fish market in Japan. The fish in question weighs 232 kilograms, which is almost four times the weight of an average Japanese man.

A pair of Japanese and Hong Kong sushi restaurant made the winning bid making it the second highest in world after a record 20.02 million yen was paid for a bluefin tuna in 2001.

The information on the fish revealed that it was caught off the northern tip of Japan’s main island of Honshu. These waters are already known to have produced some real famous high quality fishes. One of the owners of the Japanese and Hong Kong sushi restaurant was heard saying that the fish might bring them a lot of publicity and drive people to their eating joint. Again, this auction comes at a time when environmentalists are trying to warn the world of the bluefin tuna’s forthcoming extinction,

Via heraldnet

You wanna check out the craziest and sexiest cars in Japan, then definitely Ginza is the place to be. The hottest district in the city of Tokyo might soon have the filthy rich zooming around in the all new Nissan GT-R R35 four wheeler. The new interpretation comes from Japan’s Original Runduce but in a full carbon-fiber GT-R avatar.

Apart from the all black color all over its body, the GT-R also flaunts a very aggressive aero kit bundling wider front and rear fenders. And this is just the begnning for the makers have given it a new hood, several air vents and a much larger rear wing. Not to mention the different alloy wheels and several upgrades thrown in here and there. It also benefits from numerous engine mods that will lift output to over 600 horsepower.

We wish we could tell you some more but Original Runduce is preferring to keep everything under wraps for now. The grand debut will be taking place at the Tokyo Auto Salon next year. We are waiting for it with bated breath, how about you?

Via carscoop

Japanese technology is known for developing and creating some of the most useful inventions seen by science. That said, even the most bizzarre ones come from the same part of Eastern Asis. The world has seen a lof of robots. The destroyer of the 80s and the 90s has now taken a softer shape like the Robo-girl to walk the fashion ramp or like the clone that one would always dream of having. All this has been done with a lot of panache. And now it is cute baby robo that has caught everyone’s attention. This is really a simulator called Yotaro created by the University of Tsukuba in Japan.

Let us tell you some more about babay Yotaro. This one is an interactive robot that is capable of portraying a whole range of facial expressions typical of a baby complete with the bodily movements and physiological characteristics.

Yotaro is a device that responds via an extremely well-developed emotion-control system that signals an appropriate reaction to the user. There are quite a lot of wonderful things that this robo baby can do, but the real winner is its ability to cry real tears on its 2 dimensional face.

Via designboom

Super cars have never gone out of fashion. In fact, come to think of it – they never will! That said, it will always be something different that will grab headlines. For instance, the rather basic wooden car that Sada-kenbi has created in the times when four wheelers with most advanced technology are seen vrooming to and fro on the roads. Like we were telling you, it is a sports car made from wood and has been christened Maniwa. Not just that, this little work of art is more than being a display item for it can zoom up to 50 miles per hour.

The spoilsport in you might wanna say that the little fact about the speed does not allow the categorization the Maniwa as a sports car. We truly hope not because the maker calls it one. And who can challenge that!
The wooden car comes for $44,000 and can steered with a lot of ease just with the motorcycle-like handlebar. Even the gull wing doors add their own charm. And if your driving is in need for some entertainment, the integrated stereo comes pretty handy. Believe it or not, the car is actually street legal in Japan. We would love to know if this mover and shaker is eco-friendly too!

Via designboom

Are you a music lover with some money saved up for litte extravagances to indulge in now and then? If the answer is a ‘yes’, then you must head to the Yahoo Auction in Japan which is selling not one but two limited edition Fender guitars. Well, these gorgeous set of duos has been painted beautifully by the extremely talented Evangelion Character Rei after being skillfully crafted by Yuriy Shishkov who is a known senior master builder at Fender. Did we tell you that we have falled head over heels in love with the splash of color on the basic backdrop of black and white!

You might have guessed by now that these are two exclusive guitars and have had the good fortune of being valued far more than actually estimated. Although the bid for the Rei-Stratocaster started at $5,540 and reached $100,000. As for the Rei-Televaster went on to a sale price of $85,000.
We do realise that the news about the auction might be reaching you a tad late considering the fact that there is very little time left for the auction to end. Get in touch with your pals teaching English in Japan for they might try their luck for your sake.

Via akihabaranews

Alas, only those in Japan can enjoy the product we are going to talk about here. This one is the Galante Spring Drive Watch that comes from the Seiko sub brand. And might we say, the name Galante is responsible for ruffling up the feathers for the wealthy youth seeking distinct and chic designs. And do not think that it is a poor cousin of Seiko’s for it creates well constructed and designed watches, each of which is assembled in hand.

And good news is that Galante just turned five and so its extremely talented design team has come up with a special 5th Anniversary Special Edition model. They have ensured that the timepiece has a jewelry like quality owing to the steel bracelet holding on to your wrist. The rotating bezel is a true delight thanks to the floral engraving and if you look closely at the dial, you can spot roses carved into it.
The frame of this beauty is 44.5mm and the Seiko 5R66 Spring Drive movement keeps it ticking. You have the complete package with the time, power reserve indicator, date and GMT hand. The price range will start at $5,000. Check with your nearest Japanese dealer or write to your dear one living in Japan for a Christmas gift you will treasure all your life.

Via galante

Little would you know this but perhaps the largest Disney fans of the world reside in Japan, children and adults. So much so that this country has a special and orignal Disney theme park based next to the sea called Disney Sea. This one is a different venture from the Disneyland in Tokyo that folks just love visiting too. Well, with the involvement of die-hard grown up fans, you can expect a lot of innovation (and we mean big bucks) in the merchandise sector. For instance, a jewelry store in Osaka that goes by the name of Tanaka Kikinzoku has made a beautiful Snow White in pure gold. Accompanying her are the seven dwarfs who also enjoy being cast in the gorgeous yellow metal.

No wonder, this store is gaining a lot of mileage. It is believed that this little Disney team has a total estimated worth of $335,000. That said, it is not for sale. The makers believe that their favorite Disney Princess and her ‘kawaii’ seven friends are priceless.

All the eight gold figurines have been designed by Tanaka Kikinzoku thanks to a collaboration between his brand and Walt Disney (Japan). There is a special occasion too – to mark the Blu-ray disc version of Disney’s 1937 animation film classic.

Via japantoday

We have just discovered that S.T. DuPont, a French company is making a new handset called “Pantech Sky DuPont IM-U510LE” in collaboration with Pantech, South Korea’s largest handset manufacturer. The luxurious phone is inspired by DuPont’s famous lighters, which Pantech integrates as a push-up button with the same cling sound that is produced when the lighter cap opens.

The phone comes with a lot of interesting features. It has a 3-inch touch screen display, a 2G-only connectivity, GPS, a MP3 camera with 3 megapixel, Bluetooth, mobile dictionary, and gold plated edges. The features look appealing but the DuPont phone will be available only for SK Telecom network users. It is very unfair to those who really want to buy this phone. However, around 30,000 of this handset are expected to be sold.

The phone is priced at $832, which is by far the most expensive handset for Pantech. The phone is already doing well in the US, Japan and the South America markets. Only time will tell how well it is appreciated in Korea. It’s more than possible that Korean market will welcome it.

Via: Techfresh/Cnet

Contrary to popular belief, the super-rich do have a conscience. Well, how else do you explain the endless charities and drives to save the earth? Folks like Edward Humes with a good heart and a splurging bank balance will definitely be interested in the new concept carports that are doing the roundd of the eco new world thesedays. A perfect substitute for the Bond-style pop-up garage, these are actually solar panel roofs.

A creation coming from Japan-based Sankyo Tateyama Aluminum is a great way to go green for the rich without having to compromise on their ultra-high standards of living. Referred to as M.Shade (aka M. frontage Solar Shade) this one has the ability to generate power to the capacity of 2.52kw vis-a-vis its photovoltaic cells. Other than that, it can accomodate two cars too.

Each carport has been made from 12 solar panels that together provide 2,235kw of energy per year, as per Sankyo this is can cover 50% of a typical household needs. M.Shade costs $40,000 plus installation charges.

Via crunchgear

We have just discovered some new Television remote controls by Sony Japan. These remote controls have simple basic functions and they come with big buttons. This will make it easier for the users to see the buttons and change the channels easily. These remote controls are waterproof. Thank God somebody at least came up with a waterproof remote control. Mine just stopped functioning as I accidentally poured water on it.Now I can care less if it happens again.

These Sony remote controls are compatible with most TV manufacturers. They will be on sale from September 10 onwards at but only in Japan. They will be available for 2468 Yen ($29). They come in five different colors. Interestingly, the remote controls have sharp numbered buttons but the button no. zero is printed on the button no. 10 in a small size.

I wonder why they had to do this. Probably Sony wanted to save some space for other purposes. Nevertheless, it’s not a bad deal considering it’s a water-proof remote control. My only worry is if this will ever be available in other places apart from Japan.

Via: Google\NewLaunches