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10 Cool Gadgets You Can't Get Here
molex333 writes "PC World has an article about 10 gadgets that are available in Asia but not here. It is a review of some quirky toys that the Japanese have and we don't!" Unfortunately it's one of those obnoxious stories that you have to click like 30x to read the whole thing, but there's some neat stuff.
I would care if it's waterproof, even if I do have to pay a premium for it. Water death seems to claim most of my phones, and paying more for a waterproof one just means that I won't be paying for a different phone when I drop mine in the lake or leave it too close to the sink.
What actually surprises me though is not that they have waterproof phones in Japan, but that we DON'T have waterproof phones yet here. I mean, we can make waterproof cameras that can actually be USED under water, but we don't yet have a phone that can land in a puddle and come out alive? Come on now. Of course, if the phone was waterproof then they would probably sell fewer phones. Water death is probably a good source of phone-company income. I mean, if your camera isn't waterproof and gets fried, it's feasible to just let it slide and not buy another one. Not really the same thing with a phone since you're probably stuck paying the contract anyway.
...no two people are not on fire.
How is this 'informative'?
It's a link to one of this years Think Geek April Fools prank.
Did the moderators even look at the URL?
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Which is why they are not available in the US. There really isn't a market for Gadgets.
I can see two factors for this reason.
Factor 1. The 0th commandment above all other. Thow shal not waste money.
This is even shown on slashdot. Why buy a nice Apple Mac Book Pro where you can Build a Desktop that is 3 times more prowerful (5x if dont bother with the luxeries like insolated wires), it may look like it came from the wreck of the titanic, but I got a bargin out of it.
Factor 2. Only spend extra if you can show it off. Who cares if that phone as more features and cost less then the iPhone. the iPhone looks so much cooler, when you whip it out in front of others and imeadeatly a conversation starts. You technically superior phone no one will notice. Why do you think we get the Big Screen HD TVS and no Small ones. We don't want small HD TVs we wont big ones so when people enter their house they are like wow that is a big TV.
We tend to buy Crap Stuff for ourselfs and Nice stuff for others. If we don't attempt to impress someone else with your purchase you will get the cheapest possible, if you do attend to impress someone else then you are willing to pay a premium.
Look at our big purchases. Homes, Cars, Clothing. We are willing to pay for things at huge markup prices just to show it off. But for things you don't show off you get what you need.
Why is the Wii so popular (Technically weak compared to the other systems), it is designed to play with other (diverse group) people vs. the PS III which is designed for a bunch of Gammers in a basement to play with blank expressions on their face for hours.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
At the same time, the people in Asia don't have a lot of the junk sold in American stores. That's because a lot of American junk wouldn't be attractive to that market.
Remember why Chrysler was complaining that the Japanese were not importing American cars? I wonder if the Japanese thought they were missing out on something awesome, like that 1982 LeBarron.
It's not so much that they make cameras that are waterproof, as they put cameras that aren't waterproof inside of a huge chunky case that looks retarded in any other situation outside of you being near vast quantities of water. I'm willing to bet that a majority of people wouldn't buy a phone that was retardedly huge just because it was waterproof. Form over function for most Americans. Look at how many people bought the RAZR, and that thing was a piece of crap, functionality wise.
Um... your commandments only make sense if you can quantify "use" and "waste" properly. Some of these gadgets have added value in entertainment, you do realise, or like the MacBook Pro bring enough to the table so that the investment in money beats the investment in time building your own.
As for your second statement, well, I just haven't seen it in the real world. People really do buy nice stuff for themselves without intending to show off. We call those people "connoisseurs". Those people who really do look for the best experience in X, be it wine, or cars, or computers or whatever.
It is folly and insulting to denigrate how others spend their money, really. We all get enjoyment from different things, and from different aspects of those things. To look down at someone as "wasting" their money merely because you personally don't see the benefit is silly.
was retardedly huge just because it was waterproof.
:O
Yeah, I gave up on having a waterproof watch, it was so big and heavy my left arm was twice the size of my right one, and I jack off with my right hand.
Newsflash: you can waterproof things without putting them in a giant box!
They don't make phones waterproof because A) someone dropping their phone in a puddle = more $ for the phone maker and/or B) someone dropping their phone in a puddle = contract extension and more $ for the telco. Also C) people whining about not being able to change the battery in the sealed phone, but that's just if you're going to waterproof it the cheap way and dip the whole thing in plastic.
Is it just me, or does that bank look like the Necronomicon from Evil Dead?
Why is the Wii so popular (Technically weak compared to the other systems), it is designed to play with other (diverse group) people vs. the PS III which is designed for a bunch of Gammers in a basement to play with blank expressions on their face for hours
I largely agree with your post, but this is one thing I don't.
I always find it strange when someone mentions the "why is the wii popular, the technology isn't as good!" argument. No one cares about technology except people who think technology is a giant pissing contest.
The Wii is very popular because someone figured out that games are ALSO about the UI people use to play the game, and not just about the graphics. I'd bet someone at NES looked at the sales of games like DDR, and realized that was a whole new market of gamers that played these games who just weren't into the game because they didn't like the traditional button+direction-pad that's been prevalent for 25 years. Give those people a UI where they get to interact in a more natural way, and they'll buy it like mad. Hell, it may even go down to a basic brain level where many people can't extend "themselves" through the button+direction pad, but can through motion.
Come to think of it, the Wii actually IS technically superior to the PS3, it's just superior in a different way. (Accelerometers + IR Bar + Software vs. raw computing power). Judging technical merit on one aspect of the system alone is just misleading.
AccountKiller
Yaesu VX-7R hand-held VHF/UHF transceiver.
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Not available "here"? As in "the internet"?
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A slide-open cellphone! An UMPC! A DVB-T USB dongle! And a set of devices designed to be used together!
Asia truly lives in the future!
Admittedly, the robot remote is somewhat cool, albeit impractical, but the rest of the stuff is pretty weak.
USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
Because it's not like every /. reader doesn't already have about 5 gadget sites bookmarked.