Fat Fingered Sumo Wrestlers Given iPads

The Japan Sumo Association is handing out about 60 iPads to training stables to help the wrestlers communicate because their fingers are too fat to use a regular mobile phone. From the article: "The iPad was chosen because the sumo association believed the device was big enough to cater to wrestler's fat fingers, unlike the smaller keys on mobile phones, according to reports."

Comments

Oh boy

[santax]

This sort of news makes me happy I gave up sys-administration on workfloors a long time ago. These don't look like the kind of people that take 'did you try the restore-cd?' for an answer.

Re:Uh...

[snowraver1]

No, they need a dialing wand. You can order one my mashing the keypad.

Making calls on the way out?

[sznupi]

I'm sure those (usually / always quite horrible, so far) mobile phones for the elderly are also available in Japan...if anybody still wanted to make calls.

You know, those looking a bit like simple alphanumeric calculators, with enormous buttons.

iPads are not phones

[longacre]

Only a matter of time until the wrestlers fashion these iPads into ninja stars when they learn of their uselessness for communication.

Re:iPads are not phones

[gilesjuk]

I keep hearing this "useless" argument. It's a tablet device, it's no desktop replacement.

Have you noticed that time and time again that tablets running a full blown desktop OS have failed to sell? Even Bill Gate's estimates for tablet PC sales were completely wrong and sold a tiny fraction of what was estimated.

An iPad can do word processing, it can play games, it can go on the Internet, it can play music, it can play films, there are utility applications, there are music production applications, there are drawing and photo editing applications.

Useless? what use are you say it lacks?

Sure, if your criteria is a DOS prompt, Bash shell, File manager and so on then yes it is useless. It is stripped down and not the full desktop experience, but who says that File managers are fun or that messing around with config files, registry settings or writing scripts is enjoyable?

There is a lot of needless complexity in computing devices. We are moving on from big dusty boxes filled with cooling fans to small more portable devices. Desktop machines are 10% of the market, laptops are popular and tablets will replace laptops in many mobile computing applications.

Re:iPads are not phones

[Cicada7]

These are the exact reasons I'm waiting for a comparable Android tablet.

You get the watered down GUIfication element, where anyone can pick it up and it 'just works'

You also get the ability to really dig in via the ADB console or terminal apps.

I'm certainly no majority example, but this seems to me to be 'done right', and I'm excited to buy one for my girlfriend.

Until a good KB dock-type attachment comes out for Android tabs, however, I've got no real use for it - I spend a vast majority of my 'computing' time using the keyboard, to a point that I've gotten a full-size USB keyboard to attach to my laptop which also has a full-size keyboard that just isn't quite as comfortable.

Until I've got that same flexibility with a tablet, it's just not my thing. My girlfriend is of the opinion that iPads are too locked down, and therefore useless, and she's 1/10 the computer nerd that I am.

Re:iPads are not phones

[DarthVain]

I think what the parent is trying to say that it isn't a "Phone".

Sure you could put Skype or I guess now the new Google service, but strictly speaking it isn't a cell phone.

Re:iPads are not phones

[saboola]

You know, on top of all the basics you mentioned, I do a lot of Remote Desktop/VNC/SSH from my iPad. Works great. The device is hardly useless.

The sumo wrestlers' reaction

[borfast]

"Cool, an iPad! I can finally make phone ca.... oh, wait..."

How do other fat people use phones?

[edmicman]

Whaa? How do the millions of other fat people in the world manage to use cell phones?

Re:How do other fat people use phones?

[Kyusaku Natsume]

The thing is that in Japan you can't talk on the phone onboard most public transport because it is forbidden or impolite but you can send text messages. The predictive text software in the iPad for japanese input method is one of the best implementations around. For sumo wrestlers, sure this would look like a godsend. For them, voice communication will be a nice added bonus, but not a deal breaker.

Re:Did I read that right

[Ogive17]

Yep, they are called stables. And the "rookies" have to wipe the asses of the "vets" since they are usually too fat to reach around themselves.

Why not?

[SuperKendall]

Sure you could put Skype or I guess now the new Google service, but strictly speaking it isn't a cell phone.

If I am on a cellular network, talking to another person on a phone, why is what I'm talking on not a phone? If it acts like a phone, I can use it like a phone, and the person on the other end can't tell anything - how is that not a phone?

Re:Why not?

[Carewolf]

how is that not a phone?

Because it lacks the phone parts! It isn't an enlarged iPhone. It is a huge iTouch, it doesn't have the phone hard- or software.