Bullies beware. This new robot designed by Sarcos runs on new software that allows for it to keep its balance, even with an attempt to intentionally knock him over. The new robot is an attempt from Japanese scientists to create a bot that could have a more successful time integrating into crowds. Special software makes use of sensors in the ...

Not everybody is happy with the touchpad on laptops. In fact, some would even buy a separate mouse. No matter how compact they are, you’d always need to carry an extra chunk of gear (complete with cables a lot of the time). Wouldn’t it be a great solution to add a detachable mouse to all the laptops? EverGreen Japan seems ...

When you head out to a Japanese resturant, sometimes the little bottles restaurants have to hold the soy sauce resemble little robots. I half expect them to walk across the table and pour themselves. And what robot is more appropriate to have a themed soy sauce bottle for than R2D2, the lovable droid from Star Wars. Not only was he ...

Much like Paro, the cuddly seal robot, Kobie is said to be the most advanced robotic pet companion in Korea, not far behind many other robotic projects worldwide. Developed by the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Kobie reacts to touch and sound, and can even react to individual human feces faces. Kobie even reacts to violence. Slap him once, ...

Sony’s new DoCoMo SO703i may come with GPS, TV, and music player functions, but what’s really interesting about these phones has nothing to do with the specifications. That distinction goes to the fact that one sniff of your phone could make you think about lunch. That’s right, the DoCoMo SO703i is available in 11 unique scents, like “apple pie” for ...

NTT Docomo is working with a new prototype called near field communication (NFC) to allow you to use your baby body as a credit card. Instead of sliding your mobile device across a designated panel, you’ll be able to swipe your hand, without needing to take out your phone. The Japanese already use their mobile phones to pay for stuff, ...

When we talk about DoCoMo, you either have no idea what it is or you start thinking about those super high-spec phones. At the CEATEC show this morning, apart from the usual amazing line-up, a really cool-looking but very, very mean concept phone was spotted. DoCoMo said that this Wellness concept phone was supposed to help raise the health awareness ...

1. place your card, 2. hold it hold it, 3. scanned. That’s essentially what Sharp is showing us at the CEATEC show in Japan; the Light-sensor mounted System Display module. Apart from acting as a scanner, it can also do the multitouch-esque trick (video here). No news on commercialization yet. —Sam Chan Link

If controlling the Lucky Star girls and blowing away armed Pikachus and a MGS hovercycle riding Doraemon with an uzi sounds appealing to you (and I know it does) check out the video in the link below. It’s very satisfying to say the least – not to mention weird as hell. � Sean Fallon Link [via]

Here’s another very Japanese marketing gimmick, just to prove to the world how tough their notebooks are, Panasonic has tortured ALL their notebooks announced today in front of the camera. You still think Sony’s fingernail-proof VAIO is hardcore, or Toshiba’s being really blatant with theirs? Jump to witness what they did to their notebooks across ALL series.