Medicom has released a 400% (11″ tall) Bearbrick of the 60 meter-tall Colossal Titan, one of the giants terrorizing the poor citizens in the world of Shingeki no Kyojin, aka Attack on Titan. I’m not sure if there’s a 1% bearbrick inside.
This horrifying bear is limited to 500 units and is available only to Japanese residents, going for￥7,140 (~$70 USD) each. Bite your browser and breach Bearbrick’s walls to order.
[via Hypebeast]
As much as I think the Kinect is a cool device, I have to say I don’t play many Xbox 360 games that use it. However, this interactive concept being shown off in Japan is something I’d definitely want to try.
Developed by the Shirai Lab at the Kanagawa Institute of Technology, Manga Generator lets you strike poses and automatically puts you into the panels of a Manga comic.
You can either jump into a pre-written story or have the Kinect sensor and custom software algorithms determine your body positions and select the appropriate backgrounds and props. When you’re done creating your personal Manga, you can print it out for posterity.
There’s no word on if or when Manga Generator will be released to the public, but one YouTube commenter said it best “BRB GOING TO JAPAN.”
[via DigInfo.TV]
Remember those photo memes that recently went viral? The one that features a classic Dragon Ball or Street Fighter inspired pose where someone blasts everyone off to kingdom come, and the one that’s inspired from Darth Vader’s signature force choke?
These photos are already fun as they are, but an app that can add even more to these shots that are intended to go viral has been released. It’s called the Kame Camera app and it’ll breath some Manga-inspired life into your photo memes.
The Kame app enhances these photo memes by letting users add swirling flames and shock and lightning effects to their images with a few quick taps.
From Hadokening and Quiddiching to Vadering, this app has got most of these photo memes covered.
The Kame Camera app can be downloaded from Google Play and the iTunes App Store.
[via Laughing Squid]
Special Evangelion business accessories will be available though Haruyama Trading, one of the major Japanese business suit chain stores.
They announced that they will open a special “HARUYAMA×EVANGELION: 3.0 Akihabara EVENT STORE” where these items will be available for a limited time (June 2 – June 23).
The store will sell dress shirts, ties, cuff links, and tiepins created in the image of major Evangelion characters such as EVA-01 and EVA-02.
Ever wondered how those crazily clad cosplayers promote themselves to each other? Well according to Nikkei’s Trendy just like most professionals in Japan they use business cards, though perhaps not the most traditional kind.
Image via cosplay.exblog
Business card exchange in Japan (meishi koukan ) is the most important method of professional self-introduction in Japan. Forgetting or running out of cards in more formal settings can lead to embarrassment, as others are unable to judge your status in the group. This is why we always tell clients visiting Japan for business or networking to “bring plenty of cards!”, which in their mind usually translates into 20 when it should be 50+.
Image via uniearth.jp
However, when these cosplayers exchange business cards they are promoting their fantasy persona, a character from an alternative reality who they try to embody through fashion, make up and lifestyle. The cards feature their character name, photo, and contact address rather than company and job title.
Image via A-one
Of course cosplayers wont just have one costume that they don, or character role that they play, which could certainly lead to a lot of printing and perhaps confusion.
Offering to solve this dilemma is a cosplay business card service called Proof, owned by printing company Choei, which allows customers the chance to order multiple sets of business cards for each character at a low cost (100 cards at 2,625 Yen- US$26).
A major feature of these customised cosplay business cards is of course the unique character or costume photo, which when printed resembles the design of a trading card rather than a proper business card.
C-Studio was set up to offer cosplayers a special location in which to take these cosplay glamour shots; featuring several photo studios each with their own themed decor such as Gothic, Luxury Bar, ‘Cute-room’, Sci Fi etc.
Customers can also rent props for free to enhance their fantasy experience and add further mystery to their characters.
As it is often difficult to find the right location to take fantasy themed cosplay photos without attracting attention and being bothered by the public many cosplayers are willing to pay the steep 8,000 yen (US$80) per hour rental fee to use the studio.
The extent to which fans of manga, anime and cosplay indulge in these alternative reality and fantasy lifestyles seems to be continuing to go one step further. With these cosplay business cards, the false persona of these fantasy characters now has a real world presence and allows them to take on bigger personalities and responsibilities.
When you purchase a new product, we’re sure you’re the kind of person who doesn’t even look twice at an instruction manual unless you completely stump yourself while setting up your new purchase. Instruction manuals aren’t meant to be flashy or interesting, instead foregoing any sort of entertainment value in lieu of giving the reader the information they need. But Toshiba is releasing a new manual that features anime characters in order to help the new owner of its dynabook series of notebook computers setting up their machine in order to get the most out of it.
The illustrated instruction manual features Para-chan, who looks like an anthropomorphic seal, and Mana-chan, who we would assume is a student based on her school uniform. The guide doesn’t replace the more traditional instruction manual, but instead is being included with the company’s newest dynabook laptops as an introductory guide. Mana-chan plays the role of the teacher as she guides Para-chan through setting up its dynabook. We have a feeling this will never make its way out of Japan, but it’s nice to know Toshiba is helping otakus learn more about their laptop in a way they would digest the information best: through reading manga.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Most Workplaces Still Use Internet Explorer, Touchscreen Ultrabooks Prices Slashed At Microsoft Store, 
     |
There’s manga for practically everything, and from the moment one popped about the politics of making Android devices, one about Steve Jobs was inevitable. Well, it’s here. More »
While the world waits for the official release of Steve Jobs’ upcoming biopic starring Ashton Kutcher called jOBS, his life story will also be receiving the manga treatment in Japan in Kiss magazine, which is a publication specifically for women. Artist Mari Yamazaki has been chosen to illustrate Jobs in the officially licensed manga as she feels “sympathy for Jobs” as well as for her realistic and charming painting style. The manga will be based on the best-selling Walter Isaacson biography titled “Steve Jobs.”
A teaser image drawn by Yamazaki was released to show what kind of art style she’ll bring to Jobs image. As you can see above, we think she did a great job of Jobs’ portrait as she captured the majority of his likeness, even down to his slight face stubble. We’re curious to see what extent her talent can take the Steve Jobs manga as we’re sure he’ll be portraying many emotions throughout its story, especially towards the end of his life when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Yellow/Gold iPhone 5S In The Works?, iPads for Qantas In-flight Entertainment,
Today, Seiko announced that they will release 7 very limited edition watch models in collaboration with Japanese manga series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (JoJo no Kimyo na Boken).
The design of each model is based on the distinct personality and supernatural power that each character has.
Only 300 watches are sold for each model and a serial number proving authenticity is shown on the back of each watch. Each comes with a special box made for this project. The watch will be available from …
While Apple’s iBookstore is available in numerous countries, readers who sit outside of a certain privileged zone have had to make do with public domain e-books at best. The Japanese won’t have to settle as of today: a low-key iBookstore expansion gives them access to paid content, including manga and other more localized material. Accordingly, there’s an iBooks 3.1 app update rolling out that both unlocks “hundreds of thousands” of titles in the Japanese store and improves support for Asian languages as a whole. Residents who’ve been looking for the most official means of reading JoJolion on their iPads just need to grab the refreshed iBooks at the source.
Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Apple
Source: App Store
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
