Nose for innovation: Sales campaigns have traditionally focused on just one of the five senses. Retailers love to deck out their products in eye candy — some of it even connected to the offerings on sale — to attract the attention of the shopping public. The sense of hearing also gets some attention, but the other three senses usually get short shrift. Now, however, NTT Communications is addressing the disparity with its prototype Kaoru Digital Signage display. The radical creation relies on emitting aromas to lure customers. It's on show now in front of Kirin City Beer Hall in the Yaesu Shopping Mall in Tokyo Station, wafting out scents of orange and lemon to complement video clips of foaming jugs of beer. Citrus smells were chosen for their alleged association with beer. The device uses ultrasound to vaporize aromatic oils and can project the olfactory messages through a space of up to 500 cu. meters. Check out the press release at www.ntt.com/release_e/news07/0010/1017.html. The sweet smell of sales.
Freshen up: Yin and yang, eh? When we aren't loading up the atmosphere with odors, we are trying to scrub it clean of them. Takara Tomy is targeting the market for purifiers for infants with its BabyCleamo pocket air purifier. Weighing in at a paltry 300 grams, it comes in light blue and lime green colors, each with a cute face. The purifier works on batteries or an AC adapter.
Hot hues: Another seemingly humble appliance getting special treatment is the space heater. Electronics company Plus Minus Zero is bringing out a line of chic heaters in December that stake their claim on your wallet with their sleek and unusually sharp design, coming in bright red, forest green, baby blue and (no adjective needed) gray. Priced in the ¥10,000-plus range, the heaters were designed by Naoto Fukuzawa, the creative touch behind some of au's most popular keitai (cell phones), such as the neon. More information is to be had at www.plusminuszero.jp/collection/fourth/4th07_heater.html.