Boning up on new tech: Call me old fashioned, but I like to hear sounds with my ears. Progress, however, is no fan of nostalgia, and so the bone-induction trend continues. NTT DoCoMo ups the ante with its Sound Leaf Plus keitai (cell phone) accessory, due out in February for around ¥13,000. The device, an upgrade of an existing model, hooks up to your handset via Bluetooth and delivers its sounds as vibrations through the bones of your skull and on to the inner ear. Beyond the novelty, the technology is intended to trump noisy environments, such as bars on Friday nights. Weighing in at just 45 grams, it runs for about 15 hours on two LR03 batteries. Improvements include a softer vibration pad.
Simple works: Keitai are increasingly packed with abilities that we never use. With the ability to surf the Internet, play music and videos, take photos and so on, who focuses on the ability of a phone to make and receive calls? Willcom is tossing away the marketing madness with its stripped-down NICO+. Available in a variety of bright colors, the NICO+ does two things — it works as a phone and sends e-mails. Long may simplicity reign.
Making a splash: Who says electronics and water don't mix? Twinbird's new Zabady digital music player can be immersed in water for up to half an hour, to a depth of one meter. Beyond catering to bathroom frolics, the device is set up to handle CDs and MP3 and WMA files, and it has the neat feature of a USB port that allows it to play back music from a connected hard drive. Costing ¥21,000, the gadget weighs in at 900 grams and its battery is good for about four hours of playback.