Tech and Amusing Stuff

Akihabara News got a hold of the japanese version of Mario Kart Wii, here’s the unboxing:

Last week’s sales in Japan were dominated by the little PSP, sales spiked due to the release of Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G which they seem to go nuts over it at the land of the rising sun.

1. PSP : about 139k
2. DS : about 57k
3. Wii : about 49k
4. PS3 : about 13k
5. PS2 : about 9.8k
6. 360 : about 2.8k

Via PSPFanboy

This cradle will be available in Japan on April 24. You will be able to charge your PSP while outputting video into your TV and control it with the include remote control. Prices are:

• ¥6500 (USD$62) with cradle, AV cable and remote
• ¥4800 (USD$46) with cradle only

Via Kotaku

“Nintendo sold 331,627 units of the Wii in the four weeks to February 24, compared with 89,131 units of the PS3, Enterbrain said on Thursday.The Wii’s lead on the PS3 appears to be widening: In January, Nintendo’s game console outsold Sony’s by almost 3-to-1.

Nintendo’s own “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” for the Wii became the best-selling software for the month in Japan, with 1.33 million units sold, followed by the “Wii Fit” home fitness game, which sold 309,311 units in the four weeks, Enterbrain said.

The Wii has been leading the three-way game console battle with the PS3 and Microsoft Corp’s (MSFT.O: Quote, Profile, Research) Xbox 360 as its strategy of offering easy-to-play and innovative games to expand the overall game population has proved a big success.

Microsoft, whose videogame business is struggling in Japan, home to both Sony and Nintendo, sold 14,079 Xbox 360 units.”

Via Reuters

It’s the standard 40 GB model with the DualShock 3 controller. Available on March 6th and it’ll run you ¥39,980 (USD$374) if you’re lucky enough to live in Japan.

Via Kotaku

Starting from February 2008, Toshiba will start selling several new SSD, with a capacity raging from 23 to 128GB, then in April, they will start selling 1.8” and 2.5” SSD with a capacity ranging from 32 to 128GB as well.

Original story

This video is of AI who has been learning linguistic skills since 1978 at the Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University. He is faster than a group of nine able-minded college students on a touchscreen test bed that resembles the best-selling DS game.

Via RGS

The Ocean Dome, the world’s largest indoor beach, Kyushu Island, Japan (about 1,500 kilometers south of Tokyo) — 300 meters in length and 100 meters in width, with a height of 38 meters, it can accommodate 10,000 people.

Designed by the Mitsubishi Heavy Industrial Group and opened in July 1993 at a cost of 200 billion yen ($2 billion), the Ocean Dome was never profitable and recently closed.

A heated ocean with a width of 140 meters sends 13,500 tons of salt-free water sweeping across 600 tons of polished marble chips that constitute a 85-metre long shoreline, ringed by a three-story promenade of shops. Every fifteen minutes, the volcano smokes to life. Every hour, on the hour, it spews fake flames.

read more | digg story

“Sony announced Deep Red… The PSP ! Yep, you are right, here you are, a new color available for the PSP from SONY, and which will be sold later this December in Japan, offered with a nice package of accessories.” Original story