The Mysterious World of Japanese Tech: A Guide to Unconventional Gadgets

Hey guys, it's Austin, and welcome to a special edition of Mystery Tech, where we dive into the world of unusual gadgets from Japan. Today, we're focusing on items that Ken wasted our money on straight from Japan. Buckle up, because this is going to be a wild ride.

First up, let's take a look at Kirby headphones. I immediately appreciate the old-school pixel art style. Wait, it's 5000 yen? That's about $45 USD and 62 cents. Okay, that's not so bad. So, if you're really into Kirby, just don't use these as actual headphones.

Next, we have the Xperia Ear Duo, wireless open ear stereo headsets. Music and communication while listening to the surrounding sound, enjoy closed, the earbuds are actually like little ears that sit on your ears. This is not a normal pair of headphones. It's like they're saying, "Hey, you know what would be cool? If we made headphones that looked like tiny ears!" And then they did.

Now, let's talk about Android. I'm still trying to wrap my head around how it runs on this tiny device. It makes no sense to me. Why are you handing me a Switch? I got some Japanese Switch accessories, and it feels kinda nice. A felt pouch for the Switch? It's mildly Japanese and weird.

But what really caught my attention was the Nintendo Famicom that Ken found. This is essentially the Japanese version of the NES, with slight differences in controller design. The image quality isn't perfect due to our terrible adapters situation, but it's still an amazing piece of gaming history. And yes, this is basically the same thing as an NES, but it's way cooler.

Finally, let's talk about the fan that Ken received. It's a traditional Japanese fan with USB capabilities. I'm not even kidding when I say it's like slime. When you're vigorously fanning yourself, maybe you need a little extra sticky action. This is getting really weird.

In conclusion, the world of Japanese tech is full of surprises. From Kirby headphones to Android-powered devices and Nintendo Famicoms, we've seen some truly unique gadgets today. If you thought this was weird, be sure to check out our last episode of Mystery Tech, where we explored some of the most bizarre cheap stuff on Amazon.

Thanks for watching, guys! I'll catch you in the next one.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- Hey guys, this is Austin,and welcome to a very specialedition of Mystery Tech.This time, entirely focused on itemsthat Ken wasted our moneyon straight from Japan.Kirby headphones.Okay, I immediatelyappreciate the old schoolpixel art style.Wait, it's 5000 yen?How much is 5000 yen?- 5000 Japanese yen equals45 United States dollars and 62 cents.- Okay, that's not so bad.So if you guys didn'tknow, Ken goes to Japanevery once in a while, andby every once in a while,I mean like every weekend.Wow, oh, it's actually like hard plastic.They're oddly hollow.I feel like I hear like,you know like when you put yourear up to like a seashell or something.That's kinda what it sounds like to bewearing these headphones, not great.Okay look, they're cool.For 45 bucks, I don't know,but if you're really into Kirby,just don't use them as headphones.Oh, more headphones.The Xperia Ear Duo, wirelessopen ear stereo headsets.Music and communication while listeningto the surrounding sound, enjoy closed,the ears your own tube design.Man, nothing says weirdtech from Japan like Sony.So I guess the idea here isthat these are supposed to bekinda like AirPods,so it looks like they'reactually going to becompletely independent and wireless.How much is 30,000 yen?- 30,000 Japanese yen equals273 United States dollars and 26 cents.- Sometimes I regret givingKen a company credit card.Generally speaking, when it comes to tech,it's not actually that weirdwhen you go to different countries.Generally, pretty much everyonehas the same kind of stuff,but I feel like Japanis always the exception.There's always this sortof extra weird stuff there.That's a, wow, hold on a second.That's a really bizarre setup.So this is the actual headphone,but I guess that's the sortof the opening for your ear.Oh so this actuallyisn't out in the US yet.Oh, interesting, so this isan exclusive, some would say,straight from Japan.Wait here, I should figure outhow to get them paired first.Oh, you need an app.So searching for devices,make sure it's turned on.How do you turn it on though?Oh, it's magnetic.Okay, that actually makes it kinda cool.One of the things I didn'tlike about the Pixel Budswas that it was really kinda fiddlyto be able to rewind the cable around.Oh, oh yeah, okay.It's a little weird to get used toon how you're actuallysupposed to do that,but that feels pretty decent to me.So I'm listening to music right now,and it sounds decent.It's not really particularlyloud or rich sound,but what's interestingis that it's really notblocking any of my hearingso I can still hear everything just fine.Ken, say something.Yeah, I can hear you completely fine.So it's almost like kindahaving some background music.It's not like listeningto proper headphones.Sound quality is not going to be amazing.They sound okay.But it's not really for listening.I can still hear everythingaround me right now.This is a really interesting idea,but I think it's not reallycorrect to call them headphones.It's not really necessarily something likean AirPods competitor.What this really is is away of getting an assistantwithout actually being able to block outthe rest of the world.Niche Phone, whoa.Whoa, that's actually really cool.So it looks like it chargeswith some Pogo pins on the back,but it does accept a nano SIM,as well as it has 3G tethering.So if you want to usethis in addition to, say,an actual smartphone, you can.Whoa, that's it?That's the whole phone, are you serious?Okay, so, I saw the picture,and I thought it was goingto be bigger than this.That's the whole phone right there.Okay.How much was this?So 10,000 yen?- 10,000 Japanese yen equals91 United States dollars and four cents.- Much more reasonable.Okay, we're up.You have contacts, messages,calls, music, voice memos,Bluetooth, alarm, and settings.Let's do settings.So I can see the tiny little text here.I can also scroll downto type the message.Alright, what's your number?I mean, I know that there'sweird tech out there,but the idea of having aphone that's this small,it's cool, and I think for some people,if you want a backupphone, it does do hotspot.In theory, you can dostuff with Bluetooth,I guess, if you load music invia this micro USB adapter,but man, this is,I'm actually impressed.I still don't understandhow it runs Android though.That makes zero sense to me.Why are you handing me a Switch?- I got some Switch accessories.- Really?Japanese, okay, JapaneseSwitch accessories, got it.A felt pouch for the Switch?It's mildly Japanese and weird,but besides that, actuallyit feels kinda nice.So I drop the Switch insideand close it.No one can tell I'm carrying a Switch.Where are you going with this?Oh no, oh no.(chuckles) Oh no.I'm getting flashbacksto the Connect-a-Desk,or the Portadesk, orwhatever that thing was.It's just a bendy thing. (laughs)I mean, you know, everyone's like,the Switch is so heavy, it's so giant,it's so difficult to use in your handsbecause it is unwieldy and ridiculous.So this is the obviously the way to play.And you know, I actually have to say,it's not crazy.I feel like this is just kind of,oh god,what am I doing?Whatis this?A traditional Japanese fan?But why does it say USB, what?(laughs) This is it?This is the fan?This is all there is to it?Alright, so after a slightly long timeof building this stupid fan,let's actually plug itin, see what it does.Okay.Okay, I put the goopy thing on the bottom.(laughs) It's like slime, are you serious?Well, I mean, when you'revigorously fanning yourself,maybe you need a littlebit of extra sticky action.I'm gonna put this down and move onbecause this is getting really weird.Yo, yo, you did not.You did not, this is not.Is this a?Dude, dude.Dude, look at that.That is so legit.It's still in the original packaging.Even the foam doesn't look that old.So if you guys are not familiar,this is an original Nintendo Famicom.And oh, look at the games you got.Mother, Excitebike, DonkeyKong, Rockman, not Megaman,Ice Climber, and Super Mario Bros.Dude, that is, uh, uh,alright I'm excited now.That is not what I expected to get today.I can't believe you got one in the box.This looks like pristine packaging.I almost don't want to open it.It's too nice.So if you guys are not familiar,this is essentially theJapanese version of the NES,so they actually did it, it'sslightly different looking.But as far as the actual system itself,it shouldn't be any different at all.Actually, well, I take that back.There were some slight differencesas far as the controller, right?Because didn't the controllerhave a microphone on it?So image quality, not the best,due to our terrible adaptersituation but whatever.Oh, oh, oh no you don't, no you don't.Oh, this is bad.There we go, alright.Mario, a game that I reallyshould know how to play betterthan I actually do.Oh, come on, come on, come on, come on.No, no you don't, no you don't.Get over here, get overhere, get over here.Come on, come on, come on, come on.Oh yeah.That was dangerous.Oh wow, that was a terrible jump.But the Famicom is real.Now yes, is it basicallythe same thing as an NES?Pretty much.Is it way cooler though?Absolutely.And if you thought this was weird,definitely be sure to gocheck out the last episodeof Mystery Tech, where we checked outsome of the most bizarrecheap stuff we could find on Amazon.Anyway guys, thank youso much for watching,and I will catch you in the next one.