USB bum-cooler - blessed relief!

Misc

Published: Monday 21st August, 2006 | Author: Bob Crabtree

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Take a walk around the stores in the Akihabara district of Tokyo and you'll see not just the very latest audio, video and computer kit but also some examples of digital home technology that the western mind simply couldn't have ever conjured up.

But in contrast with many of the home-grown goodies we've seen there - such as carpet-mounted speakers, heated tables (to keep the diners warm, not the food) and IR-controlled toilet-seat-bidet combos^* - a product that we recently spotted on Rare Mono Shop's Japanese internet store looks to have real appeal in the west.

The UK's heat wave may be over but how much would any of us have been willing to pay in recent weeks for a bum-cooler intended for use on office chairs and powered by USB? A lot more, we reckon, than the tax-inclusive 4,800 Yen (£22) that Rare Mono is asking for it.

Not convinced? Then check out Yahoo Babel Fish's translation of a couple of sections of the product page:

With this timewise desk work becoming matter of concern, the bearing surface of the chair. When directly it is sat down, sweating, there is a thing whose feeling is bad don't you think?

The air outside is sucked from the fan, it is possible to maintain coolly by the fact that the wind is sent to the whole seat!! It is the little mechanism, but this is cool well enough, it is!! The countless hole to open the seat, because the wind keeps flowing from there, it has become the mechanism where the whole seat becomes cool.

You want one now, we're sure, so tell us how badly - and what other products would improve your digital life - over in this thread in the HEXUS.community.

* OK, recalcitrant grannies are the same the world over, but saying so would have spoilt the flow of the sentence.

HEXUS.links

HEXUS.community :: discussion thread about this hot news article

External.links

Rare Mono Shop - Office-chair USB cooler
Akihabara - home page

HEXUS.community :: your right2reply

Posted by dangel - Mon 21st Aug 2006, 12:21pm

This is actually a good idea - high end cars get air con seats..Quote

Posted by 0iD - Mon 21st Aug 2006, 12:25pm

Currently i could do one that extracts:embarrassed:
It's a windy kinda day :inquisiti :lol:Quote

Posted by SpawnofSonic - Mon 21st Aug 2006, 12:54pm

what a mad idea, Soon USB will be powering everything, :S TBH i only plug extras into USB powered hubs, i dare not plug anything thats not a pc component into a comps USB port too much chance of it drawing too much powerQuote

Posted by Pigabuff - Mon 21st Aug 2006, 2:02pm

Has anyone got one of these, and does it actually work? Because I can see one major problem with them, though I still think it's a really good idea, if your sitting on the holes, wouldn't you block them a bit, which would make the fan work harder and possibly break it over time.... Plus, how noise is one of these 'bum-coolers'?

NB, not wanting to critise.... actually considering buying one, just want to make sure it's a good investment :pQuote

Posted by dangel - Mon 21st Aug 2006, 2:05pm

Perhaps i'll wait for the water-cooled version then :)Quote