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October 04, 2004
The Sound Princess (Only in Japan)
In yet another OIJ (only in Japan) story, we now introduce you to "The Sound Princess," the first real attempt to world peace (not really). Everyone can relate to being in a quiet bathroom waiting for someone near you to flush a toilet, turn on the faucet, or leave the room so you can "mask the cruder noises of nature," now this most awkward of situations seems to be a thing of the past thanks to "The Sound Princess" from the leading Japanese toilet producer Toto Ltd. The way the Sound Princess works is the user passes her hand over a sensor, and the convincing sound of a torrent of water comes from a speaker, thus eliminating the awkward silence. Now, the waiting game in the cut throat world of toilet manufacturers to see who tries to take back the crown of most creative "plug-ins" for the toilet.
This toilet does in fact have a good purpose, statistics have shown that women flush the toilet several times to cover up the "crude noises" and they are using much more water than they should be so The Sound Princess will cut down on water use as well as related utility costs.
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| Yahoo! News/AP
Posted by Doug at October 4, 2004 07:37 AM
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Comments
I think this is a wonderful idea for Japanese women. It's continuing the tradition with pride *and* it's saving tons of water that would have been used frivolously. If we, as Americans, want to veil "the cruder sounds of nature" the way that Japanese people do, then I think corporations such as INAX, Corp. should market to American toilet companies with this product as well. Hopefully it is not too expensive an accessory. However, I've never heard of Americans performing in the practice of multiple flushes, so it may not fly too well in that culture. Unless there is something I'm not hearing about, "Oto-Hime" sounds like a revolutionary product for Japan and a potential flop for America.
Interesting topic, by the way. =) I look forward to reading more from this journalist!
Posted by: Andreux at October 4, 2004 10:57 AM