While Japanese cellphone developers continue to get hammered by their South Korean counterparts, a Tokyo based home appliance company called LIXIL has come up with a clever way to show Samsung and LG what it thinks of their dominance over the world's most competitive market. At the same time, they'll get to sell some awesome toilets.
If you've never had the luxury of enjoying a Japanese toilet, there is a pretty decent chance that you might not have lived yet. Warmed seats for cold winter nights, vibrating massages, automatic lifting seats, air deodorizers, rising sprays and blow dries. Some Japanese toilets even come complete with speakers for music options to help you relax! From n creative standpoint, the island nation faces no threat from any country when it comes to how inventive their toilets are.
Apparently, there is still room for improvement though, even if it comes in the most insane forms. Most of these advanced options are already available on a panel conveniently located on the side of toilet, possibly attached to the wall or inserted into an armrest, but LIXIL's latest models of SATIS toilets puts the controls of your toilet in the palm of your hand, or rather, on your smartphone.
With a new app available through the Android market, owners of his high-tech throne can command a "big flush" or a "small flush" with a simple tap of their touch screen. The Bluetooth connection with the toilet also allows users to adjust the water pressure from spray cleansers, change the temperature of the heated seat, and can even see what portion of their monthly power bill is being eaten by the toilet.
Best of all, they are sending a clear message to Korean cellphone companies stating proudly that "in Japan, we use your high-tech products to flush our toilets!" Way to keep it subtle, Japan.
I'm coming up on my five year anniversary of moving to this country, and I have yet to own my own fancy Japanese toilet. My apartment's plumping reeks of Western normalcy, often times letting down visiting guests who want the full Japanese washlet experience. "Don't blame the Japanese," I tell them. "My toilet was made by LG."
