From a piggy bank that demands your cash to a pump-action gun blasting damp toilet roll pellets: Tokyo’s toy show has a bewildering array of gadgets to delight both kids and the young-at-heart. Gone are the days of the humble pink porcelain piggy bank. Today’s
From a piggy bank that demands your cash to a pump-action gun blasting damp toilet roll pellets: Tokyo’s toy show has a bewildering array of gadgets to delight both kids and the young-at-heart.
Gone are the days of the humble pink porcelain piggy bank. Today’s frugal kids get an internet-connected, cat-shaped device that sings, chats and even demands to be fed with cash.
The BankNyan, one of the hits at the Tokyo Toy Show that opened Thursday, has sensors to judge how much money is being saved for a rainy day and — with its internet connection — can even tell you if it is actually likely to rain.
The cat-faced machine, the epitome of Japanese ‘cute’, senses when a child enters the room and immediately strikes up conversation, using one of its 1,400 phrases.
But the piggy bank of the future is a demanding character: two of its stock phrases are “Give me all your money!” and “Now’s the time to save.”
If it is successful in persuading the child to part with some pocket money, it calculates a running total — no more shaking the bank trying to guess how many coins are left.
It can also sense how much is withdrawn but does not give up its cash without a guilt trip, asking whether the child is absolutely sure he or she wants to take the money out.
