Japan's yen for vending machines

Juniper Foo | Oct 17, 2007

In Japan, you walk. A lot. Mostly because taxis are expensive, and buses are few and far in between. I had that opportunity recently to rediscover unused calf muscles and sore feet while in Japan to attend a Sony press event this week. Joining the sea of humanity surging in a relentless tide from concrete island to concrete island and across crossings wide enough to accommodate hundreds of pedestrians, you notice yet another indigenous feature: Vending machines. Or as the Japanese call them, jido-hanbaiki (jido = automatic, hanbai = vending, ki = machine).

Thirsty? Check out your nearest friendly vending machine

Convenient caddies

Whether in the old parts of Tokyo or new city sections, you'll find a vending machine or several on duty at just about every street corner. Even inside 24-hour convenience stores. It makes economic sense when one considers the high cost of labor and space in Japan. Vending machines, available round-the-clock, offer convenience and will work even harder than the hardworking Japanese for no pay or time off. But what's truly amazing is that every machine that one comes across is in pristine working condition with none vandalized or out of order. What's even more surprising is that the Japanese haven't yet made paying by cell phone a regular option. Cash and coins are still the accepted mode.

If you thought the US was forward-thinking with a vending machine that sold iPods, wait till you get a taste of electronic dispensers Japanese style. Forget flowers for your sweetheart? Just get it off a flower machine standing in a corner of Tokyo's busy Shinjuku station. Mobile phone run out of juice? Hook it up to this charging hub which we came across at the Sony Style center, where little drawers lock up your phone for charging while you shop around.

Everything but the kitchen sink... for now

If it can be sold, you'll probably find it vended. The Japanese have been known to dispense condoms, fishing bait and hooks, instant cameras, porn, batteries, even rice, eggs, beef and, yes, fresh vegetables.

Yours truly came across more mainstay machines for pay TV cards, telephone prepaid cards, coffee and even sake. Drinks and cigarette machines are probably the most common, costing from 100 yen to 150 yen (about US$0.85 to US$1.28) per selection. Food is a second hot favorite. The choices can range from instant noodle cups to ice cream and vacuum-packed snacks, while boxed meals and fried foods like French fries and dumplings are cooked by the machine before dropping into the pick-up slot.

Pay first, eat later at this auto cashier

Some restaurants have even substituted food ticket machines for human cashiers. If you come across one of these, usually sited within the subway stations, simply make your meal selection from the machine outside the outlet, get your ticket, and hand it to the cook or waiter. The Japanese equivalent of fast food arrives piping hot within 5 minutes which you eat either standing up at a counter or at one of the limited seats if you're lucky. Be warned, though. Not all the selections have pictures, which may mean ending up with that breaded pork curry rice instead of the tempura udon you fancied. Still, meals are much cheaper than dining at a fully staffed restaurant.

Silent sentries

The Japanese have also been working toward using these ubiquitous machines for sentry duty. In Osaka, special vending machines with embedded surveillance cameras has been deployed to serve as "Unmanned Police Station Robots". The idea is that kids with tracking RFID tags who hit the emergency button will alert a nearby vending machine, which responds by transmitting pictures of the area to the police.

Need advice for a lonesome heart? Or fancy your fortune being told? If it's in Japan, you can bet it'll probably be in a vending machine somewhere.

For more on the country's vending culture, check out some interesting reads:

If it sells, vend it!

Vending the rules

Reproduced from CNET Asia's Tech Buzz archives; photo credit: Juniper Foo

Filed under: Gadgets
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