Akin to something out of a post-atomic Japanese B monster movie, Solid Alliance presents the Glowing Squid USB storage device. Just in time for Christmas. Modeled by a respected lure maker at TAPP Craft (Japan), the Hotaru Ika a.k.a. glowing squid is available in 512MB for ¥5980. Compatible with both Mac & Windows.

If smoking and computers are your thing, then Evergreen has the answer for you: a USB powered ash tray that not only lights up when you open it, but also has a built-in fan so you can save your co-workers from second hand smoke. How nice of them to think of us non-smokers. The USB powered ash tray is modeled in the shape of a car (cars + cigarettes = macho!) and is not only powered by USB, it can also be powered by two AA batteries. Available in blue, red, yellow and green; for ¥500, how can you go wrong?

When I saw these, all I could think about were street scenes from Bladerunner, or any other futuristic movie for that matter. Evergreen’s (Japan) EL light cable earphones (DN-ELER01) come in three different colors to set you apart from the crowd, blue, pink and lime. They won’t dent your wallet too much either, with a price of about ¥4,980.

The earphones went hit the streets yesterday in Japan. The EL light cables are powered via an attached power box (for lack of a better term) that takes two AAA batteries, so they won’t take power away from your precious iPod. The EL lights also move to the beat of the music playing too, so if you’re prone to walking in the middle of busy intersections during the middle of the night, hopefully someone will spot you and slow down. The length of the earphone cables is 95cm, leaving enough room for even the largest of heads.

Fuji Film’s FinePix BIGJOB HD-3W will be released in Japan on January 13th, 2007 with an expected street price of about ¥700,000. The camera’s big draw is its 28~84mm wide angle 3x zoom lens and it’s ruggedized, waterproof exterior. The camera has a large 3 inch LCD display on back for reviewing pictures. The 6 megapixel CCD is more than adequate and produces pictures with a resolution of 2,816×2,112 pixels. The camera uses xD media and comes with 27MB of built-in memory, useful for those of us who are always forgetting to replace the memory cards back in the camera once we remove them. The camera is powered by two AA batteries, and measures in at 128.3×45×80.5mm.

Buffalo (Japan), has an iPod-like optical mouse coming out next week. Although it’s resemblance to an iPod shuffle is uncanny, it would certainly prove useful for those on the go. Buffalo’s BOMU-RHW01/S series mouse is expected to retail for about ¥ 6,993 in Japan and will be compatible with Microsoft Windows 98-XP and Windows MCE.

The mouse is obviously controlled via the slide wheel. Scrolling right will scroll up on the display and scrolling left scrolls down. Left and right click are accomplished by pressing on the respective sides of the wheel. Who knows, maybe it could be an effective crime deterrent too? Since iPod theft is so rampant these days, imagine someone stealing your cheap mouse thinking that they’re getting away with your beloved iPod.

The popular Japanese electronics manufacturer, Elecom, will release its new M-EKURDR optical mouse during the middle of this month. Another mouse on the market is nothing to get excited about, but this one is different from the rest in that it has a convenient little switch to so one can either use the mouse in the left hand or right hand. Switching between right and left hand modes does not require any special software or changing of settings on the computer, it’s all controlled via the mouse. Elecom suggests that because of the small size of the mouse, it’s ideal for children and women. The mouse is compatible with Windows 98 through XP and weighs in at 2.5 grams.

Solid Alliance, maker of all things memory over in Japan, has released yet another variation on portable memory storage. This time, they’re making their sales pitch to those with a Japanese robot vice.

The Kore Ja Nai Robo is ho-hum in terms of specs, with a memory capacity of only 256MB (still enough to hold the lo-res secret blueprints for your evil take-over-the-world robot, or maybe just your résumé when you slam back into reality). Kore Ja Nai Robo is USB 2.0 compatible and is friendly with all your computers, both Mac and PC. It’s fairly small too, measuring in at only 46.4×25.2×80.6mm, so it won’t be too obtrusive in your pocket.

At only ¥7,329, it makes an affordable stocking stuffer. There’s a robot lover in every family, so buy one and be prepared for Christmas!