Toto (the toilet maker) and Daiwa Housing are teaming up once more to offer a sequel to their infamous 2005 “Intelligence Toilet.” The new “II” is equipped with all of the original health monitoring features (urine sugar analysis, blood pressure check, BMI and body weight measurement), plus an additional function designed to appeal to women: urine temperature measurement and analysis.
According to the press release, this data can be used to determine one’s basal body temperature and hormone balance—information which can help women keep track of their menstruation cycles, in addition to increasing physical awareness with the aim of “smarter” dieting and skin care. Like the original, all of this information collected by the toilet is beamed through your home network to your PC where it can be monitored in the form of charts and graphs.
While an innovation like the Intelligence Toilet is quick to make headlines both in Japan and overseas, the question remains: how many people are actually shelling out the ¥350,000($3,500) plus (and upwards of ¥610,000 or $6,100) to have one of these systems installed in their homes? On that note, it was interesting to learn that Daiwa has reportedly sold 10,000 Intelligence Toilets since the April 2005 debut (Toto makes them, Daiwa sells them). Not exactly a revolutionary number, but not a mere pittance either. Their sales projection for the II is more modest: 4,800 in three years.
For a more in-depth look at the world of Toto toilets, see the recent PingMag interview with Mariko Shimasaki from Toto. For those of you in Tokyo, Toto also runs the excellent Gallery Ma, an architecture and design gallery (with a noteworthy book shop) in Nogizaka near Tokyo Midtown.
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