31–40 of 171 posts
Are there still machines selling cans of beer? That was one of the highlights of my visit to Tokyo. My host advised me that I must either stand at the machine and drink it or put it away while I walked. No drinking and walking. I was 14.
Not in Tokyo anymore, but they do have them around Kansai still.
Those Japanese vending machines blow my mind. I got lost on takao mountain once and was utterly hopeless of ever finding civilization again. I found abandoned and rotting tractors the forest had taken back, weird half completed concrete structures, the trail was gone, I was well and truly lost. Then, I turn a corner, and find a goddamned vending machine. Powered. With stock. I followed its power cord back for a solid…
Why is this even posted here? It doesn't seem even remotely relevant to Hacker News.
I find vending machines interesting. I think it does apply to the general feel here. I'd love to see the internals more often though!
Top of the range products feature large digital signage on the front. Also, body-shape / gait recognition (age / gender categorisation).
While we're on the subject of Japanese vending machines, how do they implement the IC card scanning feature? Does it need to be connected to a special network or is the logic all done on the card? I'm specifically talking about the payment verification and logic. I have one in my office that accepts IC card payment and I'm not quite sure what is required for that to work.
Suica, Pasmo and the like are all contactless SCs. The Wikipedia page is a good start, and you can go deeper from there: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suica
Are there still machines selling cans of beer? That was one of the highlights of my visit to Tokyo. My host advised me that I must either stand at the machine and drink it or put it away while I walked. No drinking and walking. I was 14.
Ski resorts are my main source of vending-machine beer. Nothing better than cracking a can of Sapporo Classic in your first gondola ride of the day.
Maybe Amazon could bring back Automats[1]?
The attitude is strange with vending machines and other cultures. I saw a vending machine selling 20oz and 1.5l (I think?) bottles of coke for the same price. In America, that would be unheard of, why would anyone buy the 20oz bottle. But in Japan, it seemed like many people just bought what they needed.
Or when I am at Taco Bell and I just want a small cup of soda, instead of that giant cup they give, I always get the "are you sure?"
Why is this even posted here? It doesn't seem even remotely relevant to Hacker News.
impressive durability: some of these vending machines are friggin' snow-proof -- and they still keep the drinks warm.
http://l7.alamy.com/zooms/48c88dd9aea741de95fec46fd33f47be/g...
I never really figured that one out.
Pictures:
1. Alcohol and food store
2. No store
3. No store
4. Alcohol store
5. Eel restaurant
6. No store
7. Egg vending store (direct from farmer)
8. Rice polishing vending machine (turns brown rice in to white)
9. No store
10. Sightseeing ferry office/shop
11. Apple store (actually name of company but they import brand name products)
12. No store
That's obviously only a small sample but as someone who lives in Japan I can tell you that usually where there are alcohol stores, there are vending machines. Of course there are other places they are too, but in my experience, it's rare to find one without vending machines.
