Product: Necomimi Brainwave Cat Ears
Price: $95.95
Rating: Recommend
Animal hats have been something of a trend over the last year or so. Those of you who love those, or just enjoy dressing up as a cute character, will be interested in Necomimi. These brainwave controlled cat ears, created by a team comprised of an anthropologist, media artist, designer, producer, and neuroscientist, can detect your mood and express it through motion. Intrigued, we decided to try a pair on for ourselves.
Assembly
Minor assembly is required to get Necomimi working. First I had to unscrew the battery door. You don't need a screwdriver — a coin will work. The Necomimi requires four triple A batteries. Screw the battery door back in and fit the furry cat ears over the motors on the headset.
The headset is a bit on the heavy side with the battery pack, which is why it comes equipped with an active use strap that you wrap around the lower back of your head to keep it from slipping off.
Functionality
Necomimi has three brainwave sensors that need to touch your skin directly in order to work. There's one for the forehead, where you can bend the arm to best place over your skin. You then place the ear clip onto your left ear lobe and put the wire behind your ear. Press the power button, which will light up blue and blink if you're low on battery. The Necomimi will start to calibrate immediately. While it's calibrating, one ear with perk up and the other will droop, trying to detect brain signals.
It takes about 2 minutes for the calibration to stop and the Necomimi to determine what your mood is based on the electrical impulses your brain gives off. The kit comes with a guide to what the ear movement states mean. The ears will droop down slowly if you're in high relaxation. If you're alternating between focus and relaxation, the ears will perk up and droop down. If you're in high focus or interest, the ears will perk up quickly or perk up and wiggle. I seemed to be in high focus the whole time with the excitement of trying out the ears.
Conclusion: More of a novelty item for special events like the anime expo, Necomimi will also be showcased at Comic-Con in San Diego from today through Sunday, another appropriate place to be spotted in cat ears.
Pros: Easy assembly, fun to wear, novel new technology as fashion.Cons: Only for those into dressing up as characters, can become tiresome on the head after extended wear.
Our Ratings:
Strong Recommend
Recommend
Weak Recommend
Don't Recommend
Apartment Therapy Media makes every effort to test and review products fairly and transparently. The views expressed in this review are the personal views of the reviewer and this particular product review was not sponsored or paid for in any way by the manufacturer or an agent working on their behalf. However, the manufacturer did loan us the product for testing and review purposes.
(Images: Julienne Lin)
Apartment Therapy's Sofa Shopping Guide
Nikki’s Sweet and Cheery Print Studio
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Stanley Console by ...
5 Things Paris Taught Me About Travel
Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
Am I the only one who read this and thought, "WTF? That's a real thing?"
I love the idea of Necomimi and can't wait for the technology to get even better!
And what exactly does this have to do with apartments?
Are we really, as adults, at the point where we essentially say 'That makes you look like a baby' and push someone over in the sandbox? The cutesy aesthetic isn't something I particularly enjoy or would want to cultivate as my personal style, but I celebrate that others love it.
Zuesz, perhaps they don't want to be taken seriously. Maybe the animatronic cat ears provide an instant filter for judgmental or close-minded people on which they don't wish to waste their time.
In other news... I'm on team "And what exactly does this have to do with apartments?".
$95. For cat ears. And AT gives it a "Strong recommend." Really? My mind is so blown, I can't even make full sentences.
Awesome, just bought 2 (one for potential gifting while the other's for me).
@ THEWINTERING & JARICHTIG - This's under the 'Tech' *shakes head*
I think it's funny and cute! It would make a good conversation starter at a party. In fact, I'm impressed at the implications this kind of (relatively) inexpensive technology has.
As far as being taken seriously? Well, I'll just make sure I don't wear my cat ears to the office.
It's kind of cool, but the actual mechanics of it seem rather limitied - do they just go up and down?
That would so freak out my dogs. I suspect the ears would often be lying flat against my head (grrrr).
@Zeusz...only grown women? Do you really want to get me started on grown men dressing childishly?
@Pchan, I did see that it was the 'Tech' section, it just seems like a departure from their usual in-home devices that they review. That said, I still thought it was fun!
Funny comments!!!
@Zeuz, people cannot on one hand fail to use grammar correctly and on the other hand demand to be taken seriously.
Let's be honest. You didn't say that you didn't fancy this product for your personal style. You said, "Grown women do themselves a disservice when they dress like children". I believe that everyone should follow their bliss as it pertains to personal fashion. Hopefully they'll be aware of the tribulations of not conforming to what's considered acceptable by the majority. The majority of close-minded people who do not "celebrate" their choices as an individual and judge them on sight. The majority of people who don't just say 'that's not for me' but also visit their personal views on the people around them.
Also, the author DID suggest that the appropriate place for using this item would be an Anime Exposition, not at the office or to a dinner date.
WTF. Random off-topic post is random and off-topic.
So it's a mood ring for your head?
"Mood Ring for your head." That made me laugh. And then wonder whatever happened to my Mood Ring ...
Why.
I am amazed I haven't heard of this from other venues first. I'm buying two sets. One for myself, and one for my 6'4" husband. (You can call him cutesy all you want.) They should arrive in time for Halloween, and work great with our minotaur and satyr costumes.
Fantastic find.
ROFLMBO @ (with?) animalhouze.
Gotta say...this thread just takes the cake.
lets not pass judgement on prices, i'm sure the $5000 some of us spend on couches is enough to pay my rent for a year, but its your money, do what you want! and for that matter, lets just stop passing judgement in general, if its not hurting you, why do you care?
personally, i think this is awesome, i can't wait till my next paycheck to grab a pair, definitely gunna win "funny hat day" at work next time.
p.s- love when AT breaks from the norm and gives us something random.
I'm 43. I will wear whatever the heck I want. Judge away. :) Anyway, who said these were only designed for women? Men have just as much a right to wear these and be judged for not pretending they are serious, grown up people 100% of the time.
These being out of my budget for toys, however, I might try to persuade a hobbyist friend to make this non-EEG version for me: http://www.instructables.com/id/Animatronic-Cat-Ears/
Wait...what?
Is this real?
I think the ears are cute, I'd wear them for halloween but everyday? on the street? nah, don't think so! I like fun like everyone else but they are kiddyish. And PLEASE stop attacking people for their opinions! that's kiddyish and bullying. Everyone does not have to agree, can't we all just get along?
Cute girl eating a donut? I want to go to there!
Those are great. I'd totally wear them all around the house.