Anyone over the age of 40 is likely to pine for the days when Sega made home video game hardware.
Even if you were a staunch Nintendo fan, having Sega around always made things interesting in the domestic console arena, and while the company has had brief dalliances since exiting the market in 2001 – such as the Genesis Mini, Game Gear Micro and Astro City Mini – it amazes us that it has now been over two decades since the Japanese giant had its own mainstream home video game system.
Taking this into account, you can understand why hearing Sega's making another move in the hardware sector always gets us excited, but it's not the Dreamcast 2, sadly. No, it's the "emojam", a pager-style device aimed at children which uses emojis (thanks, @gingerbeardman).
"SEGA Fave Co., Ltd., a member of the SEGA Group, is pleased to announce that the new communication device "emojam" from the new-generation kids tech brand "LinkLink," which is themed around children's "freedom" and "connection," will be released at toy speciality stores, toy sections of department stores and mass retailers, online shops, and other locations nationwide from Tuesday, December 10, 2024." says the official site, translated by Google.
The device apparently "solves the frustration that today's busy children have: they want to talk more with their friends, but can't meet them easily," according to the official site. The device is equipped with a Wi-Fi connection which means that users can communicate with each other even when they're not together.
As you can imagine in a device aimed at kids, there's a big safety consideration here:
To ensure that children can use the device safely and securely even when their parents are not watching, the friend registration system uses a function that requires physical contact with the bottom of the device. This function was added because it was determined that it would be difficult to prevent information from being exchanged with unknown people using IDs that consist of a string of alphanumeric characters. Also, unlike other messaging tools, "emojam" allows children to avoid direct, harsh words using emojis, providing a safe and fun place to communicate.
Here's some more PR:
"emojam" is a new communication device that combines the three elements of "puzzle solving", which is a boom among all generations, and "kaomoji", which originated in Japan, inspired by the "pager" that was popular in the 1990s and allows you to contact people by number.
"emojam" contains over 1,100 original emojis with rich expressions. You can create messages that at first glance seem like mysterious codes by arranging up to 10 emojis, and enjoy secret communication by communicating with other "emojams".
By creating messages by combining emojis that match the content you want to convey, or by deciphering the messages of emojis sent to you, the fun of "puzzle solving" is added to your daily communication and deepens the bond with your friends.
It supports not only individual chats but also group chats of up to 5 people. It is an unprecedented communication device that fulfills the needs of those who want to play more with their friends. In addition, it is equipped with an "emoji lab" function that allows you to mix two emojis to create new emojis. It also has a creative entertainment nature that produces over 300 new emojis.
emojam costs 7,150 yen and launches in Japan on December 10th, 2024. It follows in the footsteps of the ePico, which is (almost) a console and is based on the Sega Pico "edutainment" system from the 1990s.