Bluetooth tombstones are here to help you mourn loved ones without breaking the bank

Just when we thought Japan had run out of things to make high-tech.

Japan is constantly coming up with new ways to make our lives more convenient via the latest technology, sometimes even inventing solutions to problems we didn’t know we had.

And now, continuing that tradition, you can buy tombstones with bluetooth technology. 

At the Yachiyo Yukyu no Sato Cemetery in Chiba Prefecture, tombstones called Hikari have an electronic screen, allowing mourners to bring a special talisman with them when they visit, which activates the tombstone’s BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) technology.

▼ Approaching the tombstone displays their loved one’s name, date of death, and so on.
After leaving, the screen reverts back to the default setting.

▼ The default screen on the tombstone displays the kanji for “light” (hikari).

Some of you may be wondering, “Why do tombstones even need bluetooth?” After all, it’s not like you’ll be using it as a makeshift speaker to blast some tunes, or to play a bit of Taiko no Tatsujin — at least, we hope not.

The reasoning behind this new invention is much more practical. Due to the aging population, the increase in popularity of individual tombstones, and the price of tombstones themselves which can cost up to seven million yen (US$68,000), communal tombstones have increased in popularity.

For those who pass away with no family members nearby, or those who can’t afford to buy a plot of land to make their own family tombstones, these cheaper, communal tombstones are used by many people from different families. And while this is cost effective and saves a lot of space in an already jam-packed country, for those wishing to mourn their loved ones, communal graves can be a bit impersonal.

However, as the Hikari tombstone is electronic, mourners are able to be more flexible with what can be displayed on the screen. The Hikari staff can help you create and register the bluetooth data however you want.

▼ You can even display pictures on the screen.

Hikari electronic tombstones aren’t super cheap, costing around 290,000 yen ($2,800), though it still comes in as much less expensive than other methods.

Now if Hikari can just make it so we can get some customized Love Live! images to pop up on our tombstone, then we can die happy.

Source: Japaaan Magazine
Images: PR Times
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