5 Questions with Big in Japan’s Rylan Barnes
Written by Iyaz Akhtar on August 7th, 2009 in News.
Section: Computers, Software / Applications, Features, Interviews
1. Who are you?
I am Rylan Barnes, co-founder of Big in Japan. We make fun and exciting applications for your phone like ShopSavvy. ShopSavvy lets you use your phone’s camera to scan a product’s barcode. It then gives you all the best prices on the internet and at nearby, local stores.
2. Facebook, Twitter, or something else and why?
I must admit. I’m old fashioned when it comes to communication. Nothing beats a face-to-face conversation. I still love me some Facebook, Twitter, Skype, rotary phone, etc. They’re useful and even necessary. But I do find myself favoring the personal touch if I have the option. It’s just a much richer medium. For me half the conversation is in the inflection and facial clues.
3. Gadget you couldn’t live without (and why)?
I can’t live without a good laptop. For the past 20 years, the best-fit option for me has almost always been a Mac. My smartphone (of the day) would be a close second but that’s just my breathing tank that sustains me while I’m away from my computer. My life has always been about creating and building fun and exciting things and I need an actual computer for that. To me, my laptop is home. It’s a part of me.
4. Most regrettable piece of tech you own?
My TV remotes. I’m sorry folks, these need fewer buttons, not more. 40, 50, 60 buttons? It is a crime against humanity that companies still make them like this. And then I have to have 4 different remotes? That’s 200 buttons, many of which are duplicated. I have a Samsung TV and Samsung DVD player and, yes, I have to keep both remotes around. That is a shame. Universal remotes are not the solution either. They’re usually just the lowest common denominator across all your equipment and typically have MORE buttons.
5. If you could wish a gadget into existence, what would it be?
I want a remote control with one button. I want my large TV screen to display my options to me but only the options that apply to the context in which I’m operating. If I’m currently playing a DVD, all I need is stop, pause, reverse, and forward. I want to aim my remote at the appropriate menu on the TV and my TV should tell my peripheral equipment what to do. Obviously my equipment will have to be able to tell my TV what it CAN do first too but this is necessary so that it all requires ZERO configuration. My grandparents can barely watch TV anymore. I’m serious. And if something gets misconfigured, it costs them $60 to get it fixed. FAIL.
Company Site [Big in Japan]
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