Now the melody will linger on

Source: Agencies  |   2008-6-21  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

LOVE to sing? A Japanese toy maker will soon sell a portable, personal karaoke machine so you can belt out your favorite tunes anywhere, and without having to wait for the microphone.

The "Hi-kara" karaoke machine, by Takara Tomy, is a 7cm cube which weighs less than a pound and works like a real machine. Once the singer selects a song, which can be downloaded off the Internet or from special music cartridges, the lyrics come up on a 7cm display. The machine also has headphones and speakers attached.

"Hi-kara" will go on sale in October for about US$100, with song cartridges costing about US$40 each. Shigekazu Mihashi, marketing director at Takara Tomy, said the machine was aimed at youngsters who could not go into karaoke booths or parlors, which often serve alcohol.

According to Japanese law, youngsters under 16 must leave karaoke parlors by 6pm while those aged under 18 can stay only until 11pm.

"Girls who are middle-school age and under can't go to karaoke parlors by themselves even if they wanted to sing, but now they can try it at home with this new karaoke machine," Mihashi said.

Japan is the birthplace of the first karaoke machine.