Japan and its alarm clocks. We just blogged the bizarre Clockman on Monday, but major Japanese toy maker Banpresto‘s two new models aren’t too normal either. The company has designed alarm clocks using wrestling and boxing gongs as the design motif. The idea actually kind of makes sense but is cruel at the same time.

The way both devices work is that first a referee’s or broadcaster’s voice tortures you with a count down before the bell rings. The only way to stop it is to hit the clock within ten counts in the boxing version or three counts in the wrestling model (with the small hammer you see on the pictures). Otherwise the bell will go on ringing and ringing. The idea is to test the user’s reaction early in the morning.

Banpresto will start selling both version in Japan in the middle of next month. You can get both the boxing and wrestling model shipped to addresses outside Japan over at Geek Stuff 4 U for $49.84.

Via Akihabara News