A 14-inch display notebook computer designed with office workers and students in mind, the Asus VivoBook 14 (X412) doesn’t come with a super fast CPU but makes up for it by being light and compact, making it very portable.

It can handle most business applications like word processing and is also more than adequate for viewing photos.

The VivoBook 14 is powered by Intel Pentium 4417 processor and runs on Windows 10 Home edition. It is equipped with 4 gigabytes of active memory or RAM and it uses a hybrid storage system to speed up the data access.

The notebook uses 128 gigabyte SSD (Solid State Drive) as the main storage so that data reading and writing can be done fast, thus enhancing its performance. And it also comes with a 1 terabyte hard drive for storing photos, video clips and other data that doesn’t really need fast access.

The VivoBook 14 boasts an attractive 4-sided NanoEdge Display. Each side has a 5.7 millimetre bezel, yielding high display ratio of 87 per cent. That allows the 14-inch display to be fitted in the body of a conventional 13-inch notebook computer. The display has 1,920 x 1,090 pixel resolution, making it good for watching HD video clips and viewing photos. Its graphic engine is Intel UMA with 2 GB video RAM, which is adequate for watching HD videos.

During the test, I found the VivoBook 14 played HD video clips smoothly. Browsing web pages was also fast and smooth. Business applications like LibreOffice also ran fast. The notebook also started up and shut down in a snap.

The VivoBook 14 comes with an Ergolift keyboard. When you open the display, the keyboard lifts up at two-degree angle to allow you to type ergonomically. Moreover, the lift of the bottom allows heat to better dissipate, which improves the sound of the notebook’s speakers.

The notebook has fast Wi-Fi connection, using 802.11 ac dual band technology. It also comes with all necessary ports, a USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A port, a USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C port, a USB 2.0 port an HDMI port, and a microSD card reader.

And battery life is good, lasting up to 10 hours per charge. The notebook supports fast charging technology, allowing the battery to be recharged by more than 60 per cent in just 49 minutes. It also comes with Asus Battery Health Charging technology to regulate voltage to ensure long battery usage.

The VivoBook 14 (X412) is available in three colours – Transparent Silver, Slate Grey and Peacock Blue. It has a suggested retail price of Bt12,990.

Key specs:

Processor: Intel Pentium 4417

Operating system: Windows 10 Home

Display: 14inch FHD (1920 x 1080) panel

Graphics: Intel UMA with 2GB VRAM

Memory: 4 GB DDR4 2400 RAM

Storage: 128GB SSD with a 1TB HDD

Wireless: 802.11ac dualband WiFi; Bluetooth 4.2

Ports: 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 TypeA, 1 x USB 3.1 Gen 1 TypeC (USBC), 1 x USB 2.0, 1 x HDMI, 1 x Audio jack combo, 1 x Micro SD Card reader

Audio: ASUS SonicMaster technology with array microphone

Battery: 37Wh lithiumpolymer battery (2cell)

Size: 322.4 x 212.7 x 19.5mm

Weight: 1.5kg

MOST OF US would tend to think of dry cleaning as a relatively modern invention when in actual fact, it’s been around for more than 100 years. Dry-cleaning – defined as washing delicate clothes with organic detergent without using water to prevent them from losing their shape – was first introduced by Hakuyosha, a company established in 1906 by Kenji Igarashi (1877-1972) and which is recognised as the pioneer of dry-cleaning in Japan.

Antique items reveal the origins of dry-cleaning./Yomiuri Shimbun

The Igarashi Kenji memorial cleaning museum, located at the company’s head office, exhibits about 200 items of laundry equipment and machines that the company has been preserving since the Meiji era (1868-1912), through which visitors can trace the history of dry-cleaning.

Particularly eye-catching is a huge dry-cleaning machine made in Japan and used more than 80 years ago. Its structure resembles that of a current drum-type washer with its laundry tub aslant. However, the inside of the tub was made of wood instead of metal.

“[The wooden tub] caused very little damage to clothes and also prevented production of static electricity, as flammable petroleum-based detergent was used,” says Tatsuya Hayakawa, 31, the company’s corporate planning department section head.

Dry-cleaning machines made in the United States and a Japan-made machine for washing with water are also showcased. The system of removing dirt by knocking the laundry around in the washing tub seems to have remained unchanged since the beginnings of machine washing.

A hand-driven dehydrater, front, from the late Meiji era to the early Showa era. A washing basin and board, back, were used before laundry equipment became mechanised./Yomiuri Shimbun

The museum also exhibits washing tools used until the washing machine appeared in the early 20th century. They include a washing bucket; a wooden corrugated washboard called “zaraita”; and a boiling pot called “nigama” in which white clothes were boiled and washed. The commercial washing bucket, unlike ones seen in period dramas, is large enough for an adult to enter.

In the centre of the exhibition room, visitors can observe the evolution of irons: A tool, hinoshi, which is a metal pan used to press out wrinkles on such large items as sheets, and a kote, used to smooth wrinkles on small parts of clothes, such as collars, and make creases. Both tools were heated with charcoal but, after electricity usage became widespread, electric kote appeared.

Irons heated by coal stove plates, by which visitors can learn about the evolution of irons./Yomiuri Shimbun

These were basic tools in the laundry business at the time of the company’s founding, as well as irons heated on a coal stove’s iron plate. Such irons were replaced by electric irons in the early Showa era (1926-1989).

“It is a rare place where modern and contemporary laundry equipment is gathered together. I hope visitors can get the feel not only of our company’s history but also that of washing and dry-cleaning laundry in Japan,” Hayakawa says.

CLEANING UP

The Igarashi Kenji memorial cleaning museum is at Hakuyosha main building, Shimomaruko, Ota Ward, Tokyo

It’s open weekdays from 10am to 5pm.

Admission is free.

HAVING TROUBLE waking up in the morning? Not getting enough sleep? The company that brought you Pokemon Go may have a solution: a game “played” by sleeping.

Pokemon Company said on Wednesday it would release a new smartphone game called “Pokemon Sleep” in 2020, turning sleep into entertainment.

The firm created the wildly popular Pokemon Go app, a game that let players walking the real world hunt virtual Pokemon, in 2016.

“Now we set our sights on sleeping,” president Tsunekazu Ishihara told reporters.

“It’s a game with which you look forward to waking up,” he said.

“Turning sleeping… into entertainment is our next goal.”

Pokemon Company said it would release a new smartphone game called “Pokemon Sleep” in 2020, turning sleep into entertainment. /Nation 

Ishihara offered little detail on the game, but Nintendo – which helped develop Pokemon Go – said during the press conference in Tokyo that they are rolling out a new device that can track players’ sleep and send data to their smartphone.

The announcement sparked a social media frenzy, and plenty of quips.

“I can’t wait to be an esports player now that sleeping is part of gaming,” wrote one Twitter user.

“Pokemon Sleep. At last, a valid excuse for that extra six hours in bed,” wrote another.

At the very least, the game seems unlikely to spark the sort of trouble caused by Pokemon Go, which saw players blamed for traffic accidents and other violations as they roamed the streets – buried in heir phones – hunting “monsters”.

The free game uses satellite locations, graphics and camera capabilities to overlay cartoon characters on real-world settings, challenging players to capture and train the creatures.

Pokemon, short for “pocket monsters”, has been a constant in Japan since it was launched as software in 1996 for Nintendo’s iconic Game Boy console.

Its “Gotta Catch ’Em All” slogan has been turned into a song.

The game has expanded into other media, most notably a hugely popular TV animation show and a recent film.

BESIDES ITS natural charms of the sea and surrounding islands, Phuket retains its own unique appeal for those staying ashore, with a rich history, amazing cultural diversity and palate-pleasing food.

Phuket Old Town packs in a lot of history all on its own, with a continuous stretch of more than 140 shophouses, some beautifully restored and many still inhabited.

The venerable commercial centre is lined with impressive Sino-Portuguese architecture. The Portuguese and British left their imprints on the island when they came to mine tin in the 16th century, and the Chinese did the same 200 years later.

Part gallery, part boutique hotel, Woo occupies a century-old Sino-Portuguese shophouse in Phuket Old Town.

Newly opened on Thalang Road is a gallery- boutique hotel called Woo, whose owner spent two years renovating a 130-year-old Sino-Portuguese shophouse, returning it to its original grandeur.

The row house boasts intricate European neo-classical and Renaissance details in its stucco cornices and arched window frames, while the main door and mother-of-pearl-inlaid wooden furniture are beautifully carved in the Chinese manner.

Phuket’s shophouses are normally about five metres wide and extend back some 50 metres. This one, though, is an astounding 106 metres long and seven metres wide and contains a vast collection of antique furniture, watches, record players, typewriters, sewing machines, porcelain and glass-blown containers.

“My grandfather immigrated from Mainland China through Singapore and Penang and finally settled down in Phuket,” says owner Padet Wuthicharn. “He bought this house in 1915 and set up Moh Seng & Co, selling imported watches and household utensils. It kept going until after World War II.”

Padet says his building in 1910 became the second property in Thailand for which a title deed was granted, nine years after King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) set up the Land Department. The first – which received title deed No 1 and is in Bang Pa-in in Ayutthaya province – belonged to the King.

Padet spent Bt15 million to renovate the structure and add a new building at the back, connected to the house with its 12 guestrooms. The old house is now mainly a gallery with a cafe where guests have their breakfast.

Supported by wooden beams, the original house has walls of compressed soil that carried the vertical and lateral loads. Just as striking is a wooden staircase built with mortise-and-tenon joints.

“I reinforced the structure with steel columns and a layer of cement walls set two centimetres from the originals so as not to ruin the original structure,” says Padet.

All of the artefacts on display are from the family collection. A navigator’s antique sextant is seen among typewriters bearing the first Thai font and old fire extinguishers with mounting brackets.

Padet shows a blown-glass epergne imported from England, a type of table centrepiece that was popular gift for Phuket people to present to the newlyweds.

Admission to the Woo museum is Bt100 (Bt200 for foreigners, Bt50 for children and students) and 90-minute guided tours in Thai and English can be arranged.

The restaurant Charm earned a Bib Gourmand in the latest Michelin Guide for its culinary diversity and value for money.

Phuket is esteemed for its tummy treats, the legacy of centuries of cultural mixing. The year-old restaurant Charm on Deebuk Road mingles Chinese and Peranakan cuisine in with its Southern Thai, earning it a Bib Gourmand award in the second Michelin Guide Bangkok, signifying good value for money. Indeed, you pay no more than Bt1,000 for a three-course meal.

Decked out in a century-old Sino-Portuguese shophouse with vintage-style furniture, a notable Chinese feel and beautifully sculpted porcelain dinnerware, Charm is meant to be a place where you feel as though you’re “dining in the home of a wealthy family”.

Mu hong and Kien tod 

That’s the aim of owner Bhuritphat Phucharoen, whose family also runs a seafood restaurant in Phuket.

“Growing up in Old Town I always accompanied my parents when they visited well-to-do families,” he says. “I wanted to revive those memories and at the same time elevate Phuket-style dining to new heights.”

He serves dishes based on family recipes, beginning with Kien tod (Bt220), a local sausage with minced pork and shrimp, crabmeat, taro and turnip seasoned with five-spice powder. It’s steamed, deep-fried and served with a chilli-tamarind dip.

 Gaeng pla tumee 

Mu hong (pork stew, Bt250) is another favourite local dish that originated with the Peranakans – descendants of Chinese settlers who married Siamese – so it’s a mix of Chinese and local spices and ingredients.

“The soy sauce we use comes from Penang and is very flavourful and slightly sweet,” says Bhuritphat. “The pork comes from the forelegs and belly and is simmered for three hours and seasoned with garlic, ginger, cinnamon and star anise.”

The influence of Penang, practically a neighbour of Phuket despite being in Malaysia, is also found in Gaeng pla tumee (sour fish curry, Bt250). The curry paste from Penang is similar to gaeng som but without the turmeric. It’s cooked with seasonal fish and ladyfingers and seasoned with tamarind sauce.

Pla tao iew 

Also worth trying are Pla tao iew (Bt250), which is fried fish fillets topped with seasoned brown sauce and garlic, and Nam chub yum (Bt200) – shrimp paste dip with poached shrimp, sliced shallots and chillies and pungent with kumquat and bigarade orange.

Another Bib Gourmand recipient is Ta Tuay near Sarasin Bridge in Thalang district, a friendly place occupying two houses with corrugated iron roofs, surrounded by a garden with gurgling water.

Homey eatery Ta Tuay, another Bib Gourmand recipient, uses ingredients mostly from its own organic farm.

Nakhon Si Thammarat native Sittichai Khongseejan quit a job in construction and moved to his wife’s hometown to establish a 100-rai organic farm, all of whose produce – including edible flowers – goes into the dishes at Ta Tuay, which they opened 18 years ago.

The menu blends the family recipes of both husband and wife – his southern style and hers Chinese.

“I can tell you where every ingredient comes from, like the seafood from Baan Tha Chat Chai, a Moken fishing community,” says Sittichai. “I think it’s important to know where the food we eat comes from and how it’s grown or produced.”

 Sea-grape-seaweed salad with som tum and Pla insee tod 

He claims his eatery was the first in Phuket to serve sea-grape-seaweed salad with som tum (Bt150). That was seven years ago, after his elder sister, who worked at the Department of Fisheries, told him about this so-called “green caviar”.

“This dish made the name of our eatery well known. The little bubbles popping in the mouth with a sea-fresh, slightly salty taste go well with som tum cooked in the Central style so that it’s somewhat sweet.”

Gaeng som (sour curry, Bt150) with sea bass and bamboo shoots retains the distinctively strong southern flavour and pairs perfectly with Pla insee tod (Bt150), which is three thick fried fillets of spotted mackerel that tone down the curry’s spiciness.

Tom kati bai lin han (Bt120) is a bowl of coconut-milk curry with shrimp, egg yolk and a leafy herb called lin han due to its long stem, which resembles a goose’s tongue.

Tom kati bai lin han

“The Michelin award helped draw more foreign visitors, but it’s also brought the Revenue Department, which frequently visits to inspect our accounts,” Sittichai laughs. “The award is a reminder, though, that we always have to try and do better to meet the expectation of our customers.”

The writer travelled as a guest of Tourism Authority of Thailand’s southern office.

THREE NOT TO BE MISSED

Woo Gallery & Boutique Hotel is on Thalang Road in Muang district. Call (076) 353 719 or visit “@woogalleryhotel” on Facebook.

Charm on Deebuk Road in Muang district is open daily except Wednesday from 11am to 9.30pm. Call (076) 530 199 or visit “charmdeebukphuket” on Facebook.

Ta Tuay near Sarasin Bridge in Thalang district is open daily from 11.30am to 9pm. Call (086) 470 4807.

The Association of Siamese Architects under Royal Patronage and NCC Exhibition Organiser are determined to set that right and be more mindful of the natural environment and sustainable living choices. Their latest effort includes the “Architect ’19” on the theme, “Living Green”, which created an awareness regarding social roles and responsibility among architectural practitioners in solving these pressing environmental problems while urging the changes through design and architecturerelated materials.

The recently held Architect ’19 offered a “green experience” through both the thought-provoking exhibitions and the design of the expo itself. At the expo, the green exhibition structures became a focus of attention. The Paper Tube Pavilion was built of eco-friendly, cost-saving materials and could be reinstalled and recycled while the effective management of the exhibition showcased the best pieces of advice about environmentally conscious practices and solutions to environmental problems.

For instance, the shuttle van service was arranged to reduce the use of personal cars, contributing to less energy consumption. To register for attending the expo, visitors were asked to scan the QR Code and update the programme schedule on their ASA mobile application. The aim was to go paperless with the use of digital technology.

Food at the expo was served in containers that are either reusable or biodegradable. Another attempt to reduce plastic waste was to provide the drinking water refill stations so that visitors could bring their own cup or bottle to avoid single-use bottled water and energy use for waste disposal.

The expo also considered energy efficient air conditioning. By not setting the temperature too low, the power generation capacity from the air conditioning system could be reduced. These small eco-friendly practices employed in every detail of the event helped alleviate the environmental problems.

The exhibitors at the Architect ’19 willingly endorsed this green concept, showcasing green products and innovative technologies while embracing this year’s Expo concept in their booth design.

Architect ’19 also featured wide-ranging highlights, aimed at raising environmental awareness, among them the Green Building Showcase which exhibited green building initiatives from Thai and international designers selected from 21 Arcasia member countries.

Held by the Thai Health Promotion Center, the Zero Waste exhibition revealed customer behaviour and information on waste management. It encouraged individuals to be conscious of trash they make and find ways of reducing and sorting their trash each day. The goal is to decrease CFC gas caused by waste and to reduce the ocean and water source waste. The Innovative Green Product zone, meanwhile, showcased ecofriendly building material innovation.

The exhibition of ASA International Design Competition 2019 this year was dedicated to the theme “Uncanny Sustainability” aiming to seek sustainable, transformative design ideas that can be further developed. Besides, the Expo offered a consultant corner to give advice and share expertise in energy-saving and eco-friendly housing design and construction.

Architect’20 will return next year between April 28 and May 3 on the concept “Heritage”.

For more information, visit http://www.asa.or.th/architectexpo or Facebook: ASA CREW.