After years of squat lavatories where your toilet slippers – yes, there is special footwear for the purpose – would disappear into primitive plumbing, the Japanese have now perfected the washlet, a filth-free, high-tech fitting for temples of “personal comfort”. And innovative sanitaryware-maker Toto has emerged as one of the primary exporters of the 21st-century loo to the rest of the world.
In the land where “beautiful” literally means “clean”, it seems only natural that technology should be harnessed to create a truly modern lavatorial experience. It all started with an elementary warming of the seat but since then Japanese plumbing companies have been loading whistle and bell features on to their bathroom fittings.
The washlet is a bidet-cum-lavatory that will wash and dry its users; some special numbers even analyse urine, take blood pressure and then send the statistics to the family doctor via a built-in modem.
The basic model is now selling well in the US, where bidets were once viewed as singularly European, and for the first time Europeans such as those visiting the Connaught Hotel in London are trying out high-tech loos with features such as sensor-operated lids and automatic deodorisers.
