It doesn’t matter how fancy the office you work in is, it’s an unwritten rule that when winter arrives, you’re going to be cold at work. Even the pool tables and catered lunches in your dot-com wonderland can’t keep you warm, but this folding under desk heater from Panasonic certainly will.
Image: Panasonic
Some offices don’t allow employees to bring their own heaters to work because the heating elements used often pose a fire risk. If your company isn’t willing to pay to turn up the thermostat in the winter, there’s little chance it will be willing to pay for more fire insurance.
But Panasonic’s new under desk heater doesn’t have any exposed heating elements, and it doesn’t rely on a noisy fan to blast the heat. Instead, it’s designed for close proximity use, gently radiating heat to warm your legs and feet while you work. It has a couple of different heat settings depending on how sauna-like you want your cubicle, and when not in use it folds up flat so you can stash it on a shelf until you’re cold again.
The heater looks like it’s yet another Japan-only gadget, but both the Japan Trend Shop and Amazon (through a reseller called Oriduru) appear to carry it. It’s going for $162 on on Japan Trend Shop. Expensive? Maybe, but can you really put a price on being comfy at work?
[Amazon via Japan Trend Shop via Coolest Gadgets]