Rubbish bins are the eyesores of city life, like the grimy physical manifestation of popped pimples overflowing with bags and Chinese takeout ooze. The Olympics? A magnifying glass on a city’s life. That’s why it’s not surprising to see a city (in this case, London) introduce new, stylish trash cans as a quick makeover. For London 2012, new bombproof trash cans that have dual giant LCD screens and Wi-Fi hotspots will brighten up the dreary London fog.
Made by Renew, the trash cans LCD screens will display news, stock quotes, weather and are big enough to house a typical bin so trash collectors can easily empty ’em. They’ll also provide Olympic goers with Wi-Fi hotspots. Twenty-five of these new rubbish bins are currently on London streets with the plan to install 75 more before Michael Phelps first dives into a pool. Supposedly, these new digital cans will start popping up in New York City, Tokyo and Singapore too.
The trash cans cost $US1800 a pop. I wonder how fast they’ll become nothing more than bombproof billboards though? Or more likely, how fast they’ll be hacked? [Daily Mail via Neatorama]