A Japanese inventor and creator, Yosuke Hori (@kasanetarium), recently took to X to share his latest creation: a "Memory Camera" (思い出カメラ) that can "snap past street views." This ingenious device lets users peer into the past of any location through its screen, capturing what the scene once looked like. The fascinating invention has left many netizens in awe, with many exclaiming it's "like a gadget straight out of Doraemon."
Hori recounted an amusing encounter while using his camera on the street. A foreign tourist, spotting the device, was astonished and asked, "How can your camera take pictures without a lens?" Hori chuckled and replied, "It's a camera that uses location and orientation data to capture 'past street views.'" The tourist was reportedly dumbfounded, and the interaction quickly went viral online.
The "Memory Camera" made its public debut at Maker Faire Tokyo 2025. It utilizes GPS and angle sensors to pull up "what a place used to look like" from Google Street View data, displaying it in real-time on its screen. The effect is so convincing, it truly appears as if you're capturing a "scene from the past."
So, strictly speaking, it's not a camera in the traditional sense, but rather an invention that uses technology to reveal the past appearance of a current scene. Hori explained that the idea stemmed from a personal experience: he wanted to see his old family home, which had since been demolished, leading him to conceptualize a camera that could "capture memories."
After the camera went viral, Japanese netizens erupted in discussion. Many commented with astonishment: "It's totally a futuristic Doraemon gadget!" "This is like something from 'Kiteretsu Daihyakka'!" and "Fujiko F. Fujio's predictions have come true!"
Hori, seeing the flood of comments, laughed and responded, "So, Fujiko-sensei had already thought of something like this!" Netizens were quick to praise, saying, "It's incredible to bring manga gadgets to life!"
As the invention gained traction, users began to voice their hopes for its future: "I hope it can be an app someday," "It would be even better if it could print photos," and "Can we set it to view streetscapes from X years ago?"
Hori chuckled, "That would be so much fun! We could even make a version that lets you switch between different years!"
While the "Memory Camera" is still in its development phase, this creation, blending nostalgia with cutting-edge tech, has already sparked intense online discussion. Perhaps in the not-too-distant future, we'll all be using such cameras to "capture the cityscapes of our memories."
via： togetter