The Japanese "smart toilet" is one of the small everyday marvels that most surprise first-time visitors. Its formal name is onsui senjō benza (温水洗浄便座), "warm-water washing seat." But everyone knows it by a brand name, Washlet. A heated seat, a warm-water spray, a dryer and a panel of buttons turn an ordinary bathroom fixture into a quietly high-tech device. You will find one in homes, hotels and public toilets all over the country.
A seat full of functions
At heart, the device is a bidet built into the toilet seat. A small nozzle slides out and sprays warm water for cleaning. You can adjust the temperature, the pressure and the angle of the spray. A warm-air dryer follows. And the features keep going from there. The seat itself stays warm, a real comfort on a winter morning. Many models add an air freshener and a lid that opens by itself as you walk up. There is often a sound button too, called otohime, or "sound princess." It plays the sound of flushing water to cover any embarrassing noises. Before it existed, people simply flushed again and again for privacy and wasted a lot of water.
Everywhere, and a point of pride
The company TOTO launched the Washlet in 1980. It spread so widely that today most Japanese homes have an electronic bidet seat. It is also standard in hotels and in many public and convenience store toilets. For many travellers, it turns into an unexpected highlight. It can also be a source of comedy when you face a wall of buttons labelled only in Japanese. Its opposite still survives too. Some older or rural places keep the traditional Japanese squat toilet set into the floor, the low-tech ancestor at the other end of the scale.
Words & idioms to take away
Idioms & proverbs to carry away
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ウォシュレット (woshuretto, "Washlet"): first TOTO's brand name. Today people use it loosely for any warm-water washing seat, the way a brand turns into an everyday word.
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温水洗浄便座 (onsui senjō benza): the general term, literally "warm-water washing toilet seat." 便座 (benza) on its own means the toilet seat.