iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 08/09/2026

Nice advertising for Exit 8 in Shibuya Station today, complete with posters from the game. I exited via the less ominous A0.

Shibuya Station passageway with a large yellow Exit 8 advertisement designed like the game’s exit sign, alongside a row of posters recreating the game’s underground corridor.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 22/08/2026

Earthquake early warning system worked, enough time to open some doors and brace, one wine glass casualty.

iPhone lock screen showing an emergency earthquake early warning at 2:01 a.m.: “Strong shaking is expected soon. Stay calm and seek shelter nearby.” The alert says an earthquake occurred in Ibaraki Prefecture. Violent shaking began just a couple of seconds later.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 25/07/2026

Shibuya Scramble Square has turned on the landing lights. Gundam is now cleared for approach.

Night view of Shibuya, Tokyo, under a dark grey sky. Shibuya Scramble Square stands prominently in the centre, with bright white zigzag lights outlining the top of the building. Several illuminated construction cranes and surrounding high-rises are visible.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 22/07/2026

Let’s not forget the obligatory overhead timelapse, which I am also guilty of taking. Living in Shibuya, I naturally regret everything.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 12/07/2026

First harvest of blueberries from the terrace. At Tokyo prices, this might be my retirement plan.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 01/02/2026

Pretty good view of the house that refused to sell so they just built Narita Airport around it.

A photo of a house in the middle of airport tarmac, surrounded by a tall fence

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 03/09/2025

My previous place in Shibuya faced west, so I often got front-row seats to Tokyo’s spectacular summer sunsets. Now we face east, great views over Tokyo, but sunsets only reach me as reflections in the towers Shibuya has pooped out over the years.

A photo of tall glass buildings reflecting the sunset.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 27/08/2025

Japan Post (along with many other countries) has halted most shipping to the US so it's come to this.

Ecommerce checkout screen with the message "最近の米国税関規制の変更により、アメリカ合衆国への発送はできません。Due to recent US customs regulation changes, we are unable to ship to the United States."

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 08/07/2025

Adding a tariff message to our ecommerce site because ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Ecommerce checkout screen with the message "一部の国では、追加の税金や輸入関税が発生する場合があります。これらは受取人のご負担となります。関税は輸入関税の一種です。
Additional taxes or import duties may apply in some countries. These are the responsibility of the recipient.
Tariffs are a type of import duty."

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 11/04/2025

I don't think anyone at Apple uses the native macOS VPN client.

A screen capture of the native MacOS VPN menu which stretches so much wider than it needs to be.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 25/03/2025

I like my Powerbeats Pro 2’s, but my youngest was hoping to grab the みかん (mandarine orange) I’d left on the table and was disappointed. This sort of design confusion would never have happened if Jony Ive was still at Apple. He would have made them edible and delicious.

Not a mikan but instead a photo of my orange Powerbeats Pro 2 headphones.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 24/03/2025

The new Fujifilm GFX100RF isn’t for me so with the X-Pro4 likely still some way off, I’ve ‘upgraded’ to an X-Pro3. Even though it’s an almost five-year-old body, I managed to get one in near-new condition, which is one of the great things about the used camera market in Japan.

Photo of my silver X-Pro3 with a 35mm F1.2 lenses.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 09/03/2025

Not sure about the rest of Tokyo, but cherry blossoms have arrived early on our terrace.

Photo of a cherry tree bonsai with two blossoms open.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 06/02/2025

Opening up my news feed in 2025:

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 29/01/2025

Semi-secret underground tunnel at Narita airport.

Photograph of a long tunnel with escalators on each side.

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Kyle Barrow @kylebarrow.com · 16/01/2025

The crow couple I befriended in Tokyo used to leave coat hanger presents on our terrace. We use hangers similar to this when drying washing outside so I like to think they saw this behaviour and attached some value to them.