It’s Christmas. Here’s what to get for your cat

It took people in Asia a long time to warm to cats, but they’re now firmly under the spell of our kitty overlords.

Young people in Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan are embracing felines as furry friends, leading the kitty cafe movement that has spread to Europe and North America. China’s rising middle and upper classes are also increasingly welcoming cats into their homes. Likewise, the startups in these countries, along with Israel, are leading the budding “cat tech” scene, from smart feeders to app-connected toys.

Here are some gadgets and apps for your cat this holiday season. Plus, some apps just for cat lovers, because, let’s get real – who’s actually having the fun here?

Neo Pop Pet Band

Who needs to light a Christmas tree when you can light up your cat all year long? Just think of the possibilities with the Neo Pop Pet Band, an LED collar by South Korean startup Neo Pop that lets you display any message in English or Japanese on the collar.

It’s waterproof, comes with gold, silver, pink, or sky blue trim, and lasts 20 hours on a full charge, which can be done with a micro USB charger. Weighing 22 grams, it might be a bit tough for tiny furballs to carry, but Neo Pop co-founder Seokhyeun Hong showed Tech in Asia a photo of a customer’s hefty cat wearing it just fine.

It’s available in Korea for US$30-$40. Chinese language support (but not Korean) is in development. Seokhyeun says Neo Pop is negotiating with distributors for sale in Europe next year.

De Cat Palace

De Cat Palace, designed by startup The Cat Palace in Israel, is a smart litter box that aims to be an all-in-one play-feed-poop station. There’s an automatic ventilation system, detachable food and water bowls, some toys attached on top, and a replaceable scratch pad on the side. The litter box has powered fans.

There’s an app, of course, which lets you control the fans remotely and advises you when the litter, food, or water need replacement.

The startup tells Tech in Asia that it has completed an initial prototype with a working electronic ventilation system and is in the advanced stages of developing the processor and system components. The US$130 kit recently kicked off on Indiegogo.

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