A bin that says ‘thank you’ or ‘mm, tasty’ when you throw in rubbish — in Germany, a land that loves hi-tech gadgets, it was only a matter of time before the solar-powered, talking trash can came along.

　　Berlin city officials have tested a street bin for paper which, powered by solar energy, talks to its users.

　　Next year, some 20 of them will be installed at strategic locations around the capital.

　　Each can be individually programmed to speak in a different language, give off a throaty rumble or administer a short lesson on tidiness.

　　“It looks just like any other orange bin, except it’s equipped with a solar panel on its lid and has a sound mechanism,” said Bernd Mueller of the city’s refuse collection department.

　　The panel, which can work even in bad weather, powers the sound. At night, the bin is lit up by a neon light pointing the way to the opening, but there’s no message so people aren’t frightened by a noise in the dark, he added.

　　The prototype talking trash can was tested using a hidden camera to record people’s reaction. “It really surprised them,” Mueller said.

　　“Some people repeated the experience a second time, many of them smiled. On the whole the reaction was very positive.”