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The ±0 Electric Kettle From Japan

Posted: July 4th, 2008, 3:30pm PDT by Brian Lam

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I've been thinking of getting an electric kettle for some time, and I think I've found the most simple, beautiful one I could ever hope for. The small container's power cord is stored inside the base, explaining that one seam you see running around the base of the unit. I'll have to pick this up in Japan or ask Doug to send one back on his next trip. [+- via Core77]

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Helio, Sidekick UI Designer Working On New Palm OS

Posted: July 3rd, 2008, 1:13am PDT by Matt Hickey

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This is some pretty exciting news for us Palm fans who've been waiting (and waiting and waiting) for something new from the handset maker. It turns out Palm has hired Matias Duarte to design the UI for the next Palm OS. You probably haven't heard of him, but he's the guy behind the impressive interfaces for the Sidekicks and Helio's phones. The idea of giving this guy a large install base and a touchscreen to play with is a good one. Palm's got an uphill battle to take on the iPhone, but this could be how they do it. [Engadget]

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Concept Jewelry Celebrates Birth With Plasticized Human Milk

Posted: July 3rd, 2008, 12:54pm PDT by Kit Eaton

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Did you know that science has made it possible to turn milk into a plastic by solidifying the casein it contains? Well, you do now. But I bet you'd never think of using the technique to turn human breast milk into a "jewel" of sorts, and then use that to make a necklace. But that's exactly what French design team Duende are suggesting. Titled "Perle de Lait" their jewelry range is part of a bigger upcoming art exhibit that celebrates birth and explores "sharing of food between mother and child." It's a pretty amazing idea, though I'm not sure I know many people who'd wear it. Also to be exhibited is a set of "placenta coffins." Weird. There's a detailed preview over at Dezeen if you've got the nerve. [Dezeen]

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Tic Tac Toe Reinvented, Gets Mirror Upgrade

Posted: July 3rd, 2008, 10:54am PDT by Kit Eaton

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It doesn't take long for kids to learn that when it comes to Tic Tac Toe "the only winning move is not to play." But there's something iconic about the game that means it keeps coming back. And designer Shahar Peleg has crafted such an unusual version I'd be tempted to pop it on my desk: it's mirrored, so the pieces are halved until you place them on the grid. Not as high-tech as cloaked chess, but simple, and surprisingly eye-catching. [Peleg Design via Yanko design, DVICE] galleryPost('mirrortoe', 3, '');

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Hidden Tap Faucet Changes Temp When You Move Your Hands Side-to-Side

Posted: July 2nd, 2008, 8:15pm PDT by Adam Frucci

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This lovely faucet uses a sensor to follow your hands as you move underneath it. As you move them from left to right, the water increases in temperature, enabling you to control how hot the water is by placing your hands on one side or the other. It's pretty awesome. Hit the jump for a video of it in action.

newVideoPlayer("/automfaucet.flv", 506, 380,""); [Product Page via Engadget]

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Aivan Concept Slider Makes Radios A Lot Wider

Posted: July 1st, 2008, 12:40am PDT by Jason Chen

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Here's the thought process we think the creator of this caliper-style AM/FM radio went through. "Hmmmm, how can I take a normally compact device that fits well inside hats and make it about seven times wider?" Several hours of 3D rendering later, and out pops Aivan! It's definitely cool, but could be a little more economical on the space factor. If this were a satellite radio receiver and that space was used as an antenna, all would be forgiven. [Yanko Design]

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Alice Chess Set Features Pieces That Are Magically Transparent

Posted: July 1st, 2008, 9:20pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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Inspired by the Lewis Carroll's novel ‘Alice through the Looking Glass,' designer Yasmin Sethi developed a chess set that features pieces that "magically turn transparent" when they touch the board. In other words, when removed from the playing surface, a pawn would be opaque—nearly indistinguishable from any other piece on the board. However, when in contact with the board, the piece reveals its true identity. This effect serves to remind the player that the pieces have no value unless they are in play. galleryPost('alicechess', 3, '');

The effect works thanks to a board made out of a glass material with embedded LEDs (LightPoints) and chess pieces made from clear glass with the negative shape of a traditional, delicate Staunton chess piece enclosed within it. Placing the chess piece on the board completes a circuit that illuminates the negative shapes, making them visible. There is even a clever nod to a passage in the book where the White Knight talks about being able to think better when he is upside down. In the Alice chess set, all of the white knights on the board will not illuminate unless placed in the upside down position. All-in-all, the 'Alice' concept is interesting new twist on the traditional game. With any luck, a real world product will come down the line sometime in the future. [Project Page via Pan-Dan via DVICE]

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Tyrant Alarm Clock Says “Good Morning” by Hijacking Your Phone to Make Random Calls

Posted: June 30th, 2008, 9:05pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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The “Tyrant” concept by designer Alice Wang is the latest in a growing line of alarm clocks designed to torture their owners into facing the day. Instead of loud alarms, helicopter attachments and early-morning feats of hand-eye coordination, the Tyrant doles out punishment by hijacking your cellphone contact list and making random calls every three minutes until you get up to turn it off.

Again, this device is just a concept, but I think that Alice is on to something here. The only thing that it needs to be truly effective is message playback. Something like automated drunk dialing—only more devastating. For example, record: “Hey sexy, it's me. Listen, I had to call because I had another dream about you last night. I can't get you out of my mind.” The horrifying thought of that message being delivered to your father at 6:00 in the morning is enough to get anyone out of bed. [Alice Wang via Josh Spear]

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The 10 Strangest Anti-Terrorism Gadget Patents

Posted: June 27th, 2008, 1:00am PDT by Sean Fallon

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These are dangerous times we live in—which is why I am sure that some of America's greatest minds are out there toiling away on new gadgets we can use to protect ourselves in the war against terrorism. Unfortunately, the people who patented these 10 anti-terrorism gadgets are not among these brilliant thinkers. Sure they are creative, but an airplane sleeping gas system and an explosion containment umbrella? Would a doggie earphone that helps you remotely contact your dog to give verbal instructions make you feel safer? Seriously, if this is the best we can come up with, this country is in serious trouble. Hit the link for the full list. [Neatorama]

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Modular Ping Pong Table Allows For Crazy 12 Player Games

Posted: June 26th, 2008, 8:00pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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If you have ever watched a professional table tennis tournament (or Forrest Gump at least) you know that a two-person game can get completely insane. Now, imagine the mayhem that would ensue with up to 12 people battling it out at once. Thanks to designer Guenter Arndt and his modular table tennis system, this ridiculousness is a reality.

Simply put, users can arrange the tables in any configuration that they desire. You can even retro fit a traditional table to add wild new elements to your game. Currently, Arndt's table is up for a Next Big Thing Award for 2008, and a book is in the works that outlines configurations and rules for serious multi-player games. If it ever does go up for sale, all you would need is a really long Foosball table and some 3-player chess to complete the ultimate game room. [Project Page and Next Big Thing via Crunchgear]

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Dual-Screen Ebook Developed, Navigates in Real Page-Turn Style

Posted: June 26th, 2008, 12:52pm PDT by Kit Eaton

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Sure the Kindle is fab, and printed media may soon be "dead"... but ebooks really don't feel quite as good the real thing do they? A science team from Maryland and Berkeley Universities noted that we do much more sophisticated navigation when we read a real book than is offered by current ebooks, so they've designed an advanced prototype with two pages. It works like a normal book, with page turning maneuvers to get to the new page, and you can even fold it back into a single-page version, or separate the pages to share info with someone else, as the video shows.

The team demonstrated their prototype at the recent CHI08 human factors in computing conference. It seems like a natural progression of the ebook device, and has gone down well with test readers. The main complaint seems to be the weight of the prototype makes it tricky to use: and that's something easily fixed in a commercial variant. In fact, if Kindle2 was something like this, I may even be tempted to take my book collection into the digital realm, in the same way as my CDs and DVDs. [NewScientist]

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Portable XBox 360/Zune Phone Fantasy is Exactly What Microsoft Should Make

Posted: June 25th, 2008, 1:19pm PDT by Kit Eaton

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From the same T3 concept design stable that brought us the 2010 Wiimote yesterday comes this piece of pure gadget fantasy. Ramming a XBox 360 and a Zune phone into a slender, shiny little package is always going to be a great idea... and would undoubtedly sell like hotcakes. But considering there's no real Zune phone, and you can now buy bigger cases for the '360 rather than smaller, this is going to stay in fantasy land for a long while. [T3 via Yanko] galleryPost('xboxzune', 3, '');

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Digimech Clock Does Digital the Old-Fashioned Mechanical Way

Posted: June 25th, 2008, 11:54am PDT by Kit Eaton

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The Di Grisogono Meccanica mechano-digital watch is indeed amazing, but I'm almost as impressed with Duncan Shotton's Digimech clock (maybe it's because it looks like I could afford it). The UK designer has crafted another take on mechanical-digital timepieces, with sliding black-patterned bars that comprise the individual seven-segment displays. And actually, that description does nothing for the gizmo—you should check out the video to see it in action.

Driven by servos controlled by a PIC16F628 microcontroller, the numeral bars drop back under gravity when the final digits have been displayed. The clock carefully aligns the patterns when it's time, so the display looks a little funky from time to time. I want one, badly: it'll go well with my attempt at an all-digital apartment. [Duncan Shotton via Notcot via Technabob]

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Badkamer: Save Bathroom Space With Fixtures That Slide on Rails

Posted: June 24th, 2008, 10:50pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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In a dwelling where space saving is of the utmost importance, the Badkamer concept could make a tremendous difference in a small bathroom. Essentially, the design would allow users to slide their fixtures out of the way on an abacus-like rail system that doubles as plumbing. Only the toilet would have to remain stationary because of its need for larger pipes—the shower, sink, mirror and cabinets could all be re-configured on a whim. Apparently, the design is so efficent that it can turn a 6 1/2 sq ft space into a fully functioning bathroom. A truly ingenious design that will undoubtedly find its way into some cramped urban homes in the near future.

[Bart Nijssen via The Design Blog]

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Doha, Qatar: A Future City as Envisioned by Syd Mead

Posted: June 24th, 2008, 9:30pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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You may know "futurist" Syd Mead from his design work on geek friendly movies like Blade Runner, Tron and Aliens—but in his most recent work he envisions a future city by the name of Doha, Qatar. Naturally, his work speaks for itself, but I must admit that it stands in stark contrast to the bleak world of Blade Runner. Maybe he has become more optimistic as the years have passed. Oh, also, Joel's interviewing Syd soon and I'm sure if you have questions, he'll ask them for you. [Syd Mead via PSFK via Treehugger via Boing Boing Gadgets]

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The Camoria Camera Documents Your Memories Based on Feelings

Posted: June 24th, 2008, 9:10pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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You know how miserable you felt when your girlfriend dumped you? Apparently the Camoria camera would—and it would snap a photo of that little life gem and file it under the "what a bitch" category. The Camoria, as designer Akbiyik Volkan envisions it, is an ear mounted digital camera that documents your memories in digital form based on how you are feeling at the time. How it manages to do that exactly is not known, but the designer's page does mention that he is currently looking for a producer to make his concept a reality. [Coroflot via DVICE]
galleryPost('camoria', 3, '');

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Cellphone Concept Features Shape-Shifting Screen

Posted: June 24th, 2008, 8:50pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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Designer Rune Larson has made a name for himself coming up with simple, but unique new takes on the cellphone. However, with this shape-shifter concept he complicates things a bit by incorporating two layers of plastic into his design—one flexible layer and one hard layer with liquid inside. The liquid would be pushed between the layers, forming different shapes on the surface.

As you can see in the renders, a variety of keyboards could be generated using this technology—a feature that could come in handy for people who like the idea of touchscreens, but prefer the tactile feedback of actual buttons. I'm sure other applications would be possible, but I'm not sure if this technology is even feasible at this point much less marketable in the foreseeable future. [Tuvie]

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The Fossil Washbasin Will Hypnotize You Into Being Late For Work

Posted: June 23rd, 2008, 9:00pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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We have seen some awesome sinks over the years, and at least one that was inspired by geology and topographical maps. The Ammonite washbasin from HighTech features a similar "organic" theme, but in my opinion, a much more captivating design. Apparently, Ammonites are an extinct species of cephalopods that existed about 400 million years ago, and their shells are prized by collectors. When integrated into a concrete sink, this prehistoric design creates a hypnotic spiral of water.

The Ammonite Washbasin is available in 1200-1590 x 560 mm (approx. 47-63 x 22 inches) dimensions with a basin that measures 64 cm (about 25-inches). There is no word on pricing, but my guess is that it would be very expensive to install. Plus, you may run into trouble with the financing after you get canned for being late to work everyday. You could easily get caught in a trance watching this sink operate as you brush your teeth in the morning. [HighTech via Trendir]

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The "Moaster" is the Highest Popping Toaster in the World

Posted: June 23rd, 2008, 8:20pm PDT by Sean Fallon

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You know how sometimes your toast doesn't quite pop out of the toaster fully? And because your judgment is a little impaired that early in the morning, you decide to jam a fork in there to dig it out only to be electrocuted and rushed to the hospital? Sure, we have all been there. However, Freddie Yauner, the dude behind "The Moaster," will not have to worry about that anytime soon because he has set the record for the "highest popping in toaster the world" according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

Using the power generated by a high-pressure CO2 gas system and mechanical ram, Yauner managed to get his toast to pop up about seven feet into the air—which was enough to set the record. However, that figure was restricted by the height of his ceiling, so he will try and re-set the record tomorrow with an attempt conducted outdoors (although I doubt that it will reach heights like those portrayed in the image above). Why build a toaster that pops that high, you ask? According to Yauner, "Everyone loves it when a toaster has a good pop to it, so I thought this was the logical next step, to create a new space in the market." Indeed, you haven't had a good piece of toast until it has picked up a bit of grime from the floor and the ceiling. [Freddie Yauner via Core77)

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SPult Universal Remote is Sleekly Simple by Ditching Most Buttons

Posted: June 23rd, 2008, 1:19pm PDT by Kit Eaton

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Designer Yurii Smitana Perfilov clearly took a look at the chaotic button-fest that is the usual universal remote and thought "uuuugleee." So the first thing you notice about the sPult remote is its gorgeousness, like a retro-futuristic digital dagger. The second thing is the lack of buttons: that scroll wheel does volume or channels, selected at a push, and there's a favorites selector, mute and power function plus a simple display. I thought the back-lit Moto RAZR-like universal remote I just bought was attractive, but if sPult were more than a concept, I'd ditch that silver laser-keypad nastiness in a heartbeat. [Yanko design]

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