After years of poorly-received MacBook Pro models, Apple's new sixteen-inch model has a lot riding on it. Read the rest

This stand for the Apple Watch mimics the classic design of the original Apple Macintosh. It's made from "scratch-free silicone" and supports the Apple Watch's Nightstand Mode. elago W3 Stand [White] - [Vintage Apple Monitor] (Amazon) Read the rest

As I've posted previously, Under The Weather is a single-person pop-up shelter to sit inside that my big brother Rick came up with a while back. (He was sick of getting soaked at his kids' soccer games and was inspired by a portable toilet he saw by the field.) Late last night, he had me cracking up at this new video of him pitching his product (literally). "Bet I can't do it blindfolded? Let's see."

Under The Weather is designed for spectator sports, fishing, and other outdoor events where it's raining, windy, or cold, but you are either obligated to watch or having so much fun you don't want to leave. No doubt it's an odd invention but he's selling a slew of them!

You can buy the pods directly here: Under the Weather Pods

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The Birdie is a case for GoPro cameras that resembles a badminton shuttlecock and enables you to toss your camera into the air for aerial photography. (I presume you could drop it as well, but I'd imagine any real altitude would risk catastrophic failure.) The Birdie also floats.

Birdie (Amazon)

(via Laughing Squid) Read the rest

These may look like simple pieces of plastic but I've found them to be the most interesting tools in my box.   They're made from melt-able, bio-plastic that you can use to create new tools or patch up broken items around your home.  In fact, I almost want to break something so that I can use FORMcard again. 

How many times have you needed a protective shield for your X-ACTO blade or a handle to hold a loose screwdriver bit?   With FORMcard you can quickly mold whatever you need.

There is currently a two month back order on FORMcard but I think it's worth the wait. There are so many uses for this and you can pick it up at INDIEGOGO. 

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Yes, it's a gimmick, and we've all seen it before on speakers, clocks, etc., but levitation is still magical to behold. The OvRcharge combines magnetic levitation with induction charging for your mobile device. It's available for pre-order via Kickstarter.

To achieve altitude and be able to charge wirelessly, phone requires a special case. that consists of two main parts, electricity receiver from the base and a Magnet to hold its position mid air. so we design ultra thin case to not only protects your investment but to go some levels and also powers it up all at same time. This case has a magnet that will help it to levitate & it also has induction receiver for charging without cables.

OVRcharge (Kickstarter)

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I really dig the design of this 1966 portable record player! If I had one, I'd play Manfred Mann's "Pretty Flamingo" on it too.

"You can treat it just like a transistor radio and the sound is free of distortion however you carry it!"

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Japanese quirky gadget company Thanko sells battery-operated fans designed to clip on your short sleeve shirt and cool your armpits. Read the rest

BB pal Mitch Altman informs us that he's ceased manufacturing on his marvelous invention the TV-B-Gone, a keychain remote control that turns off any television with a push of the button. It's great fun in sports bars, airports, restaurants, and wherever else there's an idiot box that annoys you! Grab one now because when they're gone, you'll have to make your own (also great fun). Mitch writes:

In 2003 I quit my job to explore ways of making a living doing what I love doing. It was kind of scary, since I had no idea how I would make enough money after quitting my work. But I knew that I had to quit doing what was only OK, to make time to explore what I truly love. One thing I knew was that I wanted to design and make one TV-B-Gone remote control -- just for me. I wanted to be able to turn TVs off in public places!

It took me a year and a half to make the first TV-B-Gone remote control. And when I did, I went all over San Francisco turning TVs off everywhere I went -- and enjoying the hell out of it! And, of course my friends all wanted one. So, I made them for all of my friends. But, oddly, most of their friends wanted one. And when it turned out that many of the friends of my friends' friends also wanted one, I thought it would be interesting to make a bunch.

It's Back to the Future day, the day in 2015 that Marty McFly travels to in the distant hoverboard future. Hoverboards remain nonexistent-to-bullshit, but Thinkgeek does make a very nice $25 Flux Capacitor car-lighter USB charger with one 1A USB port and two 2.1A ports, as well as a credible animated light-show (which you can turn off when the novelty wears off). Read the rest

The PocketLab is billed as a "Swiss Army Knife of science." Launched via Kickstarter, the small device contains numerous sensors to measure acceleration, force, angular velocity, magnetic field, pressure, altitude, and temperature and send that data to smartphones or laptops. According to inventor Clifton Roozeboom, it's a tool for students and citizen scientists who can't afford to spend tens of thousands of dollars on lab equipment and will get the data they need from this $100 gadget. From IEEE Spectrum:

“If you are doing a classic experiment in AP physics, you might have, say, a track and a pulley and you want to attach a sensor to a cart to measure acceleration, force, and momentum transfer,” says Roozeboom. “The typical gear available is wired, plugs into a specialized handheld gadget with a host of menus to navigate. The students spend a lot of time understanding how to use the gear instead of learning concepts.” In other traditional physics experiments, Roozeboom says, the device can be attached to a rocket to study projectile motion, stuck to a pendulum to look at harmonic motion, or placed inside a tube to measure changes in pressure with volume.

Video demo: Read the rest

Ambient displays translate online information into a simple presentation that's meant to be glanceable, easy to understand, and non-intrusive. I've always appreciate artistic ambient displays, like Nancy Patterson's Stock Market Skirt and Eric Paulos's Limelight. Ken Kawamoto's Tempescope appears to be another wonderful example. It's a weather display in the form of a transparent box that generates the predicted weather conditions inside. For example, when the forecast is rain, a tiny rain storm occurs in the Tempescope. It can even form "clouds" and create a "lightning" storm through flashing LEDs. Kawamoto created an open source version of the Tempescope so you can make your own, or get one through the Indiegogo campaign launching this week!

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A "young driver" reportedly stopped in a car dealership service department "complaining that the iPhone dock in his (old) vehicle isn't working and its scratching his phone..." Read the rest

The Talkase is a mini GSM standalone phone that snaps into an iPhone case. The $70 phone is described as a "must-have accessory for a mobile lifestyle." Read the rest

iStrategy Labs' Dorothy is a mobile app and Bluetooth-based switch (called the Ruby) that slips into your shoe. Click your heels together three times and it triggers an action on your smartphone like calling an Uber. Read the rest

Brunton saw me coming when they came up with their Power Knife Multi Charger integrating a standard USB to Apple Lightning, 30-Pin, and Micro-USB. Sharp, but spendy at $25. Read the rest

I have no idea how the OM/ONE bluetooth speaker sounds, but it kinda doesn't matter because it levitates. Ah, magical magnetism. Read the rest