Hasta La Gadget!

A low-cost, Android-powered mini-computer has turned up on Kickstarter looking for funding. The machine is called the MiiPC and is designed specifically to help parents keep an eye on exactly what their kids are seeing online and how much time they spend online. The machine runs Android 4.2 and works in conjunction with a special application on an Android or iOS smartphone.

Using the application, parents can see every website their kids visited, how much time they spend online, and block access to specific websites. The app also allows the parent to set a time limit that their kids can spend online or on a specific website. That means if you don’t want your kid to be on Facebook for any more than 30 minutes, you can set that via the app. You can also configure the system for multiple children, each with their own usage rules.

The hardware inside the computer is pretty basic, with a 1.2 GHz Marvell Armada dual-core processor and 1 GB of RAM. The machine has 4 GB of integrated storage, an SD slot, and built-in Wi-Fi. Other connectivity options include an Ethernet port, Bluetooth 4.0, dual USB ports, and an HDMI output. The MiiPC can be pre-ordered via Kickstarter for just $99(USD). They expect to start shipping the system late this summer.

Do you have an iPhone? You wanna know how you can get your friends to gift you an external battery pack? Support the ChargeBite’s fundraiser. The ChargeBite is a charger for 30-pin iOS devices, but it doesn’t have its own battery. What it does is draw power from other 30-pin iOS devices to transfer to your own. See where I’m going with this?

Inventors Liran Elihay and Asaf Gaber call their invention “a social charger.” The advantage of course is that you don’t have to carry an external battery pack and the ChargeBite never needs to be charged. I guess I don’t know have to tell you the obvious drawbacks of the ChargeBite, but I will make this clear – as far as I can tell you need two donor iOS devices to charge one iOS device.

I don’t think the ChargeBite is utterly useless, but overall I cannot in good conscience recommend that you support its fundraiser. We can’t fit two friends and their iPhones into our pockets. But years of reading about the likes of Brando have given me a soft spot for crazy gadgets and doodads. Just the fact that this actually exists should be enough for us.

[via Geeky Gadgets]

Arduino microcontrollers are beloved by students and hobbyists because they’re affordable, small and versatile. Those are the same exact traits that the RFduino microcontroller possesses. In addition, it has one thing that other Arduino boards don’t have: built-in Bluetooth connectivity.

The RFduino was developed by Open Source RF, an electronics shop that makes Arduino-compatible peripherals and modules. The shop’s tiny invention makes it possible for people to make small gadgets and sensors that can be controlled or monitored wirelessly using a smartphone. You’ll have to buy and then fit a separate wireless shield to an Arduino board to achieve the same functionality.

Speaking of shields, the RFduino also has compatible shields that extend its functionality, including one with a USB-port and another with a coin cell battery slot. It also runs code written in the Arduino programming language, which should really make it an enticing platform for Arduino users. Check out the video below to see how the RFduino can be used:

They should have called it the Fleaduino – a small board with mad reach. Build a Pledge-Bot and pay at least $19 (USD) on the RFduino Kickstarter by April 4, 2013 to reserve your own unit.

It didn’t take long for hackers to use the Kinect to create 3D models by scanning real world objects. Microsoft has also pitched in to the scene, but an upstart company from Austin, Texas could introduce the next step in affordable 3D modeling. They’re working on a portable 3D camera that can scan objects and show the resulting 3D model in real-time.

Lynx Laboratories believes that its Lynx A camera is vastly different from similar efforts because it packs significant power in a portable and affordable device. Those are relative terms of course – after all, the Lynx A measures 11.5″(H) x 8″(W) x 1″(H) and weighs 6 lbs. That’s because aside from its 3D sensor, the camera has a 14″ LCD, a 2.6GHz Intel Core i5 CPU, an unspecified “powerful” GPU, 500GB of storage, two USB 3.0 ports, an HDMI out, two joysticks and four buttons. It also has a battery that’s good for up to 4 hours. So what can this chunky point and shoot do? You can use it to scan physical objects or surfaces and also for motion capture.

As of this writing, you can reserve your own Lynx A camera by pledging at least $1,799(USD) on Kickstarter. I can’t wait for all this neat 3D tech to become mainstream.

[Lynx Laboratories via Engadget]

Portal gun replicas are usually quite expensive. But with a bit of cardboard and creativity, you too can make a neat gun and get the science done. And that’s no lie. Just look at what deviantART member svanced was able to achieve:

As you’ll hear in the video below, svanced made the gun using black and white cardboard, a few pieces of black cable, transparent duct tape – although it looks like scotch tape to me – transparent plastic and a couple of blue LEDs, one from a flashlight and one from a lighter. All in all it cost svanced about $10 (USD) in materials and about 60 hours of work.

So test subject, ready to make your own Portal gun? You can watch the guide that Svanced used on Indy Mogul’s YouTube channel.

[Svanced via Gamefreaks]