Hasta La Gadget!

Have you ever lost your keys in your apartment? Then, did you end up finding them after searching for hours or days in the most unexpected spot? Then Hone was made for you. These Bluetooth dongles pair up with your iPhone or iPad using a free app and will emit an audible vibration alert when you tap the “Find” button.

Hone is definitely a useful gadget if you frequently misplace your keys or other small items. Keys can slip out of your pocket, into your couch and into the black hole that collects lost keys, change, and the occasional Cheese Doodle. Using this Bluetooth dongle is a perfect way to get them out of there. Each dongle has a 150 feet reach and 6 months battery life.

Hone was crowdfunded through Kickstarter. At the time of writing, the project is already fully funded. They had amassed $52,000 out of a projected goal of $46,000. There are still 22 days left in funding to snag yours. Pledges start at $49(USD) each for the Hone.

[via Uncrate]

Some multi-purpose things have a lot of alternate uses, and pretty good ones, too, like the shopping bag that doubles as a helmet. Then there’s Nendo’s Rootote Bag, which has a more novel second use, apart from being a bag, it’s also a puppet show.

These bags with puppets, with puppets like kangaroos, bears, humans, and dinosaurs, are a concept design by Oki Sato. Unexpectedly, there are many uses that an adult might have with an integrated puppet. For one, it’s instant entertainment for the kids and will keep them quiet, at least for a little while.

Another use for it, although pretty unconventional, is as a glove–so when you spot something you’d rather not touch, well, you can just stick your hand in the puppet and use it as you would a glove (but make sure to wash it thoroughly afterwards.)

If you’re sold on the idea, then you might have to wait a while because they’re not being commercially produced yet.

[via Spoon & Tamago via Core77]

Some people get so preoccupied with work and what they have to do for the day that they leave home, forgetting one of the most important things that they should have done before they left: eat breakfast. It’s the first meal of the day and, as many people have said, it’s what gives you the strength and energy to go do what you need to do and not get bogged down with fatigue before the day is done.

What most people don’t forget, however, is to bring their smartphones or music players with them. Using this knowledge to their advantage are the people behind these Breakfast Earbuds and Cord Wrapper.

It’s a pretty neat and adorable solution for your tangled earbuds woes and serves as a reminder that you shouldn’t forget to have your chow in the morning by tempting you with a miniature bowl of scrumptious cereal to keep your breakfast earbuds set in order.

Want them? You can get your own from Perpetual Kid for $16 (USD).

[via Chip Chick]

I don’t know much about violins, but this one looks like it belongs in a heavy metal band. It is the Stratton Skull 5-String Electric Violin by Stratton Violin, and it is completely bad-ass.


The price tag for such a violin? Well, it will cost you $3,000.(USD) That’s a lot of money, but on the other hand, if you have a violin like this, you will probably end up having some adventures. Like getting into a violin duel with the devil. In Georgia. Where you have to defeat him and send him back to hell. Sorry. This thing reminded me of that song.

The in-your-face appearance of this five-string Stratton electric violin is more than just bravado; a Barbera Twin Hybrid bridge provides a rich, full tone, focused and strong. The Barbera works great with acoustic styles, but is uniquely well-suited for use with effects, performing exceptionally well in high-volume situations.

Are there any violinists out there who would rock this thing on stage?

[via Likecool]

When it comes to FPS gaming, I don’t think anything can top the ol’ mouse and keyboard combo if we’re looking at functionality. The sheer number of keys plus the accuracy of the mouse just can’t be beat. But if we’re talking about comfort, you can’t beat the console’s sidekick, the gamepad. What if there was a controller that combined the best of both worlds?

Sadly, Peter Von Buskirk’s Trackball PC Game Controller is not that perfect amalgam. But it is a compromise with potential.  If you’ve used either a gamepad or a trackball then you know what to expect from this concept.

I like the controller a lot, but I have two complaints about it. First of all, why is this only being made for the PC and not for consoles? I think this will benefit not only the fans of the annual Shoot of Shooty: Men of Shooting fps games, but also strategy games and other games that require lots of pointing and browsing, games which are hard to implement on the console partly because of the lack of a mouse.

My second complaint is the location of the trackball. By placing it on the right, it exacerbates the weakness of gamepads – now you’ll have access to even less buttons because your right thumb is making sweet love to that sexy trackball. It would be fine if the left half of the controller had buttons, but there’s still a D-pad there.

Von Buskirk setup a Kickstarter fundraiser for the controller; unfortunately as of this writing he’s only managed to raise about $12,000 (USD) out of his $125,000 goal, with only 8 days remaining to fulfill the quota. You can still pledge for the controller if you want – $36 is enough to reserve a unit – you won’t be charged if the fundraiser doesn’t meet it’s quota anyway so you don’t have anything to lose. I hope Von Buskirk keeps working on his controller even if his fundraiser fails. Maybe he’ll find the perfect compromise someday.