Hasta La Gadget!

Some people spend like there’s no tomorrow, even though they might not have the means to pay for all of their purchases. It’s only when they’re neck-deep in debt that they realize the importance of saving.

A concept that aims to present saving in a unique way is the Living Wallet.

It’s a concept design where the wallet basically “lives” and implores its owner to save and only spend when the owner’s budget has a favorable balance.

It has three save modes: Evade, which has the wallet rolling away on it’s built-in wheels so that it’s owner can’t get to it; Asking for Help, where it basically “screams” for help so that other people can chastise the owner before he or she can take any money out of it; and Last Resort, where the wallet sends a text message to the owner’s parents. It also has a fourth mode called Consumption Mode, which encourages you to spend money when you’ve got the money to spare.

The Living Wallet was designed by Yasuharu Sasaki, Kentaro Sagara, Noriaki Onoe, Satoshi Kuno, Rei Kawai, Hideyuki Saito, Yui Gokita, and Daichi Sato.

[via Bit Rebels]

The shift in season reminded me of this cool old project in cold Helsinki, where a team of designers turned an abandoned oil tank into a lovely, year-round public art project.

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South African designers Warren Lewis and (the somewhat extraordinarily named) Porky Hefer have come up with Birdwatcher, a bird house in the form of a CCTV camera that will feed the local birds and help you scare burglars away.

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I feel like this is a design inspired by Spaceballs, but despite the fact that it looks silly, furniture that doubles as protective gear could save your life. The Mamoris chair features a backrest that doubles as an emergency helmet. Imagine yourself sitting there doing your work at your desk, when suddenly you feel an earthquake.

You may not have time to do much, but you can at least grab the back of your seat and cover you head with it. That could be enough to save your life right there or prevent a head injury. This design saves you the trouble of finding a place to store the helmet when you are not using it too.

The unique shape covers not only the head but also the neck and back area, which is where you want to be protected.

There’s no word on whether the Mamoris chair will go beyond the prototype stage, but it’s definitely a good idea for locations that are earthquake prone, so hopefully it’ll go into production at some point.

[via ixiqi via Likecool]

Using a cleverly engineered counterweight mechanism, these wonderful beds from Italian furniture maker Espace Loggia can be raised to the roof when you’re not sleeping. The design is supposed to free up space in a room during the day so you can squeeze a desk in there or other temporary furniture, but the real reason this exists is obvious: it’s the easiest way to get out of making your bed without looking like a slob.

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