Swing Anywhere with the Door Frame Swing

Don’t have a playground nearby? No backyard? Not even a tree that you can attach a tire and rope to? Well, that’s downright sad, but dry those eyes. This door frame swing is here to help.
indoor swing
The indoor door frame swing can be set up on most door frames to give your kid hours of fun. I’m not sure how safe it is, but they say it holds “in excess of 100 lbs.” Your kid may end up on the floor a few times, but that’s a small price to pay for bringing the playground indoors, right?

It will cost you $55.99(USD) from Amazon. Just watch it as you walk around your home. You kid might slam into you and knock you down the stairs on his upswing.

[via This Is Why I’m broke]

August Smart Lock: Hope My Front Door Doesn’t Get Hacked

Keys have evolved over the last few years, quite significantly. There are cars which no longer require keys at all, starting at the touch of a button when the key fob is nearby. These days, people like controlling all of their stuff via smartphones, and I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to control door locks with them. Or not.

The August Smart Lock is a system that allows anyone to enter your home, if they’ve been granted a virtual key.

august smart lock yves behar

It was designed by Yves Béhar. It’s supposed to provide a seamless way of entering one’s home. The lock works with existing deadbolts, and a companion app. You’ll still be able to unlock your door the old fashioned way. The virtual keys are naturally encrypted, and cannot be copied. If you lose your phone, you can kill your key remotely through the website.

The feature I like is the auto-unlock, which automatically unlocks the door when you come to your house, and then locks it up again once you’re inside. You can also create invite codes to your front door for parties, allowing friends a temporary way of getting in.

august smart lock yves behar keychain

The August Smart Lock is supposed to sell for $199(USD) once it’s launched later this year.

august smart lock yves behar open

[via designboom]

You Can Buy a Hidden Bookcase off the Shelf

The hidden-room-behind-the-bookshelf thing has become sort of a cliché because of how it’s always being used and featured in cartoons and movies. If you’ve always wanted one in your home but don’t have the time to draw up plans and work on its construction, then here’s some good news for you: you can now buy one.

Hidden Bookcase Door

Sure, you’ll still need to renovate your rooms and move your furniture around, but at least you can just install the bookshelf-slash-door instead of having to build it from scratch.

The bookcase is made from fine cherry wood with a clear shine finish and comes with a high-strength rail system. It measures 88” x 66” and is available at Fancy for $4,150(USD).

[via Gadget Review]

Insert Coin semifinalist: Smart Knob puts a keypad lock on your door, we go hands-on

Smart Knob hands-on

The Smart Knob promises a smarter, more secure deadbolt lock that lets us issue time-limited unlock codes or give trusted visitors a way in. Thanks to some hands-on time here at Engadget Expand, we’ve learned that it’s even more clever than we thought. The PIN-verified, phone-based code generation system cycles through a seemingly “infinite” range before it hands out a number; someone overstaying their welcome isn’t likely to stumble across the new code by accident. And while some might be disappointed that there’s no built-in Bluetooth or WiFi to get codes, that actually works to its advantage, according to the project’s Clark Li and Merrick Lackner. As Smart Knob doesn’t need an internet connection, it could be useful even out in the woods.

As for the lock itself? Having had a look first-hand, we’re more inclined to believe claims that it’s easy to install. At least from what we’ve seen in the prototype, it really is just a keypad resting on top of the existing deadbolt. There isn’t anything special that goes behind or through the door. To us, that makes it easier to justify the $99 price the Smart Knob team is targeting for the base hardware — it’s something you could put on your front door at home, not just at the office. The only added costs would be for ongoing notifications and similar services that would require a more extensive effort. We should know how well the Smart Knob works when it launches closer to the end of the year.

Zach Lutz contributed to this report.

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DoorBot lets you see and talk with who’s at the door from the comfort of your smartphone (video)

DoorBot lets you see and talk with who's at the door from the comfort of your smartphone video

If funding is successful, you’ll be able to wave hello to Edison Junior’s DoorBot — an app-enabled, WiFi-connected video doorbell. Sure, it’s not exactly the first time we’ve seen such an idea, but the “weather-resistant,” aluminium enclosure makes it one of the best looking concepts we’ve seen. Better yet, the system is set to work in unison with the Lockitron (a smartphone-controlled keyless door lock that was recently crowd-funded, albeit still yet to ship) allowing you to let welcome visitors inside your abode at the tap of your iOS or Android Device’s app screen.

The DoorBot installs with four screws, but it’ll have you running through four AA batteries once a year for power (which, based on the video, seem easily removable by strangers, unfortunately). There’s no word on the quality of the camera onboard, however, it’s infared-equipped, so you’ll be able to see who’s there at night. Lastly, the actual doorbell button is wrapped with an LED light, and, as you’d expect, it alerts you via the app when pressed to see and speak with whomever is at the door.

In total, Edison Junior hopes to raise a lofty $250,000 to make the DoorBot more than a concept video, with 45 days to reach the goal. If you’re willing to take the gamble as backer, $169 is what’ll cost to secure a pre-order, and $319 snags you one bundled with the Lockitron. We’re told that we’ll see a working prototype in the flesh at CES, but until then, you can catch the full sales pitch at the source link and video demo after the break.

Continue reading DoorBot lets you see and talk with who’s at the door from the comfort of your smartphone (video)

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Source: Edison Junior (Christie Street)

IKEA Kitchen Handle Hacked Into iPad Stand

While holding your iPad in your hands in typically the way you use a tablet, sometimes it’s nice to set it in a stand so you can watch movies, read recipes, or use it as a photo frame. This simple hack allows you to easily prop up your iPad on a flat surface. It’s pretty smart, and won’t cost you much.

kitchen handle ipad stand

You wouldn’t think that a curtain rod and a kitchen handle could be matched together to make an iPad stand, but Theo Gough made it work. Hot glue was used to mate them, and the stand works in landscape and portrait mode. The items used for this hack are no longer stocked at IKEA, but other similar pieces could probably be used.

kitchen handle ipad stand front

This stand doesn’t just work for iPads. Most tablets will be able to fit in this minimal stand.

kitchen handle ipad stand naked

[via IKEA Hackers]


Concave Lock Will Help You Open the Door in the Dark

The light on our front porch got busted recently, so it took me several minutes to get the door open. Not because the lock was jammed or broken, but because I couldn’t get my key into the slot properly and had to fumble around with a light (that was stupidly attached to my keychain, of all places.) A solution to this problem? The Concave Lock.

Concave Lock

It’s a concept design by Poh Liang-Hock, which basically adds a glowing ring around the keyhole so you can find it easily even in the dark. Its concave shape also helps to ‘funnel’ in the key to the keyhole so you don’t waste any time trying to figure out where it is.

Concave Lock1

The Concave Lock is also a 2012 IDEA Awards entry. I hope it wins – and I hope it gets produced.

[via Yanko Design]