Hasta La Gadget!

Everyone is talking about going green these days, from the small household all the way to mega large corporations. After all, being green is in, and our planet cannot really take on too much more pollution before it starts to collapse on itself, and we all know just how mother earth is capable of striking back with more than just a vengeance. Well, Demo 2012 People’s Choice winner Ube (pronounced as “yoo-bee”) has just launched something that will bring a smile to the face of environmentalists, being an Indiegogo campaign that hopes to raise support for its Wi-Fi connected Smart Dimmer.

The Smart Dimmer itself was specially designed to control household light circuits as it will function to replace a homeowner’s current light switch or dumb dimmer, hence paving the way or one to experience full control of the lights from the switch or directly from a smartphone app. The dimmer will hook up to the homeowner’s home Wi-Fi router, where it will then be controllable from a smartphone as it remains connected to the local home network or from any internet connection around the world. This means you can still freak your neighbors out when you are halfway around the globe, no?

Ube intends to introduce technology that was specially designed to control a new genre of electronic appcessories, all directly from a free smartphone app. The technology will obviate the need for expensive custom control systems, where it relies on IP communication protocols instead to control of a range of connected home electronics. Depending on your level of comfort, the Smart Dimmers will be priced anywhere from $49 to $69 on Indiegogo, and will feature a host of features that are lacking on other dimmers targeted for home use, such as the ability to communicate with each other so that lights can be controlled across a room or an entire house. You can even set lighting “scenes” such as “party”, “dinner”, “all-on” or “all-off”, and individual dimmers come with sub-metering to report energy usage for each light switch, letting you have greater control when monitoring your lighting bills.

Delivery is tipped for a June 2013 release, so it is time to prepare the missus that you want one of these bad boys!

Press Release
[ Wi-Fi connected Smart Dimmer copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Everyone wants to go green these days, it is the “in thing”, and you will definitely score brownie points with just about everyone, especially among those Greenpeace activists. Well, here we are with Griffin Technology and one of their latest coups, which would be snagging the exclusive distribution rights of Papernomad products across North America. Based in Austria, Papernomad is a company that develops organic, customizable, tear- and water-resistant sleeves for a range of popular devices such as the iPhone, iPad, iPad mini, MacBook and Samsung Galaxy S3. As they are made of a specially-engineered paper material, they deliver the perfect canvas for personal expression and creativity.

Keavy Murphree, Product Line Manager at Griffin Technology, said, “We are thrilled to bring Papernomad to North America; their products leave a lasting impression on people’s minds but not on the environment. With Papernomad, we offer users a sustainable way to guard their technology, as well as a canvas that allows individuals to express their imagination.”

Each sleeve from Papernomad is made in Europe, where it will use an advanced patent-pending composite of paper, viscose fiber and biopolymer. The paper that is used is made from sustainably forested trees and FSC Forest Stewardship Council certified. As for the other materials in action, those are compostable and organic, including the cotton stitching, hemp pull strap, and signature wool lining that are provided by happy sheep from New Zealand.

What makes the Papernomad product different from the rest? It offers an outlet for creative expression, as the sleeve itself can be marked with pencils, pens, and crayons, something which your kids would definitely fall in love with.

The Papernomad sleeves will be made available for the iPad, iPad mini, iPhone 4 & 5, MacBook Air (11″ & 13″), MacBook Pro (13″ and 15″) and Samsung Galaxy S3 soon, and of course, depending on the size of your choice, it will retail anywhere from $39.99 and goes all the way to $69.99.

Press Release
[ Griffin Technology goes green with Papernomad copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Straight from a beach-side city in California comes the ZBoard.  Two models of ZBoard ,the Classic and the step-up Pro, provide weight sensing technology tied into a front and rear footpads to help you control your speed. As you step on the front (acceleration) or rear (braking) pad the board communicates your force to the on board computer and the electric motor speed adjusts accordingly. Want more speed? Press harder. Want to lightly brake? Lighter pressure should do. You can achieve max speeds of 15 or 17 MPH, depending on model. You can take on small to medium sized hills, and you can completely brake even on a steep hill. On a full 110V charge (220V available upon request) the Classic will take you 5 miles and the Pro – with its Lithium Iron Phosphate battery – will carry you 10 miles. Each battery is rated to 250 and 500+ cycles respectively and replacements will be available. With the regenerative braking and minimal power usage the ZBoard is carbon footprint equivalent of up to 1500 miles/gallon. Crazy.  Can you just push and ride? Sure, but expect to move slowly. ZBoards began shipping in October and are currently on a 10 week waiting list, which means you can get it just in time for Spring cruising. The Classic runs $649 and the Pro $949. So whether a skateboard expert or an uncoordinated person like moi, ZBoard provides a weight sensing alternative to standard skateboarding and an eco-friendly way to travel on those shorter jaunts.
[ A Different Sort of Foot Powered Skateboard copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Someone would have to sit down and do a really deep think through of existing road laws and regulations when self-driving cars become more and more commonplace. What happens when the data received by the vehicle is incorrect, and the car actually breaks the speed limit, all the while when you are sipping on your Starbucks mocha at the back seat, reading up on all that is happening in the world on a tablet? I suppose humanity will cross that particular bridge when they arrive at it, but otherwise, it remains something to chew over at this point in time. Toyota has already demonstrated a self-driving car over at CES 2013, although there are still some lengths to go before something like this is perfected for everyday and safe use.

The ride, a luxurious Lexus LS600, has been outfitted with its fair share of radars, cameras in addition to an array of sensors which enables it to be more than just cognizant of its immediate environment. Toyota is not the first to create a driverless car, as Internet search behemoth Google was first to do so, and has been behind the wheel (literally) since 2010, working on refining its technology. Needless to say, there is nothing quite like some competition behind you to spur you on to greater heights, and we as the consumer will only be able to say that we win out in the end.

The experimental car from Toyota is currently able to avoid collisions with pedestrians and other automobiles, where it will get up and about based on detailed electronic map data which is able to accurately perceive roadway information including traffic lanes and signals. I guess with this, you can truly drink those non-sobering beverages without having to worry about arriving at the destination while endangering the life of others on the road.

Source
[ Toyota demonstrates self-driving car at CES 2013 copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Bikes become more efficient every year. Mechanics improve plus technology and metals make things lighter and more mobile.  More and more people are going eco-friendly and moving to pedal commuting thanks to these efficiencies. How much more efficient can a bike get?

Designer Izhar Gafni thinks bikes can go much further when it comes to efficiency. This year he finalized design of a mostly cardboard bike called the Alfa. All components are recycled materials. The belt-driven bike means no maintenance is required. Alfa weighs just 20lbs. but can support UP TO 485LBS! The concept evolved from that fact that when you fold paper or cardboard it becomes not two but three times stronger. That makes sense. Ever try to tear a pile of papers? Oh, the other great part about Alfa is the fact the estimated cost will be $9-$12. Let’s see: 100% recycled materials, can support 24 times its weight and costs less than $15. I think we have a winner. Gafani spent three years designing Alfa. See the video below to learn about the process. Where will Alfa lead? Who knows. But the thought that a 100% sustainable form of transportation exists should at least lead us to ask what else is possible in preserving our planet.