Hasta La Gadget!

Gadgets are expensive. It’s inescapable. You’re going to have to plunk down some cash for a really killer piece of kit. Sometimes it’s not worth it. But other times you wind up with essentially a digital life parter—a gadget you’re in physical contact with more often than you are with your loved ones, probably. More »

In case you haven’t noticed, everything is a remix. Good artists and inventors stock up on influences and material from other sources. If you’re a musician or if you want to make your own sound effects or if you just want something to listen to when you’re wasted, you can compile sounds wherever you go with the Kaleidoloop.

The Kaleidoloop was invented by Critter & Guitari, maker of the popular Pocket Piano synthesizer. The Kaleidoloop lets you record sounds and then manipulate those sounds on the fly. The sounds are recorded as .wav files on an SD card (the Kaleidoloop comes with a 256MB SD card). It also has a 3W speaker so you can listen and tweak the sounds you recorded on the go.

Here’s a trippy explanation of the Kaleidoloop:

You can order the Kaleidoloop directly from Critter & Guitari for $299 (USD). I wish they’d come up with a cheaper version; I’ll only use it to record my friends’ favorite expressions and a laugh track so we can pretend we’re in a sitcom.

[via DudeIWantThat]

I have never been one for boats or yachts, but even I could be persuaded to give yacht-life a try in this magnificent vessel that was co-designed by the Apple-master himself, Steve Jobs. This was the boat that Steve Jobs was working on until his untimely death in 2011.

Venus was a collaborative effort between Steve Jobs and Philippe Starck, and it measures over 230 feet in length. Just like your MacBook Pro, it’s has an aluminum shell. The interior cabin is equipped with a set-up of seven 27-inch iMacs for its control room.

I wonder if they’ve upgraded to the new iMac that will be released shortly. The yacht is akin to an Apple store, with large windows, almost from floor to ceiling. The main living area has walls of glass that are forty feet long and ten feet high (!).

Venus finally made its maiden appearance in the city of Aalsmeer in the Netherlands. If you’re wondering how much Venus cost to build, it’s way more money than you could ever afford.

[via designboom]

USB ports will immediately surrender when you threaten them with Benchmade’s Bali-USB drive. Not only does it look like a balisong – aka butterfly knife – you can also flip and twirl it around, minus the risk of being stabbed.

The drive is modeled after Benchmade’s 62 Bali-Song knife. Aside from the blade being swapped out, the USB drive is also made of plastic instead of steel, probably to make it cheaper. Here’s a demo video by YouTuber WHbluelife:

BladeOps is selling the 4GB model of the Bali-USB flash drive for the wallet-slashing price of $30 (USD).

[via DudeIWantThat]

When the iPhone 5 came out, many people wished that it was packed with more features – or at least a beefier battery – instead of being thinner than many smartphones. If you’re one of those people, you might one to get the iExpander case. It’s packed with practical features in exchange for nearly doubling the iPhone 5′s thickness.

Perhaps the best feature of the iExpander is its built-in microSD card slot, which supports up to 64GB cards. Inventor Charlie Corry didn’t specify it, but he did imply that the iExpander will come with an app to facilitate file transfer to and from an iPhone to a connected microSD card. The iExpander also stays true to its name by adding a built-in 1420 mAh battery, which is almost equal to the iPhone 5′s own 1440mAh battery and the 4S’ 1430mAh battery. In short, the iExpander will nearly double your phone’s battery life.

The case also has an LED flash that’s stronger than the one in iPhones for better low-light performance. The case will come in two variants, one compatible with the iPhone 4 & 4S and one with the iPhone 5. The latter variant has a bonus feature: it has a built-in adapter that makes it compatible with 30-pin cables, so you can use your iPhone 5 with older chargers, cables, and whatnot. Though the added thickness will probably keep it out of most docks.

A pledge of $75 (USD) or more on its Kickstarter fundraiser gets you an early unit. It’s already surpassed its target fund with still a week to go, so it’s safe to say that the iExpander will see production.

[via CNET Asia]