Hasta La Gadget!

We’ve seen alcohol and LEDs come together in the past as LED ice cubes were introduced as a way to curb over-drinking, and it looks as though Heineken will soon be bringing its brand of beers to the modern age with their Heineken Ignite concept.

The concept was introduced at Milan Design Week and equips Heineken beer bottles with LEDs and motion sensors to create what they’re calling the first “interactive beer bottle.” The Heineken Ignite will light up during various portions of your night out as it’ll activate when cheering with someone else or pulse while taking a drink. The LEDs in the bottle will even react to its surroundings as it will put itself to sleep when not in use as well as synchronize itself to the music. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: The 3D Printed Headphones You Can Build Yourself, The Audi Motorrad Is An Audi-Ducati Inspired Concept Motorbike,

Most of us don’t have a 3D printer. But if you do – or use a service like Shapeways – and you want to build your own robot, check this out. You can build a humanoid robot head like MAKI, an “emotive robot” using 3D printed parts plus some third-party tech.

MAKI was designed by HelloRobo, with the goal of providing a fairly inexpensive platform so researchers or home users can work on developing interactive robot software without having to design their own models from scratch. So what kind of money are we talking here? Well, $30(USD) gets you the files to print MAKI parts. Since users decide what their MAKI will be used for, they only need to buy the components they need for their purposes. Therefore, it should be relatively inexpensive compared making your robot the old fashioned way. That said, starting at $585, you can purchase all of the electronic and mechanical parts necessary, minus the 3D printed components to build a complete MAKI robot. Though if you want a fully-assembled MAKI with all of its parts, they are offering a limited run for $3200.

A fully-assembled MAKI is a six servo robot capable of moving its head and eyes, and has speakers and a microphone built in. It has a webcam built into its head, and is capable of vision processing, when used with the appropriate software. It can also interface with other devices using ZigBee wireless communications.

MAKI can be printed on printers with a build envelope of at least 150mm x 150mm x 140mm. If you are interested, the MAKI Kickstarter has 18 days left and some of the stretch goals include adding arms to the MAKI design using HelloRobo’s AX-12 grippers, or introducing smartphone/Raspberry Pi integration. If that sounds good, head on over to Kickstarter and check it all out.

[via Gizmodo]

I think we can all agree that growing up, getting in a spit wad fight with someone was fun right up to the point where you got hit with a spit wad. After that, it’s really gross and you really just don’t want to play anymore. A new project has turned up on crowdfunding site Indiegogo that takes spit wad wars to the next level.

The project is called Paper Shooters and is for some cool cardboard assault rifles that are able to shoot paper ammunition up to 75 feet. These things remind me a bit of Airsoft guns, only they shoot what appears to be paper pellets. You can even create your own ammo according to the designers. The Paper Shooter comes as a kit made out a special cardboard that has been treated for durability. The kits also have a plastic skeleton and internal mechanism for durability.

A pledge of $45(USD) will get you your very own Digital Ops camo kit. For $65, you can get the blood-spattered Zombie Slayer or the blinged-out Golden Touch model, which has a shiny golden shell. For $185, you can pick up all three shooters, along with 150 pieces of ammo, and a zombie head target. Additional magazines are available for $10 each, and additional ammo sells for $8 for 50 paper wads.

Keep in mind that these are definitely not kid’s toys, and its creators say it is intended for users ages 14 and up only.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that today is April Fool’s Day. Many of the items we’re posting on the site today aren’t real – but some are. This is one product that falls into the former bucket, but I so wish were in the latter.

The guys at Sphero have announced an epic new version of their smartphone-controlled ball, called the Sphero Peacekeeper Edition. It weighs in at a whopping 150 pounds, and measures 3 feet in diameter. And it’s totally a prank. Or is it?

Despite the obvious safety concerns, the idea of a 150 pound spherical robot companion sounds great to me. Just imagine how quickly you can clear out those long lines at Walmart. And forget about ever losing a bowling tournament again.

While it’s pretty clear the Sphero Peacekeeper Edition is an April Fool’s prank, I’d still order one if I had $10,000 to spare, and from the looks of things up on their indiegogo campaign, at least one person has actually pledged to buy one.

A little while back, we featured an unusual little interactive gadget called the iKazoo. This wireless device can be paired with iOS or Android gadgets, and can be used as a touch, voice or breath controller. At the time iKazoo was simply a concept, but now you can get in on the first pre-order, thanks to the iKazoo’s crowdfunding campaign.

This unique Bluetooth device can be used as a musical instrument, as well as a controller for games and other interactive applications. It’s got built into it touch, breath and optical sensors, all of which can be accessed via an open source SDK.

Early adopters of the iKazoo can get one of the controllers for $79(USD), but you’ll have to pledge $135 or more if you want the version with the optional motion control “Smart Writer Cap”, which also lets your iKazoo double as a stylus for your tablet. Find out more about the iKazoo fundraising campaign over on Indiegogo.