While you could put your smartphone in your pants pocket, it might be cramped in there. The guys at Generate are here to offer you a hand.
Designed by inink, the Hand T-shirt is exactly what it sounds like – it holds onto your iPhone or other similarly-sized mobile gadget. It’s been emblazoned with a clever hand and arm graphic so it looks like the hand is holding your device. The built-in transparent PVC pocket will hold on to anything that’ll fit inside.
You can get the Hand T-Shirt over at Generate for $59(USD).
We’ve seen a couple of iPhone and iPod cases that are compatible with LEGO, but this is the first officially-licensed case that I’ve seen. Belkin managed to get the toy maker’s approval and have now released a limited edition of LEGO cases for the iPhone 5.
Bluetooth speakers are great to share your tunes with your friends, and they are really useful in your home, to listen to music, shows, and podcasts without worrying about wires.
The Philips SoundShooter is a handy, wireless portable speaker that looks like a tiny barrel. Naturally, it’s Bluetooth-enabled and comes with a built-in microphone to make calls. It can stream music up to 30 feet away from your mobile device, and can run for up to eight hours per charge. The included carabiner will allow you to clip it to a bag or belt loop when you’re outdoors.
You can get the Philips SoundShooter from Amazon for about $48 (USD).
I just spent a week in Japan, where I attended my first Japanese wedding in Tokyo. It was lovely, different and the same all at once. I’ve been coming here almost annually since 1998, and while most things have remained the same, I’ve watched Japan’s pace of consumer technology innovation take a seeming nosedive in recent years. I have no solid evidence to prove this — just some observations.
When I first visited Tokyo in 1998, Japanese mobile phones were years ahead of their American and European equivalents. Japanese mobiles were lightweight, had high-resolution — for the time — color screens, allowed internet access and some even had video cameras that supported real-time video chat.
Remember SmartThings, which was on Kickstarter a few months ago? It was understandably a huge hit with backers who wanted to make their homes smarter. At the end of the campaign, $1.6 million had been raised and the first batch of kits had sold out.
Now here’s a bit of news about the system that will make its 6,000-strong backers (and countless others who are interested in it) happy: SmartThings has now released their Developer and Inventor Toolkit.
Perhaps the reason why so many people are drawn to SmartThings is its promise of an open-source platform for developers. This openness makes it a flexible option, especially for those who are looking for fully-customized home automation systems. And if they know programming, then they could even build it themselves (or ask some pros to do it for them.)
This sort of technology has been around for a while, but SmartThings has come up with something novel out of it. Of course, if you want to live in an automated home now rather than later, then there are other options out there that you can try out.
People who have had a chance to work with SmartThings has come up with a bunch of pretty interesting stuff so far, and you can look out for more since they’ve already released the toolkit:
So far the open community has created a SmartThings-controlled pet feeder, a baby mobile controlled via voice sensor, a movie theater remote to dim the lights and start the popcorn, and many more. The SmartThings Developer & Inventor Toolkit includes everything needed to create and rollout new SmartThings, such as an open community at build.smartthings.com that enables collaboration with other developers and inventors around the world.
Can’t decide what to get for Fathers’ Day? We’ve got you covered. With the help of our dear friends at Gear Diary and The Awesomer, we’ve gathered over $1,000 in great loot which you could win just in the nick of time.
And while we’d love for you to share all of these goodies with dear old Dad, I can totally appreciate it if you keep some or all of this awesome swag for yourself.
Head on over to Gear Diary for more details on all of the prizes as well as the entry form. Contest Ends 12:15AM Eastern Time on June 9, 2013.
On the eve of this year’s Computex international computer and technology fair, ASUS announced two desktop PCs with an optional component that can save both themselves and other gadgets. Both the upcoming G10 and M51 computers will support the ASUS Power Pack, an optional 6,000 mAh external battery pack that doubles as the computers’ UPS.
The Power Pack is the black device jutting out of the G10′s expansion bay in the image above. You can take the entire thing out and use it to charge mobile devices on the go via its 2 USB ports, then dock it back to recharge it. But as I mentioned above, while it’s docked it also pulls double duty as an uninterruptible power supply or a UPS. When power to the G10 or M51 is cut off, the Power Pack can keep those two desktop PCs alive for up to 30 minutes. That’s more than enough to save your files and shut down the PCs. Here’s a video from Engadget’s Zach Honig:
You can read ASUS’ press release to find out a bit more about both PCs. But I bet some of you are already busy thinking of ways to hack an external battery to your PCs.
It’s time to put your Ben Heck hat on. A company called Photon Gaming is raising funds for Darkmatter, an open source DIY kit for converting an Xbox 360 console into a laptop. Photon Gaming even claims one variant of their kit will allow you to convert an Xbox One into a laptop. I wonder if early adopters will be willing to risk losing an Xbox One for that.
The kit is available in various models depending on how much you want to pay, from just the electronics to a finished and ready to use Darkmatter Xbox 360 laptop.
Head to Kickstarter to support the world’s first open-source, hacker-friendly, 3D printed, laser-cut, honey glazed, butter side up DIY Xbox 360 laptop kit. If you pledge at least $499 (USD), you’ll qualify to get the full kit; all you’ll need is an Xbox 360 and a few hours to put the two together. But if you have more money than tinkering skills, pledge at least $999 and you’ll get a full Xbox 360 laptop as a reward.
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.
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.
The August Smart Lock is supposed to sell for $199(USD) once it’s launched later this year.
Some people insist staring at the screen of their smartphone every waking hour of the day. While I personally abhor this anti-social behavior, it’s a fact of modern life. Now you can keep an eye on the screen of your phone even while you’re having a drink of your favorite beverage.
The Cell Phone Holder Party Cup is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a 16oz. plastic drink cup with a built-in stand that fits most smartphones. Just strap your phone into the straw-mounted stand, and you can keep an eye on your gadget whenever you go in for a sip.
At first glance, I thought this was an April Fools joke, and then I realized that it’s the end of May. Oh well. If you really must keep constant watch on your screen, you can buy one of these over at Perpetual Kid for $8(USD).
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
