Hasta La Gadget!

Luci is Mpowerd’s “little solar lantern with a big impact” and for the price and light produced — 1200 lumens — it does seem to fit the bill. But what really makes this lantern so fantastic, is that Luci is aimed to provide “solar justice” for those off the grid or perhaps suffering through some type of natural disaster and it is done on the cheap. Luci is a solar-powered LED lantern that will juice up in the sun in six hours and then produce six to 12 hours of light from that charge. The light runs in three different modes, low, high, or a distress mode where it flashes, costs only $15.99, is collapsible, lightweight and has a one-year lifespan. Well done Mpowerd, Luci seems a great tech and design innovation in that it solves a problem in a very elegant and simple way.

Filed under: Peripherals

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At large trade shows like CES, we’re accustomed to seeing tried and true products receive refreshes — sometimes major, sometimes minor — year after year. But here on the Showstoppers floor, we came across the type of gadget that gets us positively giddy: the Puzzlebox Orbit. Originally a Kickstarter-funded project that’s just now hitting retail shelves (available for $189), the copter-in-a-cage works with Neurosky’s EEG Bluetooth-enabled headset and companion app (compatible with iOS or Android) to help users achieve specific meditative or focused mental states. Hack-happy geeks take note, Puzzlebox encourages your creative tinkering, so it’s made the software open source, opening the door to any number of applications. But the primary focus for this is education, as combos of this kind can be used to explain neuroscience to children — brainwaves and the like.

To get the Orbit’s blades whirring, users first need to set a pre-determined goal by adjusting a slider in the app. And once that desired state is achieved, the included IR transmitter (which plugs into your smartphone or tablet), will send a signal to the Orbit, effectively giving it flight. It’s not the weak sort of take-off either — this spherical delight can really grab some air. But don’t just take our many words for it. Why not just check out our demo after the break?

Continue reading Puzzlebox Orbit mind-on: brainwaves and hack-friendly helicopters (video)

Filed under: Peripherals

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Earlier today, Rode announced its newest addition to its already plentiful lineup of microphones. This time, it’s one specialized for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. The microphone uses Apple’s outgoing 30 pin adapter (Sorry early adopters), so the user can also use headphones simultaneously while recording at rates of up to 24-bit/96kH. The pair of immovable half inch cardioid condensers are positioned in a 90-degree alignment for proper stereo recording without picking up too much ambient noise. They should also dodge any bi-positional recording issues when recording both guitar and vocals at once.

Amongst the angst of CES, the sound quality seemed good, but what really makes the iXY a legitimate contender is Rode’s app. There’s two versions: a free lite one and a $5.99 pro version, the latter being extremely adjustable in every aspect of audio recording — gain, input, boost levels, high/low-pass filter options, equalization effects and many more.

The iXY Microphone is available now for $199, and comes with a foam windshield and carrying case. Rode has mentioned that an iPhone case with a standard hotshoe attachment with pistol grip is in the works, and will arrive in the next few months.

Check out the video past the break, where we compare recordings from the Rode iXY attached to an iPhone and a Rode Videomic Pro on a DSLR.

Continue reading Rode iXY Microphone ears on

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The outfit known for their MacBook docks is up to its old tricks. Henge Docks has outed the Horizontal Dock at CES: a resting spot for MacBook Air and MacBook Pro with Retina display that connects to up to three external displays, six USB 3.0 ports, double audio outputs, Ethernet, an SD card slot and FireWire 800. Got all that? Good. The goods are housed in a solid metal frame with a Kensington security slot for added safeguarding. If all of this sounds too good to resist, options for both of the previously mentioned Apple laptops are up for preorder now for $249 with a Q3 arrival date. A Thunderbolt version is slated to arrive in Q4 of 2013 for $349.

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Panasonic had this creature plonked front and center in its booth and all the sound and light whipped us into a 80s boombox throwback frenzy that could not be denied. First and foremost, Panasonic informed us this isn’t currently targeted at the US market — but we suppose if enough of you pop by the booth and crank it to 11 they may reconsider. Specs were a bit thin but we do know it’s made up of thousands of blue lights, oversized knobs and the speaker cabinet contains four speakers powered by three separate amps — the bottom speaker being a huge 15″ “Ultra Super Woofer.” Power specs were touted as having 23,800W (PMPO) and 2160W (RMS) but numbers aside it is seriously loud. We cranked it a bit and found it really base heavy but just as Party Rockers Anthem was building up during our volume test security rolled up and ruined the whole affair. Again, no details on pricing or launch but it did make us all grin, big stupid “did you hear how friggin’ loud that was?” grins. Gallery after the break.

James Trew contributed to this report

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Peripherals

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