Hasta La Gadget!

Japan is no stranger to earthquakes. Despite this, the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami devastated the country. So you can never be prepared enough. That’s why Force Media, a Tokyo-based initiative, has now come up with a new flashlight that can alert people in the event of an earthquake.

This flashlight is called Gurapika (model JF-ERL1W) and comes with a built in radio that is tuned to the Earthquake Warning Alarm system that is sounded in Japan in the event of an earthquake. It will alert users with a visual and audio alarm in the event of a seismic emergency. Many people have living spaces that do not allow them to hear public address systems and public alarms when inside, so this is a handy device. Plus, it’s a flashlight.

The flashlight can also be charged in a regular wall socket and will give up to 14 hours of light or six hours of radio on a full charge, and can also be used to juice up your gadgets. In a pinch, it can also be powered for short periods of time via a hand cranking mechanism, eliminating the need for batteries. You don’t want to worry about batteries during an earthquake.

The Gurapika flashlight is available now from Amazon Japan for ¥4,609 (~$50 USD).

[via Gizmowatch]

Sure, we may have internet in the skies and refrigerators with Evernote integration, but here’s one thing that science can’t do: deliver a trouble-free heated jacket. A few years after Ardica hung up the dream due to a battery recall, Columbia is doing likewise. The sportswear company has issued a recall for seven Omni-Heat electric jacket models, citing a manufacturing defect in the heated inner wrist cuff. There have been two non-injury incidents reported (Canada, UK), but no injuries. According to the company’s own statement on the matter, a “small number of the 2012 Columbia heated jackets may contain a heated inner wrist cuff component with a manufacturing flaw that may cause an electrical short to occur, giving rise to a potential burn risk.” This is all in addition to a separate recall in early January specific to a small number of batteries, (part number 054978-001) that — according to Columbia — “may have been included with a small number of electric jackets may overheat and result in a fire hazard.”

If you’ll recall, the Circuit Breaker was actually one of our favorite gadgets of 2011, but curiously, we never could pinpoint when and where these were set to go on sale. We were independently contacted by a company that claimed Columbia was using its technology in breach of contract, but never could verify if that was the reason sales seemed to be on hiatus. [Update: Columbia affirmed to us that said claims are “unfounded” and “had no impact the delivery of its Fall 2011 Omni-Heat Electric products.”] Evidently, a few hundred of these finally made their way into the warm embrace of consumers, but considering that “Refund” looks to be the only remedy here, we sort of doubt a second generation will emerge. It’s important to note, however, that Columbia’s non-electric Omni-Heat offerings aren’t included in the recall — and, for the record, that stuff does a stellar job of keeping one warm without any whiz-bang circuitry. Hit up the links below if you’re thinking of sending yours back.

Filed under: Wearables

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Via: @itsmescotty (Twitter)

Source: CPSC, Columbia

Helmets have a relatively simple—if not imperative—job as far as gear goes: 1) don’t fall off and 2) prevent major brain damage. Given its limited roster of tasks, it’d be easy to assume that helmet innovation has probably hit a standstill by now. WRONG. Enter the Giro Combyn snow-sports helmet: a soft-shell helmet that utilizes an impact-absorbing liner that Giro promises can take all sorts of hits over, and over, and over again. More »

My heart breaks every time I hear about school shootings and other incidents where people with guns fire at innocent people for no apparent reason. It’s especially heartbreaking if it happens at a school, no less, where almost no one expects to get hurt because they’re there to learn.

In response to the most recent school shooting in Connecticut, military armor maker Hardwire has taken it upon themselves to create something that I never thought you’d need in school – bulletproof whiteboards and bag inserts to provide teachers and students with their last line of defense.
When faced with a shooter, they can basically take the bulletproof whiteboard and use it as a shield to protect themselves. The whiteboard comes with two handles so it’s easy to grip and handle. While the whiteboard might not be large enough to protect the body of an adult, it will be enough to at least shield the vital parts of the person’s body.

Hardwire has also made a bulletproof insert for backpacks, transforming bags into potentially life-shaving shields in the face of danger.

The bulletproof whiteboard is available in two sizes: the smaller clipboard version costs $109 (USD), while the larger 18×20 inch board is priced at $299. It can shield a person’s head and torso. The bulletproof bag insert is priced at $100.

[via CNET]

Controversial backscatter body scanners which could show “nude” images of airport travellers will be retired, the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has confirmed, after the manufacturer couldn’t deliver privacy software swiftly enough. The 174 Rapiscan scanners in use across the US will be returned to the manufacturer, OSI Systems, Bloomberg reports, after “it became clear to TSA they would be unable to meet our timeline” on developing masking software that would obscure individual identities, a spokesperson for the agency confirmed.

Pressure to develop a software update that would prevent the images from the backscatter scanners from being personally identifiable to the travellers themselves came from the US Congress, after increasing complaints from privacy advocates and passengers. That resulted in a new contract back in August 2010, with the TSA demanding new software that preserved highlighting of potential weapons or other contraband, but did not overstep the mark on identification.

OSI Systems eventually revealed that it did not expect to have such a fix until 2014, despite rival suppliers to the TSA being able to meet the requirement in 2011. “As a result of that,” assistant administrator for acquisitions Karen Shelton Waters said, “we terminated the contract for the convenience of the government.”

The manufacturer will foot the bill – expected to amount to around $2.7m – for pulling the Rapiscan machines from airports and shifting them to other US government agencies (which have less stringent privacy demands). Still in operation, however, are other body scanning machines manufactured by L-3 Communications Holdings, which use a different technology and have had a privacy patch installed for several years.

Sixty of the L-3 scanners – which use millimeter-wave technology rather than X-rays – are in operation across US airports; the TSA also has contracts out with L-3 and two other providers for new models. Far more prevalent, of course, are the equally-controversial “enhanced pat-downs” introduced in late 2010, in which TSA agents investigate with their hands the groin, inner-thigh area, waistband, and other parts of the body. Exact details of the enhanced procedure are confidential, with the TSA citing security concerns.

In addition to the new scanners, the TSA apparently intends to broaden the existing PreCheck program, which trades personal information supplied in advance of travel for the potential for reduced checks while at the airport. However, the scheme only operates for domestic flights within the US, and only US citizens are eligible to register for membership.

The TSA doesn’t want to see you naked any more (just fondle you) is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
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