Hasta La Gadget!

I think my mouse is portable enough that I’d have no trouble carrying it with me wherever I go. But the farthest I’ve traveled is to our gate. I barely made it back. Anyway designer Taewon Hwang thinks mice could be smaller and thinner. Hwang imagined a mouse…

… that unfolds into a disc:

Clever eh? But I’d rather have a mouse that transforms into Optimus Prime. That’s my concept.

Besides the fact that some laptops right now don’t come with optical drives, the biggest hurdle to Hwang’s concept is if it can actually be turned into a real product. It would be awesome if we actually had batteries as thin as the one in Hwang’s illustration.

[via Yanko Design via DVICE]

Researchers at the Tokyo Institute of Technology have developed a cooking simulator that combines a conventional frying pan with modern technology. I know, right? Cooking isn’t hard at all! Or so my siblings tell me every time I complain that there’s nothing to eat. Don’t you just turn the fire on, put some stuff in and wait?

The simulator is practically a video game system. It utilizes a projected display and a force feedback system to help the user with his pseudo-cooking. It also simulates the weight and state changes of the ingredients. When the user moves the pan around, he’ll feel and see the virtual meat and vegetables move around, and eventually they’ll change color just like the edible thing.

I think it’s not too practical as it is, but I am looking forward to the researchers’ vision of augmented reality cooking.

[via DigInfo TV]

And I thought that John’s Phone was as dumb as dumbphones get. But now, a UK-based company has created OwnFone, a phone that doesn’t even have a number pad, just speed dials people that you set when you order the phone. If this isn’t idiot proof then I don’t know what is.

Users can choose to have 2, 4, 8 or 12 contacts on their OwnFone. Aside from the numbers, users can further customize their OwnFone by adding colors and style. You can leave the phone as it is, add a pattern or upload an image to be used as its background. Right now customers can only use alphanumeric characters to label the contact buttons, but in the future it will be possible to use Braille or even images as labels to make the phone even more accessible.

The phone is only about 0.28″ thick and weighs just 40g (about 0.09 lbs). It’s also rechargeable and can last up to a year in “Shutdown” mode. I’m not sure if the last feature is merely a sleep mode or a literal shutdown state.

Want your own OwnFone phone? Better move to the UK as it’s currently exclusive to the state. If you’ve got that taken care off, head to the OwnFone website and be ready to fork over £55 (~$87 USD) for the device itself. You’ll also have to sign up for a monthly plan that costs between £7.50-£15 (~$12-$24 USD).

[via The Verge]

While there are plenty of ways to add a remote-controlled starter to your car so you can let the engine warm up before you get in it, it’s not common to find a car that you can actually drive using the same remote. A newly released car in China is capable of being operated from outside of the car using its remote control.

The BYD Su Rui includes a palm-size remote control which lets its owner operate it from outside the vehicle. Now before you get any funny ideas about life-size R/C car races, you should know that the remote is limited to a distance of about 33 feet, and the car won’t go over 1.24MPH. The remote also doesn’t have analog controls or a remote camera – just a D-Pad. Have you ever tried playing a racing game with a D-Pad?

Presumably, this capability is designed to allow its owner to park the car in tight parking spaces and garages from outside of the car. It’s not a bad idea for those circumstances, I suppose, but I think I’d rather have some sort of parking assist feature for those times, like Ford’s automated parallel parking feature. They also say you can use the feature to bring the car to you when the weather is bad – though the distance limit might present some problems with that.

Given its speed and distance limitations, I wonder how quickly a hacker will get their hands on one of these and mod it so there’s no speed limiter, and they can operate it from a greater distance. That’s certainly the first thing I’d try and do if I had one.

Prices for the BYD Su Rui range from 65,900 to 99,000 Yuan (~$10228 to $15579 USD). Not too bad as car prices go – especially ones with a remote control.

[via Car News China via Gadget Review]

The wonderfully innovative country of China has come up with a creation that will surely change the way the world operates!  Now, instead of applying sunscreen to your face, (which is a huge pain), you can protect yourself and look like an axe murderer/criminal/Nacho Libre at the same time!  Who would’a thunk it, am I right?

My first thought: run, and run as fast as my small, stunted legs will carry me.  My second thought: “Man, I thought they were both guys at first.”  But, since my thoughts are generally boring offensive to others, I’m not going to share any more of them.  Not without a price tag, anyway – seems like my thoughts are getting more and more valuable to those around me.  I think of myself as a sort of… wise sage.  “I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.”

The Face-Kini may be kosher in China, but I can guarantee that you’re going to get a few things if you wear this at an American beach: crying children, inquisitive life guards, and a challenge to a wrestling match from La Chalupa Mas Sexy and El Caballo Violente.  Spoiler: you’re going to get your face kicked.

To me, this would easily ruin a good day at the beach.  How?  Everybody’s wearing their fashionable new Face-Kini and I couldn’t fit mine on over the third chin.  Yeah, you didn’t hear?  CHINA OWNS THE WORLD.  You buy what they manufacture, Face-Kini or no Face-Kini.

If you enjoyed the Face-Kini, that’s kind of weird, but you should go check out the Happy Smile Trainer and the Noodle Slicing Robot when you’re ready for another dose.

This super awesome post was written by Jack, lead blogger at Cool Gizmo Toys.  Jack puts together lists to help geeks quickly find the stuff that they love, and has a free eBook that you can get today!