Hasta La Gadget!

Apple patents aren’t normally worth the pixels it takes to write about them — any half-smart company will patent any and every idea its employees have, just in case. But this USB 3.0 / Thunderbolt hybrid dock connector looks like it might be pretty serious.

The current dock connector is horrible. Unless you can see the tiny symbol printed in light gray on one side, you’ll end up jamming it in backwards half the time. It is also big. Back when those big white iPods were the latest thing, this wasn’t a problem. Now, though, the slot is nearly as wide as the iPod Nano itself.

The patent, filed way back in 2009, has just been published. It shows a smaller connector which can carry “one or more new high-speed communication standards, such as USB 3.0 and DisplayPort.” I doubt that it will actually use USB 3.0. Much more likely is a Thunderbolt plug, which uses the above-mentioned (mini) DisplayPort interface.

The cable would carry power, USB, serial data, audio, video and display data. It also looks pretty similar, internally at least, to the current connector. Then again, patent drawings are notoriously bad.

I’d expect the transition to begin once the entire Mac lineup has a Thunderbolt interface, and the Thunderbolt has started to arrive on PCs. I’d also expect some backwards compatibility, or at least two cables (or an adapter) in iDevice boxes so people with stone-age USB-only computers can still charge and sync their iPods.

Reduced size multi-pin male plug connector [Free Patents Online via Apple Insider]

See Also:

• Apple Files Patent for a Smart Bike
• Apple Patent Details GPS-equipped Nike+ Shoes
• Apple Patent Watch: Monitor Docking Station

Aviiq’s Smart Case adds thickness and ugliness to your beautiful iPad 2

Miss the thickness and ugly back of your old iPad 1? Then we have good news. By simply adding Apple’s Smart Cover to the front, and Aviiq’s Smart Case to the back, you can inch a little bit closer to the classic, retro, old-school 13.4mm of the original iPad.

I kid, but I also think that it kind of misses the point of the slimline iPad 2 to swaddle it in cases and covers. If you simply must keep your iPad scratch-free, despite the fact that you’ll never actually see it’s blemish-free body, then you can snap on one of Aviiq’s candy-colored shells.

These have a gray plastic rim and an anodized aluminum backplate, and come in the same colors as Apple’s Smart Cover. They’ll add a modest 1.5mm to the thickness, and come with a two-year warranty, which is precisely one more year than you’ll need, as your beautiful, skinny art object will look as ugly as a lump of chum when Apple debuts the svelte iPad 3 next year, whereupon you’ll be obliged to “upgrade” again.

The Smart Case is $50, and is available for pre-order right now.

Smart Case product page [Aviiq. Thanks, Pedro!]

See Also:

• Speck PixelSkin HD Apes Smart Cover Design
• Hack Puts Smart Cover on Old, Fat iPads
• IFixit Smart Cover Teardown: Contains Magnets. Lots of Magnets …
• iPad 2 Cover Is Smart, All Right — If You're Steve Jobs
• Hands-On with Aviiq's Beautiful, Expensive Folding Notebook Stand …

Art Lebedev’s dog gun is probably a joke, but is awesome nonetheless

When I saw Art Lebedev’s Povodokus, the first thought I think was “Damn it! It’s an April Fool’s Day gag. Now I can’t write about it.” The second thing was “So what? Let’s just treat it as a concept design that happens to have been released on April 1st. After all, it’s not like many of Lebedev’s designs get to market, anyway.”

And the third thing I though was “Why has nobody made this before?” After all, it seems the perfect way to take out your frustrations on your stupid dog. Sure, Pooch thinks that this is just another extendable leash, but now every time Pooch poops and you have to scrape it off the sidewalk, you can get back some dignity by taking aim with the pistol-shaped handle and squeezing a few imaginary rounds into the back of his too-trusting canine pea-brain.

I especially love the red leash used in the product shots, which makes this look more like a laser gun.

All Fools Day gag or no, this is something I’d buy in a second, if a) I had a dog and b) I wanted our first walk together to end in a real bloodbath when the cops spotted the “gun” and popped a few caps in my ass.

Retractable dog snap leash Povodokus [Art Lebedev]

See Also:

• Pooch-Power: Dog Leash Generates Electricity
• Hi-Fido, A Dog-Shaped Ceramic Speaker

This laser-etched bamboo case makes your iPhone 4 look like an old-style camera

When it comes to phones and other small gadgets, I prefer to go bareback, slipping the thing naked into my pocket. But if I was the case-buying kind, first on my list would be this gorgeous bamboo case from Etsy maker Signimade.

The case is the two-part, slip-on kind, and is laser-engraved to make it look like a lovely, old-fashioned camera. It has cut-outs for all switches, the camera and flash (of course), and for the really paranoid, it ships with a screen protector.

Bamboo would seem to be the ideal material for cases, as it is both strong and light. In this case, the case weighs in at just 22g, or 4/5 of an ounce.

The case fits both AT&T and Verizon iPhones and — like the iPad 2 — is back-ordered until mid April (although the seller says there are a few left on Amazon). $35 on Etsy, and currently $43 on Amazon.

iPhone 4 Natural Bamboo Wooden Case [Etsy via PetaPixel]

See Also:

• Moleskine-Shaped, Bamboo iPad Case
• Bamboo Bike Maker Grows His Frames, Bonsai Style
• Tough Bamboo Bottle with Brittle Glass Heart

The chunky Cosmonaut stylus is the same size as a dry-erase marker

Dan Provost and Tom Gerhardt, the makers of the super-successful Glif iPhone stand, are back. This time they have come up with a stylus for the iPad, and it’s called the Cosmonaut.

Unlike many thin styluses, the Cosmonaut is fat, designed to be the size and shape of a dry-erase marker. Tom and Dan did this as they see writing on the iPad’s screen, with the inability not rest your wrist, as being akin to writing on a white-board. I agree — I use the chunky Alupen stylus for writing and drawing on the iPad, and much prefer it to the smaller Pogo stylus.

The all-plastic design (with a thin rubber tip) addresses the one concern I have with the Alupen: I’m scared that its chunky, heavy aluminum body might fall and crack the screen.

And what about that name? It’s not spelled out, but as Dan’s blog is called “The Russians Used a Pencil,” I’m guessing that it’s a play on the anecdote about the Russian space-pen. Which is an awesome gag all by itself.

The Cosmonaut is a Kickstarter project, which has already broken its $50,000 goal by over 50%. If you want one, it’ll cost you $25, which seems to be the going rate for this kind of thing.

The Cosmonaut: A Wide-Grip Stylus for Touch Screens [Kickstarter]

See Also:

• Fingers-On With The Chunky Alupen iPad Stylus
• Styluses
• Brush Stylus Paints on iPad
• The Glif iPhone 4 Tripod Mount Does Much Much More
• Hack Puts Smart Cover on Old, Fat iPads