Feb 22

Artists Keep Hands Clean with Tablet-Friendly Brush Stylus

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, Today's Chili

Beret-wearing, work shy layabout “artists” rejoice! Now you can swap expansive and messy paint and canvas for an expensive and tidy iPad and brush-shaped stylus. Well, the iPad part is expensive. The Nomad brush stylus is just $24, or around the same price as a rubber, nubbin-tipped pen stylus.

As an object, the brush is beautiful. A walnut and carbon shaft gives way to a brush made with a mixture of synthetic and natural fibers, and the bristles seem to have been shortened since we saw the prototype last month. The Nomad also has specs — or at least as many specs as a brush can have. It weighs 0.2 ounces, or 5.7 grams, and measures 7.5 inches long by a quarter of an inch wide, or 19 x 0.6 centimeters.

Like any capacitive touch-screen stylus, it requires no power, as it is merely a replacement for your finger. And the bristles won’t change the on-screen paint at all — that’s taken care of by software. But given how much easier my aluminum Alupen stylus makes drawing and writing, just the feel of the Nomad alone should be worth the cash. The brush will work with any tablet or phone with a capacitive screen.

Nomad brush product page [Nomad Brush. Thanks, anonymous Nomad person!]

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Feb 18

500mm iPhone Lens for Grungy Close-Ups

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, iPhone, lenses, Today's Chili

Given that a cellphone case can easily run to $35, the iPhone Telephoto Lens is something of a bargain, combining as it does both a long, long lens, a case to hang it on, a mini-tripod to keep things steady, and a micro-fiber cloth to polish everything up.

It works like this: You slip the iPhone into the case (where it can be left, should you be a case kind of person) and then clip the lens on, over the iPhone’s existing lens-hole. Photojojo, which sell the kit, says that it gives the equivalent view of a 500mm lens on a 35mm camera.

Focus is manual — yes, there’s actually a focus ring. And while the quality isn’t great (you can check the sample shots on the product page), it’s a lot better than you’d get from a digital zoom. In fact, considering that almost every iPhone photo these days is destined for a thorough grungifying in either Instagram or Hipstamatic, the soft, not-so-sharp images should be perfect.

Also: Amazing for peeping-toms.

The iPhone Telephoto Lens kit is, as I said, $35, and comes in two models, one for iPhone 3 and one for iPhone 4.

The iPhone Telephoto Lens product page [Photojojo]

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Feb 18

Tiny Plug-In WALdok Turns iPods Into Boomboxes

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, ipod, speakers, Today's Chili

It seems like every time I see cool new gadget these days, I click the link and end up at Kickstarter. Is it really possible that individuals are coming up with better ideas, and getting them to the market faster, than big corporations with big R^D budgets? It seems so.

Today on the Gadget Lab Kickstarter Showcase is the WALdok. As a combination of plug-in charger, speaker and iDevice dock, it was impossible that I not write about it. So here goes:

The WALdok is a speaker that plugs straight into the wall. Up on top is a 40-pin dock connector, so the iPod or iPhone can charge as it plays you its sweet music. This also powers the speaker, which consists of a big 40mm driver and a bass chamber behind it.

While it works with any dock-connected iDevice, it looks coolest with the latest Nano, turning nit into the world’s smallest (and cutest) boom-box. The WALdok, by Hern Kim, is designed to be small but still offer a better sound than the tinny alternatives on the market.

The Kickstarter goal is $30,000, and Kim is up to $4,000 already. If you want a WALdok, you’l need to throw in a minimum of $59.

WALdok [Kickstarter]

WALdok product page [WALdok]

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Feb 18

New Apple Peel Case Makes iPod Look Like iPhone 4

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, ipod, Phones, Today's Chili

Remember the Peel? It’s a case for the iPod Touch which adds a vibrator, mic, speaker and cell-radio, turning the iPod into a phone. No? Don’t worry. You may have blanked it from your memory, your eyes and brain scarred by its utilitarian ugliness. The Peel looked like it was carved an old truck tire by a Linux UI designer with the tremors.

Enter Peel v2 a product that could have come out of Apple’s own design lab. In fact it sort of did: The new Peel is a complete rip-off of the iPhone 4, right down to volume buttons on the side.

It’s a little thicker than the iPhone 4, and the teaser on Peel-maker Yosion’s site doesn’t yet state which iPod Touch the case will fit. Still, if you are going to go for this clunky solution instead of just buying a phone already, then at least you won’t look like you’re holding a spare auto-part up to your ear when you use it.

Price and availability, along with almost everything else, remains undisclosed.

Latest pictures apple II 520 [Yosion]

Photos of Peel 2 [Yoison forum via Mobile Mag. Thanks, Fabrizio!]

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Feb 17

MagicWand Helps Aluminum Keyboard and Magic Trackpad Stick Together

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, Apple, Today's Chili

Twelve South’s MagicWand is a 16-inch strip of aluminum with a single purpose in life: to make your Apple keyboard and trackpad get along better. The Bluetooth aluminum keyboard and the Magic Trackpad slide into the c-section strip and are held together as one solid unit. You can use it on the desktop or on your lap.

I have had one to test for the past week or so and it is a typically solid accessory from Twelve South. The two peripherals snap into place by their battery bulges — the round bits that prop them up from the rear. Once snapped into the MagicWand, you slide an h-section plastic bar between them. This, along with a rubber t-section insert, keep the pad and board in line with each other. Once connected, they seem as one.

For me, using the unit on the desk isn’t so great. One stray touch on the now very nearby trackpad can send your cursor off to another part of your text and have you tying in the wrong place. This is more of a problem with my flailing typing style, though. The actual MagicWand is meant for a desk, and has rubber feet at the rear, just like the Apple originals.

On the lap, though, it’s better, forming a solid lap-top desk. You can sit back and control a media center Mac Mini, for example, or just lean back in your desk chair as I am now, taking a break from all that endless sitting up straight.

The MagicWand will cost $30. It works great, but I prefer to have my Magic Trackpads (I have two) out on either side of my keyboard, and pushed a little back. If you do fancy one, then go ahead. You won’t have a problem with build quality.

MagicWand product page [Twelve South. Thanks, Andrew!]

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Feb 17

Promiscuous Power-Socket With Built-In Shelf

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, Today's Chili

This is the Plug Socket, a power-point whose designer clearly spent a lot more time on the product than the name. It is a socket which manages to cram three separate outlets into the space normally occupied by one, and do it without crowding all of the plugs together. It even finds space for a cable-tidying shelf.

The Plug Socket, designed by Xie Chen Chen, appears to have a three-pronged Chinese socket on the main plate and two dual-prong ones up top. This top flips down for access and, when open, it forms a shelf onto which phones and cords can be placed. And because the angle is adjustable, a big plug in the main hole doesn’t block up the whole thing.

Interesting fact, brought back to me from friends who recently visited China: Pretty much any plug will fit into a Chinese socket. European and U.S prongs will both fit into those up top in Chen’s design, and it looks like Australia’s will fit the front socket if turned upside-down first.

Plug on Plug [Yanko]

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Feb 17

Bass-Bustin’, Battery-Powered Speaker Invented by Rocket Scientist

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, speakers, Today's Chili

Why should the audiophile nerds get all the good-sounding gear? Floor-standing speakers, amps that weight a ton and speaker cables as thick as the tentacles of a giant squid might sound good, but they’re not exactly portable.

Battery powered speakers are never going to compete with proper hi-fi gear, but at least we don’t have to settle for sucky portable speakers anymore. The new foxL v2 joins the Jawbone Jambox in the tiny-speaker-big-sound category, and better, it was invented by a rocket scientist.

There are two internal tricks. One is the “Twoofer”, a combined tweeter and woofer which saves space but apparently gives a big sound from a small (25mm) driver. The other, rather cleverer, trick is the “BassBattery”. This uses the mass of the rechargeable li-ion battery as an “acoustic suspension bass driver.”

The foxL comes in two forms: a straight-up wired version and an A2DP Bluetooth version which also adds a mic for hands-free calling, and a call answer button. They are priced at $200 and $250.

A word on this kind of speaker. Even with clever engineering and high-quality internals, the bass from a little speaker is never going to shake the room. I have been trying out the Jawbone Jambox for the last few days and it sounds truly amazing for its tiny size, but there is no real bass thump. You get a good thud, but it’s not the same. The SuperTooth Disco which I tested a while back has a subwoofer built-in. This gives better bass, but the speaker is as big as three Jamboxes.

That said, things are a helluva lot better than they used to be.

FoxL product page [SoundMatters via Oh Gizmo]

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Feb 17

Tip-Slip: Tablet Stylus Slides Onto Sharpie, Bic

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, ipad, Today's Chili

After a long time spent ridiculing styluses for capacitive touch-screens, I came around. For drawing and note-taking on a big tablet screen, they have a finger beaten, erm, hands-down. I settled on the chunky Alupen, but if you already have a favorite ball-pen, why not just opt for an adapter tip?

These stainless steel and rubber tips come sized to fit over Sharpies, Bics and Pilot Fineliners. The inventor, Don Lehman, was struck with the idea one day as he was idly sliding the cap on and off his Sharpie. He describes the historic moment in his Kickstarter pitch:

I was playing with the cap of a Sharpie, taking it on and off and on and off, just fixating on this cap when it suddenly hit me, “Uh, a cap would be a good stylus.” It was not unlike that scene in 2001 where the apes suddenly realize bones could be used as weapons after they touch the monolith. I believe that makes me the ape. After that I was off to the races.

Sure, it’s not quite in the same league as Doc Brown’s Flux Capacitor, but it’s close. The MORE/REAL Stylus Cap, as it is known, will cost $20 apiece when it makes it into production. The Kickstarter project has already raised its $15,000 goal, but you can still pitch in if you want to get one early, or if you want one of the limited edition brass caps ($25).

MORE/REAL Stylus Cap [Kickstarter]

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Feb 09

iControlPad for iPhone Finally Shipping, Adds Support for All Phones

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, Games, iPhone, Phones, Today's Chili

At long, long last the iControlPad – a hardware gamepad for the iPhone – can be bought. Well, almost. You can order today for a delivery next week, whereupon you can slot in your iPhone, iPod Touch or any other phone that will fit in the slot and play button-bashing titles like Street Fighter 4 as God intended.

We have followed the on-again-off-again history of the iControlPad here at Gadget Lab, right up until the last setback which saw the iControlpad team pulling the almost-ready design due to cold feet. The fear was that Apple wouldn’t approve of an accessory that hooked directly up to its phone, and would kill the project. The result was a switch to Bluetooth, which has the happy side-effect of making the gamepad compatible with any phone, console or computer that works with it.

The unit has its own 1500mAH battery, which can also charge your phone via USB should you decide that making a phone call is more important than a quick blast on Sonic the Hedgehog. It is also customizable. The main unit is flanked by two “side clamps”. These are plastic bars that clip on and provide a snug case for the following phones, pasted right in from the iControlPad product page:

iPhone 3, iPhone 3G, iPhone, iPhone 3GS, iPhone4, iPod touch (some require padding), Motorola Backflip (needs padding), LG Optimus S, LG Ally, Blackberry Touch (Torch?), Samsung Intercept (may require adjustment), HTC Dream, T-Mobile G1, Era G1

While you’ll need to jailbreak your iPhone to get the most from the controller, it “does work on un-[jailbroken] iPhones in keyboard mode.” So you’ll have to wait for

The price? Well, you’d better be pretty serious about your gaming, as it’s $75 with sides, plus $15 for extra sides, or $60 naked. available “now”.

iControlPad product page [iControlPad]

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Feb 07

BlueLounge Nest: iPad Stand and Desk-Tidy In One

Posted in: Accessories and Peripherals, ipad, Today's Chili

IPad stands are useful right up until you’re not using them to stand-up your iPad. Then they become desktop pariahs, turning from tabletop-tidies to plastic clutter in seconds. Unless, that is, the stand is the BlueLounge Nest.

This little box is handy whether or not it is loaded with an iPad. As a stand, it works two ways. One is a lot like the perspex blocks Apple uses to show off the iPad in store: you just drop the tablet on top and it is held at a nice typing angle. The second angle is achieved by pulling a small sliding drawer-like tab from the rear. Turn the Nest around, so the tray sits behind the iPad, and hook the tablet into this tab.

The whole time you’re doing this, the Nest is also an open tray into which you can drop all manner of desktop detritus, from charging cables and USB thumb-drives through camera adapters and tasty chocolate snacks.

One use-case mentioned by BlueLounge PR is as a nightstand stand, and that sounds like a great idea. I imagine that the Nest’s bowl-like design would easily catch the drips from the glass of bourbon I like to have on hand should I wake-up thirsty.

Better than all of this (except the nightstand bourbon – you really should try it) is the price. The multi-hued Nest is just $15. Or it will be when BlueLounge gets around to flicking the switch on the product page.

Nest iPad stand [BlueLounge. Thanks, Susan!]

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