Hasta La Gadget!

Fixie Fashion: Samsung commissions ultimate Galaxy Tab dock

There’s some silly two-faced fashion going on over in London Town. Samsung, maker of me-too touch-screen devices, commissioned Brick Lane-based bike builder 14 Bike Co to make a bike and mount for its Galaxy Tab tablet.

In keeping with current fashions, the bicycle is a fixed gear model with obligatory Brooks saddle, and although it does actually have a pair of brakes, there are no cables or levers — kind of like a tablet that runs Flash, but doesn’t enable it by default. The bike is white on one side and black on the other, matching either Galaxy Tab colorway.

The tablet holder is fashioned from carbon fiber and dangles from a cylinder which grabs the top tube. Samsung says that this lets you flip up and use the Tab when on the bike, but it also means that the thing will flap from side to side whenever you turn a corner.

Ridiculous as this implementation is, tablet on a bike are actually a pretty good idea. The big screen and long, long battery life make the iPad a great handlebar HUD, GPS tracker and general mapping device. I currently tuck mine into a handlebar bag, but that means reaching in every time you need to use it. Better would be a proper handlebar mount.

I’m in the middle of building a touring bike (Surly Long Haul Trucker framer and Shimano Alfine 11 hub, as you’re asking) and I have a feeling that the iPad might neatly be stowed in the map-case attachment for the Ortlieb handlebar bag. Full report if that works out. In the meantime, ZooGue’s three-ring binder adapter for the iPad might let you replicate Samsung’s shenanigans yourself.

Samsung Bike [14 Bike Co via Bike Biz]

See Also:

• Horn Bike: iPhone Speaker and Bike Mount Combined
• Photo: iPad Powers BMX Bike-Stereo
• Sprocket Pocket: iPad Turn-Signal for Cyclists

This gorgeous, burrito-like tool roll would make a great DIY project

A tool roll has got to be just about the simplest and most practical way to carry tools. And if its this roll from Mopha, it’s also the most stylish.

The roll is made from waxed canvas with leather trim, and unfurls to reveal ten variously-sized pockets. Slide in your biking essentials — even your spare tube — and roll. The pockets keep everything in place, and a supplied leather toe-strap performs double duty in cinching shut the roll and strapping it to the saddle rails.

You could also drop it into a bottle cage, or even just use it to keep things tidy inside panniers or a messenger bag. The roll costs just $42, from maker ehworks on Etsy.

Too much for you? Few things have DIY written on them as big as this one, and with a sewing machine and a little time, and a few scraps of fabric scratched up from the back of a closet, you’ll be in business. I’m going to make one today — with one modification: a couple of belt loops on the outside to stop this canvas burrito from slipping out when I’m riding.

The Mopha Tool Roll [Etsy via Werd]

See Also:

• Timbuk2 Tool-Shed Tool-Bag
• Soft Screwdriver Combines Tool and Bag
• Hands-On: Surly Jethro Tule Bike Wrench and Beer Opener …

To promote yet another release of Star Wars, Tokyo trains have had their handles turned into lightsabers

Debate still rages as to whether George Lucas should be banned from touching the original Star Wars movies. The latest Blu-ray release further ruins his once-great movies. Take these examples, from Wikipedia’s list of changes:

The Ewoks’ eyes now have CG eyelids, allowing them to blink

Darth Vader now says “No” while Luke is tortured by the Emperor’s Force Lightning attack, and then immediately screams “Nooooo!” as he picks Palpatine up and hurls him into the Death Star’s reactor core

Almost impossible to believe, I know, but even this insensitive tinkering doesn’t lessen the greatness of the Japanese publicity campaign for the Blu-ray release. Advertisers have turned the grab-bars on the Tokyo subway into lightsabers.

Using stickers with built-in buttons and LED lights, the promo isn’t only smart, it’s also a great opportunity for stealing Star Wars memorabilia. I imagine that these stick-in ’sabers are going to disappear very quickly indeed.

Commuters Hold Onto Lightsabers in Speeding Trains [PSFK via Neatorama]

See Also:

• Lucas: Star Wars on Blu-ray in 2011
• Operation Star Wars Puts R2D2 On The Slab
• Star Wars Lightsaber Bookends
• Star Wars Lightsaber Is a Hacked Flashgun Battery Pack

Bone. Horn. Ride. The jokes write themselves

This is the Horn Bike iPhone case from Bone, and you can probably guess from the name exactly what it does. Your iPhone 4 slides into the silicone sleeve and a Velcro strap secures it to the handlebars of your bike. So far, so ordinary.

The neatness comes from the ‘horn’ part, which is in fact a horn speaker that channels the sound from the iPhone’s speaker forwards and at the same time stretches it out, making it up to 13dB louder. Not only can you now use all manner of cycle-computer or GPS apps, you can also listen to music, or hear turn-by-turn directions.

The Horn Bike will cost $30, which is pretty standard even for a non-bike-mounted, non-horn-sporting case, which leads me to conclude that it is a bargain. Now all I need is an iPhone. Unless anyone knows of an iPad bike mount, that is?

Horn Bike [Fruit Shop]

See Also:

• Honk! Anyone Home? 'Door Claxon' Combines Horn and Handle …
• Bone Amp Gives iPhone the Horn
• Pump-Rechargeable Air-Horn Great for Tourist-Scaring
• Horn Speaker Whispers Tunes in Your Ear

The DockBoss puts your Android phone into an Apple dock

Problem: You own an Android phone, but you live in an iPhone world. Every device, from cars through speakers to refrigerators comes with a 30-pin dock connector.

Solution: The DockBoss. This adapter lets you take anything with a 3.5mm jack and hook it up to an iPhone dock, including your Android phone or even your Zune.

Inside the business end — which plugs into the dock itself — is a mess of electronics which are powered by the dock (both USB and ancient FireWire docks are supported). These make sure that the sound is sent properly to the host device, so pretty much anything should work.

And yes, you could even use this to plug your iPhone into Apple’s Universal Dock.

It’s a smart idea marred only by the fact that almost all iPhone-compatible accessory come with a 3.5mm jack socket too. On the other hand, for just $23, the DockBoss means you’re ready for absolutely everything.

DockBoss [Cable Jive]

See Also:

• TARDIS iPhone Dock Pumps Out Transdimensional Tunes
• MiniDock Turns iPhone Charger into Tiny, Wall-Mounted Dock …
• Fast Work: In-Car, Dash-Mounted iPad
• It Was Bound to Happen: Kitchen Scale With iPod Dock and …