By Andrew Liszewski

Last year I wrote about a product called the CarCapsule which was basically a large inflatable bubble made of PVC you could use to protect an expensive sports car. Well a company out of the UK called Carcoon has a similar product, though they also produce a smaller version designed to protect a server when a clean and temperature controlled server room isn’t available.

The Server Shield inflates to about 6 feet tall, and when placed over top of your server (it seems designed to protect a system mounted in a server rack) gravity keeps it mostly airtight while it’s resting on the floor. A set of 4 small ventilators with filters keep air flowing through the Shield, which helps maintain the temperature inside and keep things clean and dry. There’s also a digital temperature readout on the outside indicating the current temperature inside the Server Shield, and special openings that allow quick access to the computer without having to completely remove the cover.

[ Carcoon Server Shield ] VIA [ The Red Ferret Journal ]

By Evan Ackerman

Last week on BotJunkie, we kicked things off with some cute little papercraft robots from Maker Faire, were absolutely blown away by a giant robot waldo, lusted over a gallery of robots from Maker Faire, pondered an iRobot patent for a dock that offloads dirt from a Roomba, remembered that there are already robot vacuums with docks, admired a bunch of artsy robot animal prints, watched a bunch of robots unsuccessfully challenge humans at soccer, stayed high and dry surfing on a Kuka robot arm, checked out some big mechs from some new movie, didn’t get turned on at all by a robot sex hotline, were impressed by multiple robots that operate with a single brain, watched Willow Garage’s PR2 robot autonomously navigate an office and plug itself in, and finished up the week being very very glad we weren’t a muscly guy getting tazered by a PackBot.

So far this week, we’ve posted about the upcoming consumer robotics revolution, a rat robot called Psikharpax, and the second coming of the Pleo robot dinosaur.

Bot with Stuff, after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

By Shane McGlaun

Bluetooth headsets can be convenient when you are driving and can prevent you from getting a ticket in many states. The issue for some users is that most Bluetooth headsets are expensive devices. Jabra has unveiled a new Bluetooth headset called the BT2080 that is cheap.

The BT2080 headset sells for $39, which is much cheaper than many high-end headsets sell for. To prevent users from accidentally turning the headset off it has a dedicated power button. Support for Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR and eSCO is built-in.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Shane McGlaun

I got a text from my mother-in-law the other day, which was weird. For one reason, I don’t like to talk to her that much, any married guy will understand. The other reason is that I didn’t know she knew what texting was and she has a phone that is older than my kids.

Sprint has a new entry-level phone for people like her that are just getting into texting and want a cheap phone to make things easier. The Sanyo SCP-2700 is cheap enough at $29.99 after an instant $150 rebate, a $50 mail-in rebate, and a 2-year contract.

The device sports a full QWERTY keyboard and can access work email from Exchange or Domino. The handset can also access the web and social networking sites. Other features include GPS navigation support, Sprint Family Locator Support, and picture mail support.

[ Sprint ]

By Shane McGlaun

You know, I think the kindle is really cool. I’d like to have one, but I am more of a sci-fi fan and I am not sure if they have any books I would like. The real reason I don’t jump up and buy a Kindle DX is that the dang thing costs $500.

For that much coin it should come pre-loaded with naked girls and at least include a cover to protect the expensive and large screen. Alas, it comes with neither of those things, but M-Edge can help you with protection for the screen. The company has announced two new protective covers for the Kindle DX called the Executive Jacket and the Platform Jacket.

Read the rest of this entry »

By Andrew Liszewski

While the ESPN Swimming Challenge device I brought you earlier was clearly designed with the younger set in mind, the Pool-Mate looks like it might actually be a useful tool for those who are serious about swimming.

The streamlined looking watch features a MEMS accelerometer that detects the motion of your wrist during a swim stroke, and using “advanced digital signal processing techniques and software algorithms” the watch is able to calculate both your number of strokes and your number of laps. And it’s compatible with a wide range of swimming techniques including the front crawl, the back crawl, the breast stroke and the butterfly in pools over 10 meters in length.

At the moment the Pool-Mate is still undergoing final testing, but it should be available for sale sometime this Summer.

[ Swimovate Pool-Mate Watch ] VIA [ The Gadgeteer ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’ve yet to convince my co-workers to make the switch to an eBook device, even though they’re all avid readers. One of the biggest stumbling blocks is the whole ‘paper book experience’ they feel they won’t have with a flat electronic device, like being able to turn physical pages, curling back the cover or even dog-earing the corners. But one excuse they can’t throw in my face anymore is the lack of that new (or used) book smell, thanks to the Smell of Books aerosol eBook enhancer.

It comes in 5 different scents including New Book Smell, Classic Musty, Crunchy Bacon Scent (for the breakfast reading experience) Eau, You Have Cats and Scent Of Sensibility. Just a quick blast of Classic Musty for example makes your Kindle smell like that copy of Moby Dick was dug out of the basement of an old used book store, and the sprays are compatible with a wide range of eBook formats and devices if you’re worried about your model not being supported.

[ New Book Smell In A Can ] VIA [ Neatorama ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I have to give Electrolux credit, their design competitions have inspired some unique ideas when it comes to the possible future of household appliances. Like this “Cooking in the Futur” concept oven created by Ludovic Peperstraete. Instead of heating elements or an open flame, food is cooked via 3 harmless lasers that are targeted by the cook. And while a single laser supposedly isn’t strong enough to cook food, we all know that crossing two lasers can cook anything from a Thanksgiving turkey to the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Now I’m not exactly sold on the open concept design, since the last time I checked cooked food is still hot and has the tendency to bubble and splatter, but the oven also features a new type of ventilation system to at least keep odors at bay.

[ The Design blog - Laser cooking is ultra-fast ‘Cooking in the Futur’ ] VIA [ cribcandy ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If your timing is right, it’s not hard to pick up a used lunar module from the Apollo era on eBay or Craigslist for a steal, but what really kills your budget is when you have to take in to NASA for repairs or a tune-up. Those rocket scientists don’t work for peanuts. So if you’re the DIY type, you’ll be happy to know that Haynes has an Apollo 11 manual circa 1969 that also covers the Saturn V, the CM-107 Command Module, the SM-107 Service Module and the LM-5 Lunar Module. Basically everything you’ll need if you’ve been considering a trip to the moon, including launch procedures, how to moon walk and dealing with that tricky Earth re-entry procedure.

You can order your copy directly from Haynesonline for about $29.

[ Haynes NASA Apollo 11 Manual ] VIA [ Jalopnik ]