By Andrew Liszewski

A couple of years ago General Motors added a new feature to its OnStar system that allowed law enforcement to remotely slow a stolen vehicle in order to prevent a dangerous high-speed car chase. And yesterday OnStar expanded its Stolen Vehicle Assistance toolset even further with the addition of another new feature called Remote Ignition Block which pretty much does just that.

An OnStar ‘Advisor’ can send a signal to a subscriber’s stolen vehicle which will prevent the vehicle from restarting once the ignition is turned off. Now the feature doesn’t guarantee your ride will get recovered or even prevent it from being stolen in the first place, but like the Stolen Vehicle Slowdown option it can be used to prevent a high speed pursuit and hinder a thief from making a clean getaway with your vehicle. Remote Ignition Block will be available on select GM 2009 and 2010 models in both the U.S. and Canada.

[ OnStar Stolen Vehicle Assistance ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I usually don’t like to write about concept devices, but every once in a while something comes along that I hope becomes a reality. Like the Peepo, which is essentially a GPS navigation device for the visually impaired who rely on a guide dog. So instead of attaching it to the dashboard of a car, the Peepo attaches to a guide dog’s handle, and instead of providing navigational feedback via an LCD display, the Peepo can steer someone who’s visually impaired via subtle vibrations felt in their fingertips.

It also features a handheld unit that uses voice recognition to set and confirm the destination, while the navigation directions are wirelessly communicated to the vibrating unit on the guide dog’s harness. Now unfortunately the Peepo isn’t available for sale just yet, but it’s currently one of the entries for the James Dyson Award which also features a ‘People’s Choice’ winner. So if you’d like to see this come to fruition, that’s probably a good place to start.

[ James Dyson Award - peepoGPS ] VIA [ Yanko Design ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Because of its small size and even smaller receiver, I typically recommend Logitech’s wireless VX Nano mouse for travelers not thrilled with their laptop’s touchpad. But it can be a bit pricey at times, so if you’d prefer to go with a more affordable corded model, the Elecom M-MK1UR features a handy rubber skirt that can be lifted allowing you to wind up and store the USB cable when not in use. It’s available for pre-order now from Geek Stuff 4 U in a variety of colors for about $41.

[ Elecom M-MK1UR Travel Mouse ] VIA [ Akihabara News ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I have my doubts the Shweeb will become the defacto standard for transportation in crowded cities, but as an alternative to cars and even bikes, it does have some merit. Each capsule holds a single rider who has to pedal in order to get from point A to point B, and besides the whole eco-friendly aspect of not relying on a motor or electricity, the Shweeb is actually faster than a bike. And since you’re suspended from a rail on a set path, you’re free to make phone calls or check your email without the worry of having an accident.

In a practical sense, setting up a network of rails to accommodate single riders all going to different places is a logistical nightmare, which is why the Shweeb only exists as an amusement park ride at the Agroventures Adventure Park in Rotorua, New Zealand. And if you happen to find yourself in their neighborhood while visiting your Kiwi pals, a 3-lap ride around their course will set you back about US $30.

[ The Shweeb ] VIA [ TreeHugger ]

By Evan Ackerman

Adequate light has always been a problem for picture taking, which is why someone made the mistake of inventing the on-camera flash, spawning generations of washed out pictures filled with creepy red eyes. A much better way to go about taking pictures in the dark is with a more sensitive lens, but the more sensitive the lens gets, the bigger it has to be.

You can get around this practical limitation by cheating and using electronic enhancement, and the Electrophysics AstroScope 9350EOS-FF night vision module makes this just about as easy as possible by mounting snugly between your DSLR body and the lens of your choice. You can use telephoto lenses, macro lenses, tilt-shift lenses… The AstroScope preserves all the electronic connections between your camera and your lens and just sits there, amplifying photons as they pass through. It works just fine with image stabilization, draws a minimal amount of power from your battery, and is available for both Nikon and Canon DSLRs.

As far as price goes, Electrophysics thoughtfully answers that question in their FAQ:

Is the AstroScope expensive?

The AstroScope 9350-series products are cost effective modular solutions. We designed the AstroScope with modularity in mind to save you money and to “build in” a level of forwards compatibility. You can take advantage of the unique opportunity to “swap” our patented Gen III AstroScope common module Central Intensifier Unit from one night vision imaging platform to another (for example, use one CIU for both a camcorder and an SLR camera setup).

The only other problem with this night vision module is that it turns the whole image that exciting high-tech military fluorescent green color, which might cramp your style if you’re trying to, say, take pictures of animals at night. The solution, of course, is to go find animals that are green to begin with. Like, polar bears.

[ AstroScope ] VIA [ Photography Blog ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Not only are massive ‘wall wart’ transformers a pain in the butt to squeeze onto a standard power strip, but they’re so heavy they have the tendency to fall out by themselves, severing your gear’s power source. So the PlugLock power strip solves that problem with a simple innovation. Each of the five generously spaced plugs can accommodate even the largest of transformers, and they all feature a dedicated clamp which can be adjusted to securely ‘lock’ the transformers in place. It’s also rated for 15 Amps, comes with a heavy-duty 5 foot, 14 AWG extension cord and is available from various online retailers for about $45.

[ Furman Sound PlugLock-PFP ] VIA [ The Red Ferret Journal ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Not only is this Fan Pen the perfect writing instrument to keep you calm, cool and collected during stressful situations like writing a final exam or lying your way through your taxes, but the small electric fan on the end (powered by a single AAA battery) should also serve as a great deterrent for anyone with the nasty habit of chewing on their pens. $12 from the MoMAstore obviously, but I’d be willing to pay up to $50 if the thing could actually fly.

[ Fan Pen ]

By Andrew Liszewski

With a name like ‘Broomba’ you might think this is a clever take on the popular robotic vacuum, but you’d be wrong. Instead of autonomously sweeping and cleaning your hard wood floors, it’s designed to scare guests at your next Hallowe’en party by moving around the room while blaring “spooky” music and “frightful” cackling sounds. But in reality, it will probably end up being nothing more than an inverted empty cup holder.

And even though October 31 isn’t exactly ‘just around the corner’ you can already scare one of these up for $39 from Grandin Road.

[ Broomba Self-Propelled Broom ] VIA [ The Green Head ]

By Chris Scott Barr

At some point one wonders if Lucas has finally made every Star Wars product imaginable. Of course, every time you start to think that, something new (and sometimes cool) comes along to prove you wrong. The latest piece of merchandise comes in the form of a Darth Vader Lightsaber Flashlight.

This nice-looking replica of Vader’s lightsaber features for red superbright LEDs for lighting your way. It also features some cool sound effects for an added touch. Sure, red isn’t the best color for a flashlight, but can you really imagine it shining anything else? The flashlight is powered by 3 AAA batteries and will set you back around $25 when it ships on September 15th.

[ Star Wars Shop ] VIA [ CoolestGadgets ]