I don’t think there’s anything wrong with a little product placement in films or TV shows, as long as it doesn’t distract from what’s happening on screen. But Logorama, an Oscar-nominated short film by the French design collective H5, takes things to a whole new level. If you haven’t seen it yet I recommend taking a few minutes at work to check it out, and you’ll definitely want to watch it a few times if you’re the type who enjoys logo-spotting, since it’s chock full of them. In fact it makes me wonder why the trademark lawyers aren’t breaking down their front door…
You can watch a clip from the short on the Logorama – The Movie website, or check out the whole thing on Facebook. Just keep in mind there’s some NSFW language, and images that some might find offensive. (ie Ronald McDonald holding a machine gun.)
This is some ivy any green blooded duck squeezer would be proud to have covering their house, and not just because it’s not an invasive species. Solar Ivy is solar powered, just like real ivy, but rather than growing out of control and choking out all other endemic vegetation, it passes electricity on to you (yay!). Gigantic solar panels are expensive, but having a whole bunch of smaller solar panels is cheaper to produce, cheaper to replace, and can still put out enough power to make a dent in your energy bill: a 4′ x 7′ strip of Solar Ivy can produce up to 85 watts.
In order to get Solar Ivy into production, the company (Sustainably Minded Interactive Technology) is looking for a grant Pepsi ‘Refresh’ grant (such things exist) of some $50,000. This is one of those rare occasions where a really cool concept has an actual chance of becoming commercial reality… Right now, they’re ranked #32, and they’ll need to get into the top tend to get funding. You can vote for Solar Ivy here.
If you’ll recall, last August Logitech released a wireless keyboard/mouse combo that promised incredible battery life. Specifically, you could go three years on your keyboard and one year with your mouse before needing to change the batteries. (Logitech is good to their word, five months in and my keyboard still reads as full, and my mouse isn’t even down to half a charge.) Well the company has decided that it can do a bit better and thus has announced the new Wireless Desktop MK710.
Largely, the two devices are pretty well the same as their predecessors. The mouse seems to have gotten a small design change, but otherwise you’ll find the same features in both. This includes the Incurve keys, hyper-fast scrolling, and the tiny Unifying receiver. The main difference here is that you’ll get three years of battery life out of both devices. That’s right, they’ve somehow tripled the battery life on the mouse. Look for the combo starting in April for the same $99 price.
At one time Bluetooth headsets were only worn by tech-savvy go-getters who didn’t realize they weren’t the most flattering-looking accessory. But as the use of cellphones while driving becomes illegal in more and more places around the world, Bluetooth headsets are becoming a necessity. However, that doesn’t mean they still have to be worn 24/7, and since nobody wants to have to carry a cellphone and a Bluetooth headset ‘just in case’, Newton Peripherals have come out with an iPhone case that makes it easy to carry both with the MoGo Talk. Read my full review after the jump.
The convenience of a handheld battery-powered vacuum like a Dustbuster is usually overshadowed by the fact that it doesn’t do a very good job at cleaning. And while it’s no where near as compact as a Dustbuster, we’d opt for this new lithium-ion battery powered Miele Hybrid canister vac any day.
Its 1,800 watt motor ensures the vacuum really sucks, in a good way, though it also means the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries are only good for about 20 minutes of cleaning. But the Hybrid can also be plugged into AC when the batteries are dead, and it takes about 3 hours to charge them up completely. At 14 pounds it’s definitely not the lightest cordless vac on the market either, but a set of casters makes it easy to wheel around. In fact the only real downside I can see is the expected $1,060+ (€ 770) price tag (it’s OK to gasp in shock) when it’s eventually available.
Good news for all you Pixar and vinyl toy fans! Via their company’s blog, MINDstyle has recently announced a partnership with Disney Consumer Products to create a limited edition line of ATC (Art Toy Collectible) vinyl figures based on characters from Pixar’s animated short films. Tin Toy will be the first figure available in the line, though details about when it will actually be available and where you’ll be able to find one aren’t known. But it’s safe to assume that collectors will be snapping these up, and you probably won’t be able to just waltz into a Toys R’ Us and find them on the shelves.
A dog leash with a built-in flashlight isn’t really necessary if you live in the city or suburbs where there’s plenty of streetlights, but I can see it being useful if you live in a more rural setting and have to walk your pup at night. And that latter demographic might find this particular retractable dog leash appealing since it features a small generator inside that tops off a set of rechargeable batteries which in turn power a set of LED lights. The leash is no heavier than a traditional model, and it even features reflective panels on either side of the handle, as well as reflective tape on the leash itself, for added safety if you’re out walking in the dark.
Unfortunately the leash isn’t quite available for sale just yet, though Fido Fashions, the company behind the design, is “currently 6 months from completion of a finished trade show prototype” and “is looking for a handful of small capital investors who can share the vision of the founder…”
Over the last week or so, there has been some talk about Facebook launching a “Gmail killer” webmail feature. Various sites covered this and described how Facebook was looking to replace Gmail (and any other webmail client) with their new service. To be quite honest, I haven’t really cared, or given it a second thought until now. After all, since Facebook likes to half-ass things anyway (look at their new layout which has actually taken a step backwards by removing the option for a live feed, or their crappy instant messaging service), why would I want to rely on them for anything more than social networking? The only reason I’ve given it a second look is because of a new feature in Gmail called Buzz.
Feel free to watch the video above, as it’s going to point out some of the finer details of this new feature. Essentially what ‘Buzz’ does is allow you to post status updates, pictures, links and videos from within Gmail. Anyone who is on your friends list will see these updates on their Buzz wall. Sound familiar? It should, because that’s pretty much what Facebook boils down to. Sure, it has some nice features that you won’t find over on Facebook and appears to have the typical Google polish to it. Just don’t go removing your Facebook page right away, because Buzz is likely never going to replace it.
If James Bond was ever challenged to a game of checkers by one of the over-the-top villains he continuously encounters, I guarantee the game board would be just like this one. Except that everyone else playing Trapdoor Checkers will know in advance the board is fraught with 8 strategically placed trapdoors, as indicated by the levers on either side. While it may seem like just a lame gimmick, the trapdoors do add a bit of extra strategy to the game.
When it’s their turn, each player spins to see if they move a piece, or open or close one of the trap doors on the board. Now besides the obvious thrill of watching an opponents’ piece fall through a hole when you open a door below it, the open and closed doors also create random obstacles in the game that can either foil or facilitate a jump or a carefully laid out plan. Now I don’t think the trapdoor idea would lend itself well to other board games like chess or Scrabble, but Trapdoor Monopoly sounds like it has promise, as does Snakes & Ladders & Trapdoors. $29.99 available from Goliath Games.
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