I like the idea behind this Rain Drum umbrella that turns the pitter patter of raindrops into various drumkit sounds. It uses five wax cloth ‘shades’ that each have a different elasticity to produce unique drum sounds as the raindrops bounce off of them. Of course the stiff frame needed to keep the drum skins taut doesn’t look like it folds down that easy, or at all, and the irregular shape of the umbrella as a whole could actually make it kind of tricky to stay dry. But, you can’t fault designer Dong Min Park for his concept that basically tries to create a silver lining for a cloudy, rainy day.
Move over William Daniels because TomTom has just totally trumped Mio’s Knight Rider GPS device with the announcement that they’ll be offering genuine Star Wars voices for their line of GPS units. This includes Darth Vader, C-3PO, Yoda and even Han Solo. Now I’m not sure if the voices will all be recorded from the original cast, including Harrison Ford, but the promotional video they created with Darth Vader in the recording booth certainly sounds like James Earl Jones to me.
As of today the Darth Vader voice is available for download for $12.95, while C-3PO, Yoda and Han Solo will be made available at intervals throughout the Summer.
Obscure multiplayer rules you spent more time setting up than actually playing a game? Check. Bizarre secret characters no one ever liked getting stuck with? Check. Overuse of proximity mines, usually to your own detriment? Double check. Yep, it looks like College Humor has covered all the bases here.
Do you consider yourself a Gmail power user? Well without this Gboard keypad that features dedicated buttons for 19 oft-used functions, you’re nothing but a Gmail chump! Ok, maybe that was a little harsh, but for just $19.99 from ThinkGeek this keypad will have you replying, archiving or trashing message faster than ever. All you need is a free USB port, a semi-modern OS and browser, and the keyboard shortcuts activated in the Gmail settings.
At first glance I worried that this adapter plate from Thanko that allows you to perch your laptop atop an unused tripod could lead to a nasty fall, turning your expensive hardware into a pile of unusable electronic bits. But I guess professional photographers do the same thing with high-end DSLRs that can be considerably more expensive than even the most-tripped out laptops. So it should probably work just fine, as long as you don’t cheap out on the tripod that is.
The adapter looks to be nothing more than a metal plate with a standard tripod mount on the bottom, as well as a set of elastic straps to serve as a seatbelt for your laptop while it’s sitting on top. So while you could easily build one yourself, the $21(¥1980) price tag almost outweighs the trip to the hardware store and the half-hour or so of DIY required to assemble your own version.
If at any point in your life you’ve had a hard time getting a key into a key hole when it’s dark, then you’ll instantly ‘get’ the V Lock concept designed by Junjie Zhang. The rendered mockup and gratuitous use of arrows makes it easy to understand why the V Lock is a vast improvement on the standard deadbolt design, though unfortunately since I can’t see how this approach would work with a flush mounted keyhole, it doesn’t seem applicable to car doors where it would probably be most appreciated.
If you’re tired of your Wii being the only thing in your living room that doesn’t match your black TV, then listen up. Nintendo has finally announced the release of the black Wii bundle here in the US. It has already been available in Japan for nearly a year, so it’s not a huge surprise to finally see it hit our shores.
What is a bit surprising is that now the new black console will include Wii Sports Resort and the Wii MotionPlus adapter in the box. This is a great value, as you had to purchase those separately for $50. These additions will also be found in all newly-shipped white consoles as well. These new ones won’t hit stores until May 9th, so you might want to hold off on purchasing a new Wii until then. If you decide to buy the white version, double-check that Wii Sports Resort and Wii MotionPlus are in the box, as there will likely be plenty of older bundles still on store shelves for some time.
For those who prefer a minimalist look in their homes, but still like to indulge in the high-tech necessities of modern day living, the Hohrizontal 51 is a sleek looking shelf that can support up to 55 lbs of equipment, not including speakers since those are already built-in. It’s got hookups allowing you to plug in your stereo or TV so it can be incorporated into your home theater setup, as well as an integrated iPhone/iPod dock if you prefer to listen to your music that way. Available in a wide variety of finishes including high-gloss solid colors or matte wood veneer, the Hohrizontal 51 will fit any decor, though with a price tag of $664 probably not any budget .
Cars and robots are a match made in heaven when it comes to toy design, but video game cartridges and video game characters? Not so much it turns out. And if you need proof of this just check out these ‘Kasetto Sentai’ or ‘Cartridge Corps’ transformers that Bandai produced back in the 80′s.
In cartridge mode they looked just like an actual Famicom cart, just a lot smaller, but when each one transformed into a character in the game they represented, things kind of fell apart. As Video Game Den, who actually found the toys, puts it, “Thruthfully, the toy ends up looking like a character in a cartridge suit.” Kind of hard to disagree with that. The Kasetto Sentai came in 8 different versions including characters from Ghost’n Goblins, Dig Dug and of course Super Mario Bros. They kind of remind me of the Food Changeables McDonald’s also had back in the 80′s, though they didn’t cheap out on the robot design quite as much.
Related Tags: Concepts, Instruments, Weather
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