Oh! Gizmo

By Andrew Liszewski

Don’t get too excited over this classy white USB necktie, since it doesn’t appear to be available for sale, but the concept was created by the designers at dialog05 as a means for making business contacts. Instead of swapping business cards, you can just download their contact info to the handy USB flash drive you have hanging around your neck all day long.

[ dialog05 - Business Class ] VIA [ Inspire me, now! ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Even if ironing was as easy as just pointing my finger at a pile of clothes, and they’d magically become unwrinkled, I still wouldn’t do it. But for those who want to look neat, without the hassle of dragging out the ironing board and iron, Miele might entice you with this bad boy. The B890E Rotary Iron features a wide roller that’s not unlike using a stationary steam roller to iron your clothing. The roller’s speed is controlled via a foot pedal, which pretty much requires you to sit while operating it, but its unique design can handle everything from shirts to table cloths.

It’s also not much bigger than an ironing board when in use, and it folds down to a compact unit that Miele claims is easy to stash in a closet. Not surprisingly though, you can expect to fork out almost $2,200 for such a convenience. Otherwise, I’ve found that a $2 Sharpie pen is just as effective at making convincing crease marks on your Dockers.

[ Miele B890E Rotary Iron ] VIA [ Apartment Therapy ]

By Andrew Liszewski

While this shirt was actually designed by Formula Werks and Chicago-based designer toy store Rotofugi for those who collect vinyl figures, I think it applies just as well to those of us who prefer to waste our money on gadgets, electronics and gizmos. Just because they may require a firmware update every few months, doesn’t mean they’re not toys!

$25 from Formula Werks, and you can customize the color of the shirt or the text to your liking.

[ Formula Werks - i have more toys than your kids ] VIA [ ALBOTAS ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Normally I’d scoff at the notion of paying $11.99 for a single pair of socks, but how can anyone who’s ever spent any amount of time trying to rescue the Princess not want a pair of these Warp Zone socks? They’re not an officially-licensed Nintendo product of course, but the random coin box pattern on the foot and the green warp pipe design on the leg makes it pretty clear where they got their inspiration from. You can order a pair from AshiDashi, but be aware they only come in men’s 8-13 sizes.

[ Warp Zone Socks ] VIA [ ALBOTAS ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’ve ever wondered what someone’s rank was in the hipster army, just count the number of ironically cool mini badges on their jacket. The more badges, the more seniority. Now as a civilian I technically shouldn’t be wearing any, but it’s hard to pass up these badges designed to look like the plastic buttons used on old-school arcade machines. A 10-pack of all the 2.5cm badges you see above is available from Supermandolini for about $20, but the nostalgia is priceless.

[ Supermandolini Arcade Badges ] VIA [ ALBOTAS ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Because sometimes even Pac-Man can’t handle an entire city full of ghosts by himself. You know who he’s gonna call.

Printed on black American Apparel tees in men’s and women’s S-XL sizes for $19.95. (XXL and 3XL is an extra $2.)

[ Glennz Tees - Called For Help ] VIA [ Uncrate ]

By Luke Anderson

Every year at about this time I start to get really antsy for Spring. That’s because we start to get a taste of warmer weather for a day or so, then it turns back to bitter cold for a week. Despite my affinity for technology and the amount of my time spent in front of a computer, I like spending time outdoors. Unfortunately when it’s cold out, I prefer to stay inside where it is cozy and warm. So how does one beat the cold without putting on layers upon layers of clothing? With heated pants of course.

These heated pants aren’t the most stylish out there, though the gray ones don’t look half bad. I was always told that it’s what’s on the inside that counts. In this case, the built-in heater is what really matters. If you’re going to be out in the cold for long periods, it’s not really going to matter what your pants look like if they’re keeping you warm. The heater is powered by a rechargeable battery that slips into your pocket. These toasty pants will set you back a cool $121.

[ DogFunk ] VIA [ Coolest-Gadgets ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Looking for a sure fire way to get kicked out of your local club? Or more likely a guarantee that you’ll never get through the front doors in the first place? Just show up wearing this asinine Disco Ball Hat. It looks like a standard black baseball cap, but features a light-up spinning disco ball on top that’s sure to let everyone know they should never invite you to their parties ever again.

And if you want pricing info you’ll have to contact UrbanTrend directly. Watch how fast I go.

[ Disco Ball Hat ] VIA [ Fashionably Geek ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I grew up during what I consider to be the height of sneaker popularity, and no shoe was more lusted after by my grade school chums than the Reebok Pump. The original version used an air bladder wrapped around the inside of the shoe to provide a snug fit when pumped up, but Reebok’s new version features an inflatable bladder across the entire sole, allowing a runner or jogger to instead adjust the amount of cushioning in their shoe.

Another big difference is that the pumping mechanism has been integrated into the heel, rather than hanging off the tongue. So the air bladders get filled once you start running, and the level of cushioning/stiffness is dependent on the force of your heel strike, and whether you’ve put the shoe into its ‘run’ or ‘train’ mode using a set of buttons on the side of the sole.

The Reebok SmoothFit SelectRide shoes will be available this week, but are only being sold at Champs Sports stores for $149.99.

[ Popular Science - Ladies and gentlemen, the Reebok Pump is Back on the Scene! Well, Sort Of ]