Oh! Gizmo

By Andrew Liszewski

In reality, the Cool Shades Tape from Azumi and David is meant to be nothing more than just a stylish alternative to boring, clear packing tape. But there’s nothing stopping you from tearing off a few inches and wearing it as a disposable, yet cool, fashion accessory. They’re available in two different flavors, Disc Jockey & Supermodel glasses, or Architect & Intellectual, and each 60mm wide/60m long roll is available from Azumi and David’s online store for about $17.

[ Cool Shades Tape ] VIA [ The Red Ferret Journal ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Believe it or not, the tool loved and loathed by photographers and graphic designers the world over, and the poster child for software piracy, turns 20 on February 10th this year. To commemorate the upcoming anniversary, Webdesigner Depot has put together a retrospective looking back at the origins of Photoshop, as well as breaking down the major upgrades and new features of each version that came out over the years. On one hand it seems surprising that Photoshop is already 20 years old, but on the other hand it seems like it’s been around for as long as I can remember.

[ Webdesigner Depot - 20 Years of Adobe Photoshop ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re ever flying on South Africa’s kulula airline you’ll never have to worry about hearing an intercom announcement asking if there’s a pilot on board, because their recent rebranding will leave every passenger with a basic knowledge of aviation and aircraft. It’s rather clever and educational (I had no idea where the black box was stashed) though something tells me it would never fly in certain countries (no pun intended) because who knows how this knowledge could be used.

[ kulula ] VIA [ PSFK ]

By Andrew Liszewski

You may think someone carrying around a wallet full of receipts, membership cards and mountains of change in their back pocket looks uncomfortable, but I can’t imagine the discomfort of having one of these LEGO brick or baseplate creations in your pants. They range in price from ~$24 for the baseplate versions, to ~$32 for the ones made of individual bricks, and if you’re anything like me, the randomness of the colored bricks in the wallet in the lower right corner is probably driving you crazy. Don’t they know the rules for building LEGO walls? You start with one color and only move on to the next color once you’ve run out!

[ ColorByNumbers - LEGO Wallets ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Wacom has finally joined the fight in the battle against cable clutter with their new Intuos 4 Wireless edition. The new medium-sized tablet connects to your PC via Bluetooth allowing you to wander up to 33 feet away while still using it. Now I’m not sure how productive you’d be 33 feet away from your monitor, but for artists who like to sit their tablets in their laps, this will be a welcome upgrade.

It still comes with a USB connection and cable which is used for charging the tablet or using it when the battery is dead, and it’s available now for $399.

[ Wacom Intuos 4 Wireless ] VIA [ SlashGear ]

By Andrew Liszewski

When switched off, Martin Neuhaus’ Becherlicht lamp will leave you wondering why there’s an oddly mounted plastic cup near the wall. But when it’s turned on, you’ll understand its clever design. When properly positioned, the lamp projects a three-dimensional image of a colored lampshade on the wall, making it appear more like a traditional lamp with shade, as well as illuminating the room where it’s installed. It was created specifically for an exhibition at the imm cologne international furnishing show, and while it looks like a finished and sellable product, I don’t think it’s available for sale, or know if it will ever be.

[ Martin Neuhaus ] VIA [ designboom ]

By Andrew Liszewski

The name ‘Short Circuit Shelf’ conjured up images of my handful of DVDs and books being held up by a wise-cracking, sentient robot, but this is cool too. Created by Alexandra DiCairano, the Short Circuit Shelf is actually designed to look like a circuit board when mounted on your wall, which, according to Alexandra, “have a beautiful and efficient pattern that perfectly serve their function…” The shelves aren’t available for sale though, which is a shame since they’d probably be more popular in comp sci and electrical engineering students’ dorm rooms than that picture of Einstein sticking his tongue out.

[ Short Circuit Shelf ] VIA [ Freshome ]

By Andrew Liszewski

For now they’re only available for the city of London, or at least its downtown core, but these paper maps are a great update to traditional maps, particularly since we’ve all grown accustomed to being able to zoom-in with Google Maps and GPS navigation devices. The map is broken into 4 quadrants which can be individually zoomed/unfolded to give an enlarged and more detailed view of that part of the city, and thanks to its clever design, when the map is folded to its minimum size you still have the ability to zoom in on any two sections for quick access. It comes printed on tear-resistant paper and includes a clear PVC wallet to keep it protected, and is available from TheZoomableMap.com for about $13. (£8.00)

Thanks Meg!

[ map2 - The Zoomable Paper Map ] VIA [ Coudal ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re a pixel pusher who has to have the latest version of Photoshop the second Adobe releases it, then you’ll probably want to make sure the Photoshop magnets on your fridge or filing cabinet are updated too. So head on over to Meninos who now have an updated version of their Photoshop, err, I mean Ps Magnet Kit which includes 13 different toolbars, menus and palettes for $25.

[ Ps Magnet Kit ] VIA [ Chip Chick ]