For behind the scenes pictures, stories and special contests, follow us on Facebook!
Subscribe:

Tag Archives: kickstarter

SolSource Reflector Can Cook Anything With The Power Of The Sun

By David Ponce on 06/19/13 • Leave a comment!

solsource-1

If it wasn’t for the sun, we would simply not be around. It’s responsible for giving energy to practically all living creatures on the planet, as well as helping pasty white boys look a little less sick. If harnessed properly, it can also cook. The SolSun reflector is shaped so that the sun’s rays focus on the cooking area, and can reportedly grill a hamburger in about 6 minutes, or about the same time as a regular BBQ. Except of course this cooker doesn’t require any fuel, and is up to cooking temperature much faster than coal or propane. The thing weighs 40lbs, is 4.3ft. across, is made of a black steel base and plastic reflective panels, and assembles in about 30 minutes with the included tools. It’s able to support up to a 20L stockpot, although the maximum temperatures it reaches will obviously depend on weather factors. Still, at that diameter on a sunny day, you should be good to cook just about anything.

The SolSun is currently on pre-order on Kickstarter for $250, with shipping in October of this year, which is unfortunately a little late for the summer in some parts.

[ Project Page ] VIA [ Gizmag ]

It Turns Out That The Wheel, Re-Invented, Is Square

By David Ponce on 06/06/13 • 1 Comment

shark-wheel-1

Shark Wheels are a “new” kind of wheel for your skateboards. They’re still sort of round, but they’re made from a complex shape that sort of forms a cube. Kind of. We’re not too clear on the geometry, and clearly there’s still some roundness here or there wouldn’t be much rolling. But the point is that Shark Wheels are supposed to be better than traditional wheels.

It has less surface area touching the ground on hard surfaces, allowing for low rolling resistance. The alternating path can bite into soft terrain, meaning it can roll seamlessly in soft surfaces. The alternating center of gravity allows for superior high-speed stability, eliminating speed-wobble that occurs from the geometry of normal wheels.

When used on hard surfaces, the Shark Wheel produces a low friction profile similar to a high performance, low rolling resistance tire. This allows for less energy to be used as the contact patch is very small.

We’re not entirely convinced we aren’t just looking at regular wheels with wobbly sides and treads, but if this translates into a better ride for anyone, then great. They’re on Kickstarter right now where $50 will get you a set of 4 longboard wheels.

You decide if any of this makes any sense. We’ve included a video after the jump, so feel free to check that out.

… Continue Reading

Wall-Mounted Magnetic Bottle Opener

By David Ponce on 06/06/13 • Leave a comment!

wall-mounted-magnetic-bottle-opener

Apologies for the large GIF. But we think that the above animation pretty much does the entire job of describing the product, which we like because we can be lazy sometimes. In case it’s not working on your device, it’s a simple bottle opener with the added benefit of magnets to catch falling caps. That too is appealing for the lazy-minded, since you’ll have less tidying to do after your guests have left.

The DropCatch, as it’s called, comes in two sizes. The large one can catch up to 52 caps, while its smaller brother tops out at 15. Prices are $60 and $40, respectively, and involve making a pledge on everyone’s favorite crowdsourcing site, Kickstarter.

dropcatch-1

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Gizmodo ]

Accelerometer Equipped LED Braking Lights Work Even With Engine Brake

By David Ponce on 06/06/13 • Leave a comment!

vololights-1

Without brake lights, motor vehicles would be pretty dangerous; simply watching that hunk of metal in front of you getting bigger isn’t going to cut it, ever. But standard lights are also not 100% perfect. For instance when you slow down through either engine brake or downshifting, nothing lights up. And there’s rarely a way to tell whether you’ve just tapped the brakes or are mashing them with all your might. The VoloLights solve both those issues by including a 3-axis accelerometer. Sadly for motorcycles only, these LED lights will blink any time you’re slowing down, whether it’s through pressing the brake lever, through downshifting or even engine braking. What’s more, they’ll blink more rapidly in proportion to how fast you’re scrubbing speed. The system is embedded into a license plate holder that also has plate illumination so you can remain street legal. At $79 as a Kickstarter pledge, it’s a pretty affordable way to add yet another layer of safety to your ride.

vololights-2

[ Project Page ]

Display An Animation On Your Bike Wheel As You Cycle

By David Ponce on 05/29/13 • Leave a comment!

monkey-light-pro-4

Whether you have an actual statement to make, or just think they look cool, there’s no denying that the Monkey Light Pro will attract attention.

The Monkey Light Pro has 4 bars of LEDs which are attached together inside your wheel. As your ride the system rotates, and using Persistence Of Visio, creates an image with its 256 full color LEDs. The Monkey Light Pro has sensors to track its speed, heads-up position and rotation direction. This allows the system to create stable, full-wheel images from 10 to 40 mph (15 to 65 km/h).

The images of course can be animated, and the system accepts files of several different formats, from GIFs to FLVs, by way of JPEGs or PNGs. There’s a 7000mAh Lithium Polymer which can give you from 3 to 8 hours of runtime at full brightness or up to 48 hours at reduced brightness (say you’re riding at night). When you order it, the Monkey Light Pro will come pre-loaded with 10 custom animations, but it’s relatively easy to load your own later on. The system will fit wheels of the following sizes: 26″, 27″, 28″, 29″, 700c.

It’s a Kickstarter project for now, and Early Backer prices are sold out. So the cheapest you can get one wheel is $695, and $1,390 for a pair. Yeah… that’s a lot of money to attract attention.

… Continue Reading

The Toy We Never Knew We Wanted: A QuadCopter RC Car

By David Ponce on 05/27/13 • Leave a comment!

quadcoptercar

UK-based product designer Witold Mielniczek has created the above prototype, which is both an off-road remote controlled car, and quadcopter. It’s called: B. As you would expect, the rear-wheel powered vehicle does drive about like a regular off-road RC car, but at the touch of a button can be airborne. Each wheel is “driven not by a center-mounted axle, but instead by cog mechanisms at the bottom of the rim. This leaves the center of the rings clear for four 7-inch propellers, which allow the vehicle to get airborne on the fly (no pun intended).” The wheels are flexible and have special mounts that allow for hard landings without breaking. A full charge of the battery gives you around 15 minutes of flying/driving time. And best of all is the inclusion of a 720p video camera that can record point-of-view footage to a Micro SD card. You totally shouldn’t go spy on your neighbors or anything because that’s probably illegal… We’re just saying that it’s something the B can do.

Of course, you’re going to have to pay for it. It’s doing the Kickstarter dance, and a pledge of $484 will get you a disassembled version with no remote while at $605, you’ll get it fully assembled and with an RC transmitter.

Hit the jump for more pics and links.

… Continue Reading

Recoiling Bicycle Mudguard Works Sort Of Like A Snap Bracelet

By David Ponce on 05/17/13 • 1 Comment

Plume-Rollable-Mudguard

Getting mud sprayed all over your back when you’re riding is fun. Ok, no, it’s not. But mudguards are often badly made, unsightly, and people generally tend to avoid them. If they had the Plume, pictured above, they might change their mind. Made from stainless steel and a flexible polymer, the Plume “extends out into a sleek mudguard or recoils back into a tight circle under your seat with the gentle press of a finger, even if you’re in motion.” The action is much like that of the snap bracelets of your youth, and doesn’t require springs, or any special mechanism. It’s $35, currently on pre-order on Kickstarter.

[ Project Page ] VIA [ GearHungry ]

Keyprop Fits On Your Keychain, Could Actually Be Useful

By David Ponce on 05/09/13 • 1 Comment

Keyprop-a-key-sized-smartphone-stand

Props that help you keep your phone at an angle for optimal hands-free viewing are rarely successful because really, who wants to carry an extra item in their pockets? But the KeyProp could change all that. It’s a small plastic key-shaped accessory that fits on a standard keychain and attaches itself to a smartphone to, well, prop it up for convenient hands-free viewing. However, it does make use of your phone’s audio jack so you won’t be able to watch with your earbuds. If that doesn’t bother you, head on over to Kicksarter to pledge $15 for yours.

[ Project Page ] VIA [ LikeCool ]

The Cole-Bar Hammer Is The Swiss Army Knife Of Demolition Tools

By David Ponce on 05/09/13 • Leave a comment!

Cole Bar Hammer

You had us at ‘demolition’. But since we’re sticklers for details, we might as well tell you a bit more about the Cole-Bar. It’s technically a hammer, but it also does duty as 6 other tools: a crow bar, a demolition tool, an angle measurement tool, a ruler, a socket wrench and nail pliers. Granted some of these “tools” are somewhat of a stretch; anyone can call a hammer a ruler as well if you use its straight edge to draw a line. But the point is that the Cole-Bar features a patented locking gear mechanism, meaning it can be opened and extended from 0-180 degrees and locked in place at 15 degree increments. This turns it into a full fledged crow bar for instance, but you can also split it in two and use each half as a separate tool. There’s a socket wrench mechanism at the end of one of the halves, and angle measurement notches at the end of another. The current prototype is made out of a #45 carbon steel with electro-plating which is likely to survive repeated attempts to destroy it. The final production model’s composition hasn’t been determined yet, and yes, this does mean that the Cole-Bar isn’t a finished product. It’s doing the Kickstarter dance as we speak, 64% into a $100k goal in $65 increments. If you pledge, you can expect to see it in the Fall.

cole-bar-crowbar

[ Product Page ] VIA [ GearHungry ]

Copyright © 2013 OhGizmo!