Oh! Gizmo

By Chris Scott Barr

Toast is one of the more simple foods to make in the kitchen. It’s arguably only more difficult than boiling water. Of course there’s no good way to know exactly when the bread has gotten to that perfect brown color. Sure, you can fiddle with that little slider or or knob, but it never really does any good. Of course this wouldn’t be such an issue if you could actually see the toast as it’s cooking.

One designer decided that they would solve the problem by using glass sides to heat the toast. This would allow you to watch it as it cooks. Unfortunately the glass won’t actually get hot enough to toast the bread (and I’m really not sure how you’d get it out of there without burning yourself). It looks like this one will permanently be in the ‘concept’ stage.

[ Inventables ] VIA [ CoolestGadgets ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Kids are messy, it’s just one of those simple facts of life. You can’t really be too hard on them, being the younglings they are. As they get older, they develop better motor skills, and just generally stop tripping over their own feet. Until that time arrives, you have to do your best to minimize the messes they will be making. The latest weapon in the fight to prevent messes is the Loopa Bowl.

The Loopa Bowl is a little more than your average cereal bowl. It is weighted at the bottom, and surrounded by a pair of rings. The outermost rings has handles all around it, and is used to carry the bowl. As long as you’re holding onto the outer ring, the bowl will stay upright. A simple design that’s sure to save countless spills for just $10.

[ ThinkGeek ] VIA [ RGS ]

By Chris Scott Barr

How many of you still use a kettle for heating up water? I’m not big on doing it myself, since the microwave does things plenty fast enough. However, I know a few people who are big tea drinkers, and use a kettle most of the time. Of course, this means they have to deal with that annoying whistle every time they want some tea. Well since you’ve got all of that air moving, why not have your kettle make some music?

Apparently one designer has given a lot of thought into that very matter. It looks like hey has inserted a tube, likely with several holes strategically placed, into the spout. Small pistons (which seem to be controlled by a small circuit board, though not much info is given) move up and down to cover the holes in accordance with the music. It’s a bit over-the-top for a cup of tea, but that’s the life of a designer for you.

[ Yurisuzuki ] VIA [ BoingBoing ]

By Chris Scott Barr

I’m no master chef, but I can whip up a half-decent meal or snack in the kitchen. One thing I’ve discovered that I have a great eye for is pouring things into a liquid measuring cup. It seems like something trivial, but nine times out of ten I can pour the exact amount needed without staying eye-level with the cup while pouring. Being able to do that can make things go just a little quicker when cooking or baking. If you don’t have quite the same eye for pouring things, here’s a little gadget that can help.

This Smart Measure cup has an LCD screen that tells you exactly how much liquid is currently in the cup. You can even program it to beep when a specific amount of liquid has been poured in. The cup can even be removed for washing, so you don’t ruin the LCD screen. If you spend a lot of time measuring liquids, this could be an invaluable tool. No word on pricing, but it should be available sometime this fall.

[ Yanko ] VIA [ CoolestGadgets ]

By Chris Scott Barr

There are many different ways to slice a pizza, probably even more than ways to skin a cat. Come to think of it, who skins cats? Anyway, it’s rare that you’ll actually end up with slices that are all equal in size. With four (or more) cuts, you’re not going to get them perfect. Most people could really care less, but if you’re a perfectionist, here’s a pizza cutter just for you.

The aptly-named Equalizer Multi-Blade Rocker Pizza Cutter chops up your pie into 8 perfect slices each and every time. Unless you don’t get it centered, then they’ll all be off slightly and you’ll have to start over and make a new pizza. Honestly, I think most people can do just fine without this thing. However, if you’re anal enough to care about perfectly-sliced pizza, then by all means, drop $190-$250 on one of these (depending on the size).

[ Abest Kitchen ] VIA [ Book of Joe ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Have you ever lived with a roommate that liked to steal you food and drinks out of the fridge? They’d usually claim to think it was theirs, citing the fact that there was no label on it or something. Well here’s a way to make sure that everyone knows which stuff belongs to whom.

This stackable Flatshare Fridge concept has four different compartments that stack on top of each other. If you had four people in a house, you could each have your own little fridge. You can even control the individual temperatures of each one. While it might seem like a cool idea at first, it would likely end up being more trouble than it’s worth. Most places you rent (or buy for that matter) already come with a refrigerator. So unless this thing is really inexpensive, you’ll be much better off going with a regular full sized fridge.

[ Toxel ] VIA [ Technabob ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Over the last couple of years I’ve started to really learn how to cook. Sure I could make some simple stuff before, but now I can pull off a 5-course meal. I never really appreciated how hard my mom worked every night cooking until I learned to do it myself. Sometimes it seems like you need an extra arm or two just to get everything done. Well here’s a little gadget that can take one of the tasks off your hands.

The Stirr is a small battery powered stirrer. You just set it in a pan of whatever you’re cooking, turn it on and it’ll keep things stirred up until you’re ready for them. This would be great for soups, gravy, sauce and any number of other things. For around $25, you really can’t go wrong here.

[ Lakeland ] VIA [ Dvice ]

By Chris Scott Barr

I’ve discovered that having a mini fridge in my office is about as essential as having a chair. Sure, the kitchen isn’t terribly far away, but when I do get up and wander off to another room, it usually breaks my concentration. Sometimes that’s a good thing, but if I’m really trying to churn out a lot of work, I prefer to stop as little as possible. Oh, and I’m lazy.

I’ve been tempted in the past to add a microwave to the office, since it would require me to leave my desk even less. Well it looks like Heinz may have the perfect solution, the Beanzawave. It’s a USB-powered microwave that was designed to work with their own single-serving cans of Chef Boyardee foods.

There aren’t a lot of details listed, like the all-important wattage of the device. Since it’s USB-powered, I’m going to guess that it’s probably not very high, which would mean long cook times. Not to mention that Heinz is only testing the waters with this right now, if there is enough interest they might put them into production. Honestly, I’d probably just go with a full-size microwave. This thing looks like it’d be a bit small to reheat leftover pizza and such.

[ DailyMail ] VIA [ Dvice ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Trash can technology really hasn’t evolved much over the years. I think the greatest advancement was when they put on a pedal that opened the lid when you stepped on it. I’ll admit, I love that about my trash can, but surely there are other areas in which we can improve this household item. I suppose there is that smell that comes from stinky garbage. But aside from air fresheners and actually taking out the smelly trash, how else can you combat the smell? Apparently the answer is extremely cold temperatures and an antibacterial UV light.

This awesome Minus concept garbage can uses a combination of those two things to keep odors at bay. I’m sure that it would work, and it would definitely look awesome doing it, but I doubt this would ever see the light of day. Honestly, how many people are going to want to run a mini freezer that just keeps their trash cold. Plus it would just get re-purposed as an impromptu beer cooler. On second thought, put me down for two.

VIA [ Tuvie ]