Oh! Gizmo

By Evan Ackerman

I used to play paintball… I had a totally badass setup which is now collecting dust in my basement. Seeing the EMT Paintball Sentry Turret is making my trigger finger itchy again, especially with the suite of add-ons that you can get to make this thing the terror of your backyard and/or workspace. The most basic version includes what appears to be a custom made double barreled paintball gun, sitting on top of a mechanized pitch and yaw mount (350 degree rotation and 90 degree tilt) and bolted to a big tripod. The markers are powered by CO2 and gravity fed from hoppers (200 rounds each) on top. A camera mounted next to the guns relays a picture along a 25 foot cable back to a monitor and remote control, which allows you to aim and fire the weapon from the safety of a bunker. More specs on all the sweet add-ons, after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re carrying around launch codes, CIA dossiers or even a script for the funniest screwball comedy of all time, you’re probably in the market for some level of data encryption. Might I suggest the STARAY S-Series drive enclosures from RAIDON, which come in 3 varieties catering to all levels of paranoia. All of the enclosures allow you to setup both public and encrypted partitions on the drive, so you don’t necessarily have to deal with the security measures for files you’re not worried about.

However for the data you want protected, the S1 Series uses a software password that has to be entered on the computer once the drive has been connected. The S2 Series steps things up with a fingerprint scanner that requires you to swipe, before you can access the encrypted data. Finally, the S3 Series has a keypad running down the side that requires you to punch in a code to unlock your data. I’m not sure if the use of Roman Numerals on the buttons is the best approach, particularly if you failed that section in grade school. But you can always write over them with a Sharpie. That looks professional right?

[ RAIDON STARAY S Series Drive Enclosures ] VIA [ 7 Gadgets ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’m not happy to admit that I’ve stayed in hotels where jamming a chair under the door knob at night wasn’t a bad idea, but I can’t say I would go as far as to travel with one of these in my suitcase. The Folding Door Guard has a forked head that securely wedges under a door knob and a non skid foot to prevent it from sliding out on carpeted or wood floors. While the leg is made from steel, I’m not sure if it will actually prevent a determined intruder from breaking in. However the door guard also has an adjustable motion sensor that will trigger a 120 decibel alarm which will probably serve to scare them off before they get in.

As you can see in the photo the door guard does fold up into a slightly smaller package, but I can’t see myself wasting the space in my suitcase or backpack by bringing it along.

You can find it at Solutions for $29.95.

[ Folding Door Guard ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’m not sure how much smaller stun guns can get, but at 3.25 inches tall I think the Runt is the smallest you’ll find on the market today. While the compact size makes it easy to conceal in a purse or even wear as a pager, the device still packs enough punch to send any assailant reeling while you make your escape. And depending on how much of a point you want to make, the Runt comes in 350,000, 650,000 or 950,000 volt versions which are all powered by just 3 CR123A lithium batteries. There’s also a 950,000 volt rechargeable version with built-in retractable plugs that save you from having to carry a separate charger. On a single charge it’s capable of firing 300-500 times, which is good because the standard recharge time is about 12 hours.

The lithium battery powered Runts run $39.95, $49.95 and $59.95 respectively, while the rechargeable version is $69.95. And standard shipping is free unless you live in New York, Massachusetts, Michigan, Illinois, New Jersey, Philadelphia, PA and a handful of other countries throughout the world where the guns can’t be shipped at all.

[ TBO-Tech - The Runt ] VIA [ Spy Review ]

By Luke Anderson

So we’ve all seen those cheesy action flicks where someone needs access to a restricted area and is forced to chop off the finger of some corporate executive to do it. After all, a fingerprint reader can’t know if the finger is alive, can it? This one from Futronic can.

While they don’t go into great detail about how the technology works, they assure us that their FS88 fingerprint scanner will reject a digit that’s not attached to a living person. It also rejects popular fakes made from Play-Doh, rubber and other materials. I can’t say that I have anything so sensitive that someone would actually try cutting off my finger to get to, but it’s still pretty cool to think that it wouldn’t work. No word on pricing or availability.

[ Futronic ] VIA [ Gizmodo ]

By Luke Anderson

I’ve been wondering for some time why we use cool technologies like biometric scanning for securing digital files, yet we rarely see it for physical storage units. I no longer have to wonder, as Frontgate has cooked up a small safe that is protected with a fingerprint scanner.

The box is so secure that it is indorsed by the NRA firearms saftey intrusion program, so apparently it’s safe for holding your gun. Just reading that made me picture rolling over at night, swiping my finger and having the safe pop open so I can grab my gun and mow down a line of zombies. Yes, that was but a small peek at what goes through my mind at any given point. It rarely makes sense, but I found it relevant.

[ FrontGate ] VIA [ UberReview ]

By Andrew Liszewski

As a guy who hates talking to people, particularly strangers knocking on my door, I really like this idea. It’s basically a small black and white video camera with a wide angle lens that replaces the standard peephole in your front door. The lens itself has a 110 degree field of view allowing you to see a good portion of the area outside your door, but the real advantage is that the camera can be connected to your TV and monitored remotely.

I’ll only ever answer the door for the FedEx or UPS delivery guy, so when I’ve mustered enough energy to check the peephole only to discover it’s a solicitor or an angry neighbor, I’m understandably disappointed. And for those who’ve been dealing with an epidemic of flaming bags left on their doorstop, the camera can even be connected to a video recorder allowing you to catch the culprit in the act. (Of course the video will be useless because I always wear a mask.)

Techstore.co.uk carries the Peephole Camera for about $200 and while I assume the installation is easy, I’m not sure how you’re supposed to power the thing or safely run the wires so they don’t get torn off when you open the door.

[ Spyhole Camera ] VIA [ Spy Review ]

By Andrew Liszewski

How many times have you almost gone crazy looking for something when it ends up being right in front of your face the whole time? Well I think that’s the idea behind these Picture Frame Boxes. If I remember correctly from countless movies, when a cat burglar breaks into your home they’ll make sure to check behind every painting and picture looking for your safe. But what they won’t realize is that your prized possessions and important documents are actually hidden in the frames themselves.

Of course I don’t think that’s what Tim Parsons had in mind when he created the Picture Frame Box, particularly since they’re lacking any kind of locking mechanism, but they seem pretty easy to repurpose. The frames are available in A3 or A4 sizes which makes them particularly useful for storing documents, but smaller items should be able to squeeze in there as well. You can find them on the thorsten van elten website for about $109 for the A4 version and aboout $128 for the A3 one.

[ Picture Frame Box ] VIA [ bookofjoe ]

By Andrew Liszewski

Since x-ray vision still hasn’t been invented (or at least perfected) this under door remote viewing kit is probably the next best thing if you have a desperate need to know what’s behind a door before you open it. As an added bonus it will add loads of realism to your homemade Rainbow Six costume that probably only consists of a ski mask, black t-shirt and black jogging pants.

The scope can slide under doors that have less than a quarter inch of clearance and the offset 55° field of view allows you to see everything in the room from the floor up. It also includes a right angle viewing adapter that attaches to the scope for making sure the other side of the door is free of barricades and booby traps. There’s unfortunately no pricing information on the Endoacustica website but given the wide range of high-tech accessories including night vision kits, portable monitors, video adapters and IR emitters it’s safe to assume it doesn’t come cheap.

[ Under Door Remote Viewing Kit ] VIA [ Spy Review ]

By Andrew Liszewski

If you work in a busy office it’s a good idea to lock your PC whenever you step away from it. Whether it’s to prevent someone from tampering with your work, viewing sensitive documents or most likely, pranking your system. But if you’re the forgetful type the TF2000 Proximity Sensor can automatically lock your system for you, anytime you walk away. It looks like a small webcam you attach to the top of your screen and it uses ultrasound technology to detect your presence or lack thereof.

The included software configuration tool allows you to specify what keystrokes are triggered when you walk away, how long before they’re sent and most importantly, how far away you have to be before it locks you out. The TF2000 also has ‘walk-to’ settings which can be used to start the login process when you get back to your desk. For example under Windows the CTRL+ALT+DEL command would be automatically sent meaning you just have to enter your password to get back to work.

You can find the TF2000 online for about $85.

[ TF2000 Proximity Sensor ]