By David Ponce

Weather forecasting, inaccurate as it might sometimes seem, is still a pretty useful science. But at the end of the day, you’re only told what tomorrow’s temperature is going to be. No one is actually, you know, showing you. That might be the line of thought that made one Robb Godshaw create the above Cryoscope. It’s a device that lets you feel, with your hand (or any body part you wish to use…), just what tomorrow’s temperature will feel like. It consists of an aluminum cube which contains a heat sink, a fan and a Peltier element, which is a thermoelectric pump. An Arduino brain fetches tomorrows forecast based on your previously entered zip code, and the device automatically adjusts its external temperature from 0F (really freaking cold!) to 100F (tropical heat). Anything outside those boundaries should serve as a reminder that moving to a place with better weather should be on your to-do list.

It doesn’t look like you can buy this thing, but we could be wrong.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ CNet ]

While inconvenient to carry when it’s raining, I don’t think it’s possible for an umbrella to ever truly be hands-free. No matter what the good people at Hammacher Schlemmer try and tell you. This backpack umbrella they’re now selling definitely looks like it lets you carry groceries or box kangaroos while staying dry, but I can only see it working if you live on a deserted planet where the wind never blows during a storm. Because whenever I’m walking with an umbrella here on Earth, I’m constantly fighting to keep it stable in stormy gusts, and preventing it from banging into other people.

Most importantly though, if my critiques haven’t been convincing enough already, if you use a backpack umbrella you’re going to look exactly like this woman does. That alone should be enough of a reason to stick with a traditional model, or just let you and your groceries get absolutely drenched. But if my prejudice towards supposed hands-free umbrellas hasn’t dissuaded you so far, you can go ahead and order one from Hammacher for $39.95. I promise I won’t judge you. (NERRRRRRD!!)

[ The Hands-Free Umbrella ] VIA [ 7Gadgets ]

Normally you’d only need to carry an umbrella with you when it’s overcast and rainy (which seems like every single day where I’m at) but the Fanbrella looks like it’s also handy for days when the sun is beaming down. As umbrellas go it looks pretty non-descript, though I do like the use of plastic for the shaft and ribs ensuring they’re sturdy but won’t rust.

But what kind of justifies its expensive $79.95 price tag is a built-in motorized fan located underneath the canopy. It spins at 650 rpm refreshing the user with a constant downdraft, and the three plastic blades collapse along with the rest of the umbrella so it doesn’t have a bigger footprint when not in use. It does require a constant diet of 6xAA batteries crammed in the handle which keep the fan running for about 5 1/2 hours, which makes me wonder if a solar panel and rechargeable batteries could be integrated into its design somehow.

[ Fanbrella ]

Way back in 2007 we brought you news of the Mercedes-Benz Museum’s 34 meter tall man-made tornado that was designed to quickly and effectively remove smoke from the building in the event of a fire, so as to protect the exhibits from smoke damage. The Tornex system is basically the same idea, though on a much smaller scale.

It’s instead designed to deal with the smoke from deliberate man-made fires, cigarettes, using a series of perforated silver poles that all blow air in the same direction, creating a miniature vortex. The air is then drawn into a charcoal filter system which removes about 95% of the smoke and odor before it’s returned to the smoking area. The silver poles also serve to create an air curtain keeping the smoke inside a designated, though not necessarily enclosed, smoking area. The cost? A totally reasonable $30,000+ (¥2,500,000) given the system makes freakin’ tornados!

[ Tornex ] VIA [ DigInfo TV ]

I like the idea behind this Rain Drum umbrella that turns the pitter patter of raindrops into various drumkit sounds. It uses five wax cloth ‘shades’ that each have a different elasticity to produce unique drum sounds as the raindrops bounce off of them. Of course the stiff frame needed to keep the drum skins taut doesn’t look like it folds down that easy, or at all, and the irregular shape of the umbrella as a whole could actually make it kind of tricky to stay dry. But, you can’t fault designer Dong Min Park for his concept that basically tries to create a silver lining for a cloudy, rainy day.

[ Tuvie - Rain Drum Makes Walking In The Rain An Enjoyable Event With Entertaining Music ] VIA [ PSFK ]

Oregon Scientific’s new +ECO Clima Control weather station will report the effects of global warming, without contributing to them. It’s the company’s first model to feature a solar panel that’s used to charge the device’s 600mAH rechargeable battery. So leaving it out in the sun for just 8 hours will soak up enough juice to keep it running for up to 3 months.

As for its weather reports, it uses a set of easy-to-understand icons like sunny, partly cloudy, rainy, snowy etc. to indicate the current conditions, and it can display the temperature and humidity for up to three different remote locations. (Possibly by wirelessly communicating with other units, or with remote sensors, I’m not entirely sure.) $119.99 from Oregon Scientific.

[ +ECO Clima Control ] VIA [ Popgadget ]

When you’re hacking away at your face with a sharp razor I’d suggest staying focused on the task at hand, but if you’d prefer to multitask and be more productive in the mornings, this shower mirror with a built-in weather station will kill a few birds. The 7-inch mirror has a special fog-free coating so it won’t ever steam up, and it’s accompanied by a high-contrast LCD display which provides updated weather info like current temp, humidity and the day’s forecast thanks to a wireless sensor that can be located up to 100 meters away. $49.98 from Taylor Gifts.

[ Weather Station Shower Mirror ] VIA [ 7Gadgets ]

I still don’t see the reason why anyone would invest in a standalone weather device when accurate forecasts are available via almost every other gadget on the market, from phones to even the Wii. But the WoodStation manages to somewhat justify its almost $150 price tag since it’s made from a stylish piece of maple or walnut. When sitting on your night stand or desk it looks like a small chunk of wood, but waving your hand over the motion sensor causes the face to light up with glowing icons providing information on the current weather, humidity levels and temperature, as well as the date and time.

[ WoodStation ] VIA [ Coolest Gadgets ]

Everything I know about golf I learned from the movie Caddy Shack, so while inclement weather can possibly lead to the best round of your life, there’s also the very real chance of something terrible happening while wandering around with what is essentially a bag full of lightning rods. So before you head out on the links, you’ll want to make sure the weather’s going to play nice for 18 holes, and that’s where the Bushnell Golf FXi enters the picture. It receives constant weather updates for over 16,000 golf courses in the U.S. via a wireless USB transmitter attached to an internet-equipped PC, and displays them on its monochrome LCD.

The weather data itself is provided by AccuWeather.com and includes everything from current, RealFeel and forecasted high and low temps, morning, afternoon and evening forecasts for up to 3 days, the UV index and even wind speed and direction. And as an added touch, the backlight on the display changes color to reflect the current temperature of your selected course so you can easily get an idea of the conditions at a quick glance. It’s a nice gift idea for a golf nut I suppose, but for $124.99 it’s kind of an expensive unitasker.

[ Bushnell Golf FXi Weather Forecaster ] VIA [ Uncrate ]

The only thing worse than having to carry an umbrella on a rainy day is having to carry one around when it doesn’t end up raining. But you’ll feel less upset about the situation if you carry this Off The Course Umbrella designed by Sebastian Errazuriz. He originally came up with the idea while living in Scotland where he often found himself having to carry his golf clubs and an umbrella at the same time. So to make life easier, he simply combined the two.

The Off The Course Umbrella is made of steel, fiberglass, polyester and rubber, and according to the MoMA Store website it’s more umbrella than golf club and shouldn’t actually be used to play golf. But I’d like to see them try and stop me the next time I’m waiting for the tram and decide to practice my chip shot with a pine cone or a soda can. $65 at the aforementioned MoMA Store.

[ Off The Course Umbrella ]