Gadgets Blog

We have gadgets for even the smallest tasks, so why not toss in a brightly colored one to mix your drinks too?  These will make sure your drinks get mixed well and look good doing it.  The whirling tornado in the center would even be fun for the kids to watch.  After all, you could mix all sorts of things in it, even silly things like chocolate milk.  When it comes time to clean it, you won’t have to worry about putting much effort into the cleaning process either.

Both the Vortex 1 and 2 you can just rinse with hot water.  If you want to make sure it’s even more clean just add a drop of soap to that water and turn it on.  To use it, just put in the mixture, put the cap on and push the button.  It will spin within and have your drink ready in less than a minute.  The Vortex 2 is more meant for cocktails and the Vortex 1 for your regular drinks.  The Vortex 1 will cost you $19.99 and the Vortex 2 for £10 or about $14.

Source: NerdApproved

Whether you’re a gamer or not, I’m sure most people will enjoy this zombie themed flash drive.  It was originally bundled with the very pricey Resident Evil 5 for the Xbox 360.  Of course, not everyone that bought the bundle wanted to hang onto the limited edition flash drive.  So instead of storing their own files on the drive they’re posting them on eBay. Frankly, I’m not sure why anyone would want to get rid of the chainsaw, but that makes it better for the rest of us.

That works out perfectly for those that can’t afford the limited edition $100 bundle.  The bundle itself would likely be worth the price since it also includes a 3 DVD feature about the making of the game.  It’s hard saying what people will post their drive for on eBay, but likely they’ll stick within the same price range as this one.  At least one has already been posted for a decent price.  You can find the 2GB drive for $22 on eBay.

Source: EverythingUSB

I believe that I saw several mini projectors at CES. I remember visiting Samsung’s booth, but I don’t remember seeing the MBP200 pico projector. My sources say that it was announced back then, but I must have missed the press conference.

Specs on the Samsung MBP200 have recently been released. It comes with HVGA resolution of 480 x 320, but I’m not certain what that equals in terms of the size of the projected image. I’m surprised that I didn’t see that in the specs at all.

I do know that the MBP200 has a 2.2 inch QVGA LCD with 320×240 resolution. It can support playback for MP3, WMA, OGG, and WAV playback. Support can also be granted for DivX, Xvid, WMV9, MPEG-2, and MPEG-4.

As for memory, I’m not certain how much internal memory here is in this device. I do know that it has a microSD slot to support cards for 16GB. Anyone know how much that translates to as far as actual video footage?

The Samsung MBP200 will be available in May, but the price will be around $637. It will be only available in European markets, with no word of it coming overseas to the States.

So, is this the beginning of the mini-projector boom? We will see.

Source

This one concept gadget is one of those that could change everything. The Troika Social Security Card is designed to protect not just your SSN, but your driver’s license, passport, or any other piece of important ID.

The idea is to put all of your vital identification on one digital device. This device would be the size of a credit card, but it wouldn’t work for just anyone. The Troika comes with a built-in thumbprint reader that will scan for the proper user. Wrong thumb equals no access.

Well, this is definitely one small step for the Age of the Digital Wallet if it could be put on the cellular phone. Assuming you could get the Troika into the market, the question remains: what happens when you lose it? Well, considering that everything is on some sort of digital file these days, maybe you could have the Troika insured, and then have the company send you another. Then all you would need to do is download your information from any PC or laptop.

Speaking of information, my source says that the Troika is made for IDs, but why stop there? With this technology, the user should be able to put an unlimited amount of credit or debit cards on it. Scanning them could be a problem with today’s checkout counter technology.

By the way, the Troika has a solid aluminum body, so you don’t have to worry about dropping it. You might have to worry about someone falsifying your fingerprint, as I’ve heard that it is somewhat easy to trick if you know how. We will see if this concept becomes a reality.

Source

Sure, we all could use a spare USB port every once in a while, and I’m sure I’m not the only one who has a 4 port USB Hub attached to my desktop for my camera, printer, and lots of thumbdrives.

And, if you’re like me, you work hard on your computer, and every once in a while, you might need a little cheering up. So why not make a four-port USB hub that looks like this little guy?

Introducing the Happy Kid USB Hub! Not only is he a 4-port USB Hub, but he has a little clip on his happy face for you to hold memo or a business card. And look at this guy, he’s so joyous that he is doing a cartwheel, for crying out loud!

The Happy Kid USB Hub works for Windows 2000, XP, and Vista. It is available from our friends at Brando. They are the ones who gave us stuff like the USB Syringe Flash Drive and the USB Wheel Optical Mouse. Generally, any product from Brando has my vote for a purchase.

You should be able to purchase the Happy Kid USB Hub directly from the Brando site for a low price of $10.

Source

You always see in the movies someone whip out a magnifying glass and expertly classify whether or not a diamond is actually real.  Despite that it would make you look cool to pull that off, most people don’t really know how to tell the difference.  Well now you can pick up this handy little gadget to let you know for sure.  It’s the perfect gadget for every female that absolutely must know if she is being gifted the real deal.

It will let you know in the form of a beep what the stone really is.  No beep means it’s a simulant other than moissanite.  Then a continuous beep with a green light lets you know that the stone is a diamond.  If it does a higher pitched continuous beep with a red light that indicates that it’s moissanite.  It takes 1.5 seconds for it to read a stone, then 1 second after the first reading before you can move on to read another stone.  It runs on a 9 volt battery which is included.  You can purchase the DiamondNite for $199.95.

Source: bbgadgets

Hope you’re having a fantastic Friday, it’s time to vote for what you think is this week’s coolest gadget (leave a comment for a chance to win a $50 Amazon voucher).

USB Riff Rocker

The USB Riff Rocker is essentially a USB controller for a game. You plug the little rocker into a free USB socket, download the two games off the Riff Rocker website, and then thrash your little fingers off.

The full post can be found on Gadgets For Men.

Instant phone backup

How annoying is changing phones and having to get all your contacts onto your new handset? Moving all your contacts onto your phone memory or SIM, taking phones apart, swapping SIMS (if your new handset’s not locked), yadda yadda. It’s got a lot quicker with the use of software and a computer but don’t you just wish it could be instant? Well now, thanks to this little gadget, it is.

The full post can be found on Decide What to Buy.

DIY: Lego Movie Theater Features Working Projector

In what is without a doubt the coolest Lego project I have seen in a long while, builder Ricardo Oliveira has built a Lego movie theater, complete with a tiny 24 fps projector. The biggest surprise was that the thing actually worked, had I not seen the video I might have dismissed it as April Fool’s day foolishness; it is real. The level of detail in the theater is incredible, right down to row designations on the seats and cups for the patrons.

The full post can be found on UberReview.

IPEVO WiFi Skype Phone

The IPEVO Skype phone blends VOIP technology with a familiar form factor. The design is geared for those that enjoy Skype but dislike using a headset. The IPEVO phone includes a 2.4 inch color display and supports both WiFi and a wired ethernet connections.

The full post can be found on Coated.

Teafal Quick Cup Delux: Go Green when having a Cuppa

The Tefal Quick Cup Delux has the capacity to get your tea steaming away in your mug in three seconds. Its ability to heat water so quickly means that it saves around 65 per cent of the energy used by a standard kettle. It has an adjustable tap, anti-splash spout and drip tray, which makes it easier to dispense water into either a short tea cup or a mega-mug.

The full post can be found on Gaj-it.

Director’s Chair Disguise as Messenger Bag

This bag is new seamless mashup between Directot’s Chair and Modern Messenger Bag.

The full post can be found on Hardware Sphere.

Nespresso CitiZ Single Serve Coffee and Espresso Maker

The new Nespresso CitiZ espresso machine range takes its inspiration from the streets - literally - of major cities from around the globe. The colors of well-known focal points and objects, the design and shapes of buildings and landmarks, and the urban vibe and attitude of cities led Nespresso designers to create a new generation of Nespresso machines. The design is not only an improvement in looks but in the footprint of the machine as well. Compared to the Nespresso C100T Essenza - the Nespresso CitiZ takes up much less space in width, and has some new features that make it a standout.

The full post can be found on Single Serve Coffee.

Thumb Saver

The Thumb Saver does exactly what it says and will take a dangerous job and make it safe and simple. If you enjoy you’re DIY at home then this is a safety gadget which you must have. I really believe this is a handy gadget which will reduce many injuries in the home and workshop whilst using a hammer.

The full post can be found on Tech Styling.

Thanks again to all the sites for their submissions now over to you guys for voting (don’t forget to leave a comment with your reason for a chance to win a $50 Amazon voucher).

Want to hear about future contests first? Subscribe to our daily digest via email or RSS.

If you write for a gadget themed blog and wish to be included in next weeks contest check out the CGOTW instructions page.

The winner of last week’s coolest gadget competition is the Pop-up Garage Stows Your Car Safely Underground.

The Cardok garage is an interesting parking solution that is starting to be seen around more affluent London locales. The owner’s car is raised and lowered by means of a hydraulic lift. At present there are eight in action around London, four under construction and another ten that have been ordered

Congrats again to We Interrupt.

In second place we have the Remote Security Sentry.

When you’re away, fire-up this remote security robot to ‘roam’ the house beaming back a live image of your home to an Internet enabled device. The bot automatically finds its charging base for a power up, so you can leave this running longer - such as when away on holiday.

Finally in third place comes the Optoma Pico Transforms iPhone Into Projector.

The Optoma Pico can turn your iPod or iPhone into a projector. The 4.1″ PK-101 can work as close as 8″ or up to 8′ away and still display sharp images. Shine it on a wall, a piece of furniture, a car seat or your cat (if he/she is dozing) and the image will still be true. The Pico only weighs 4 oz. and has a rechargeable battery life of 1.5 hours. Included in the $399.00 price are two batteries. Time liked it so well they made it one of their top ten gadgets of 2008.

Thank you to everybody who voted, submitted, commented or told a friend. The randomly drawn winner of the $50 Amazon vouchers is:

Feint (steamis1337@…), congratulations.

Thanks again everybody and good luck with the next CGOTW contest on Friday.

Want to hear about future contests first? Subscribe to our daily digest via email or RSS.

If you write for a gadget themed blog and wish to be included in next week’s contest check out the CGOTW instructions page.

The National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is working on creating a laser which can compress and heat a single fuel capsule to more than 180 million degrees in order to trigger a thermonuclear reaction. In short, they’re building a Death Star Laser. But for good, not evil. The idea is to create a kind of miniature sun on earth that would supply “limitless, safe, and carbon free energy.”

Normally, fusion â€" which is the bonding together of heavy atoms to create energy â€" takes place in hot environments like stars, but with 192 giant lasers, the NIF is attempting to create the same kind of reaction here on earth. The reaction will be accomplished by superheating the outside of a fuel capsule contining about one millionth of a pound of deuterium and tritium. This will cause the interior of the capsule to compress while the exterior explodes much like a star does. The biggest challenge? Containing the reaction as 180 million degrees will melt just about any known substance here on earth. But the reaction itself may be the key to containing it as, according to the NIF, the reaction consumes the cooler outer region faster than the capsule can release the hotter elements, thereby containing it.

Serious ignition testing is scheduled for next year. Then its’ bound to be a horse race to see if it can beat the Hadron collider in destroying the planet.

Hat Tip â€" Live Science