Month: September 2016

Categories
Connected Objects

Pixcil plus smartphone turns any surface into virtual whiteboard

editors-choiceInteractive whiteboards are convenient tools for people to use to draw and write on to communicate ideas with anybody else in the room at the same time as other people around the world. But they can be too expensive than the average person can afford.

Pixcil is an inexpensive digital pen that turns virtually any surface into a virtual whiteboard when used in conjunction with a smartphone. It captures writing and drawing in real time and stores the info in a secured database. From its accompanying app, users can invite people to view or write on the board, as well as make changes such as the color of the virtual pen being used to write.

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Categories
Aquatics

The Bixpy Jet lets you move like Aquaman, won’t help fish communication

With the amount of innovation going on in the crowdfunding arena, the world of watersports has never been more exciting. Case in point: the Bixpy Jet, a portable, personal water propulsion device that, with the help of a wide variety of attachments, can be attached any type of kayak, SUPs or just simply held.

This level of versatility lets the Bixpy Jet propel watercraft to about seven miles per hour, allowing kayakers to reach places they otherwise couldn’t. Of particular note is the device’s submersible battery which completely transforms the experience of diving by helping propel swimmers to three miles per hour. In designing the Bixpy Jet, inventor Houman Nikmanesh thought it important that users not be forced to buy a new watercraft, which is why all its attachments were created.

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Categories
Augmented Reality Connected Objects Displays Kids/Babies

Egger augmented reality projector is prep school for Pokemon Go

editors-choiceThe prevalence of smartphones and tablets is something that needs to be carefully managed around children lest they become too attached. It’s been proven that too much screen time can have an adverse on young, developing minds, something that prompted the team behind Egger to do something about it.

Their solution is a friendly, egg-shaped augmented reality projector designed with children in mind. The Egger can be used as an educational aid as much as it can be used as an entertainment device, with both subject to inputs from children and adults alike using the packed remoter control reminiscent of a Wiimote. It can play movies, TV shows, and music, with a sketchpad to really let the imagination loose, as well.

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Categories
Music

Oddio headphones offer a modular design with swappable components

It would be nice to be able to change the look of one’s headphones or upgrade the speakers on them every once in a while so that another headphone purchase isn’t necessary if the owner gets bored with their design or wants to improve their sound performance or other features.

patent-claimedOddio is a set of modular headphones with swappable components. Users can change its colors or the speakers, and also swap out the ear cups for a different sound profile. Skins, modules and batteries all are attached magnetically. Users can also attach Bluetooth or Active Noise Cancellation modules based on their needs.

A set of basic Oddio headphones starts shipping in December. It has a future price of $220. But early bird Indiegogo backers can order a set starting at $129 for super early birds. A “Pokemon Go” set comes in a choice of blue, red or yellow and with up to 12 characters per ear cap.

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Categories
Aquatics Chargers/Batteries

Estream uses running water to keep your devices running

Reconnecting with the great outdoors is a wonderful thing, but sharing those experiences with family and friends makes it even more memorable. But keeping the devices used to document these adventures can be pretty difficult without access to electricity. That’s why Enomad developed its Estream portable hydroelectric generator.

Small and compact enough for a backpack, the Estream sports a modular design that lets users easily ready it for power generation. Users need only to snap off its cover, unfold its turbines and lock them, hook it in with its base, then throw into the water. There, a run ning current will spin its turbines, powering the 6400 mAh battery in its base.

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Connected Objects Writing

Cronzy is a pen that lets you write with a rainbow

Several years ago, at least some of us thought it was a major achievement when manufacturers introduced pens that could write in more than just blue or black ink. They were a dream come true especially for kids, artists and teachers who no longer needed to carry around separate pens for writing and correcting mistakes on their students’ tests, term papers and homework.

Cronzy is a pen that goes many steps further than most multi-color pens because it can write in pretty much any color that any user would want and can even match scanned colors also. The pen is capable of writing in more than 16 million colors, its makers say. Its main mechanism is based on solenoid valves like those used in various other devices and the pen features a special algorithm for mixing colors.

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Connected Objects Cooking

The Toasteroid heralds the era of connected heated bread

By now, pretty much everything in the home can be found on the market in both non-connected and connected versions — save for the toaster. This humble little kitchen companion is a mainstay in many a morning routine and is now undergoing a connected transformation into the Toasteroid.

The Toasteroid is exactly that: a smart toaster. It uses microfilament heating to toast intricate designs and messages onto bread that can be customized through a companion iOS/Android app. With it, it can also toast everything from the weather for the day to emojis for a little fun, or simply control the brownness of the toast with more specificity.

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Connected Objects Music

The Kombos modular MIDI keyboard puts a full keyboard in your backpack

Aspiring producers, DJs, and musicians are between a rock and a hard place: either buy a full-size keyboard and have logistical issues, or get a smaller one and be stuck with not enough keys. In 2016, the team behind the Kombos modular keyboard thought it was about time to do something about it.

With its wireless, modular design, the Kombos USB-MIDI/MIDI keyboard can either be set to a 25-, 37-, 49-, or 61-key configurations depending on what’s needed at the moment. And since its pin system lets it disconnect easily, it can fit into a book bag, letting maestros jam out pretty much anywhere. It’s Bluetooth enabled, as well, so it connects to pretty much any device and functions with everything from the lowest cost music creation app to the very high-end stuff like Ableton Live and Logic.

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Connected Objects Imaging

The FRAME connected home camera keeps your life in focus

The notion of connected home cameras usually focus on the security benefits they provide. For the team at LifeSmart, its FRAME lifestyle camera is looking to buck that trend by making it the core of your connected home experience.

With FRAME, LifeSmart looked to design something that looked good but fit into a user’s life as more than a security camera. To do this, it developed a software platform that can be expanded on later on. So, while FRAME right now features night vision and motion detection capabilities, it will feature many more as time goes on using the same set of 1080p lens, mic, and speaker hardware.

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Categories
Imaging Robots/Drones

Use your smartphone with the PadBot T1 and keep in touch

Telepresence technologies are usually marketed for business purposes, but also has huge potential for the home, connecting friends and family that may otherwise be separated. In this vein, a few telepresence robots that combine mobility and video chat capability have recently been seen in the crowdfunding circuit, all of which offer pretty similar functionality along with security monitoring.

What’s different about the PadBot T1 is that it connects to a smartphone using Bluetooth 4.0 in order to cut down on size and make it portable. This makes it a true telepresence machine for both home and work. The PadBot T1 itself features treads to make moving smooth, an anti-collision to avoid damage to it and to others, an anti-fall system to stay in one piece, and a built-in charger to keep the connected smartphone topped up.

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