Keeping track of who said what in a phone call just got easier for both the average Joe and professionals. The Recap USB is an audio adapter that plugs directly into a smartphone on one end, and then into a Mac or PC on the other, which will recognize it as a new auto input device. Phone calls can then be stored in the computer. They can also be edited using Audacity or GarageBand programs. This is the third go-round for the Recap team on ‘Kickstarter, which seems to keep developing new takes on the call recorder as soon as the previous version ships. For $79, backers get one product with an expected delivery of December 2014.
Category: Tech Accessories
There are days, and even nights, when the business of life just distracts a person from making sure that their gadget is fully charged before leaving home. The only problem with charging at work or a friend’s house or perhaps a public charging station is the threat of unintended data share, or worse, malware or hijacked data. So USBCondom was designed to allow gadgets to be charged safely by cutting off the data pins in the USB cable and allowing only the power pins to connect through. The safety tool looks like it could if could beef up its own resilience with a better enclosure, though. For $10, backers get one product with an expected ship date of July 2014.
The Premise. File storage is something one can never have enough of. Whether it’s for music on the go, apps, or taking extensive photos and videos, it’s important to know that running out of room is never a concern for any device.
The Product. Fitting in the palm of a hand and offering up to 256GB of storage, the MBLOK is a portable storage device that can sync to any device using a traditional fold-out USB connection or via Bluetooth. The USB port is also used to charge the device’s 300-hour battery, while still allowing it to transfer files. Files can be moved at speeds up to 24 Mbit/s and can store any kind of files to be moved from phone to PC, or tablet to tablet, all wirelessly.
The Pitch. The MBLOK’s campaign mirrors the device itself: urban, fast-moving, stylish. The man-on-the-street interviews with people about the device paint a common picture of a device that is portable, useful, and attractive. MBLOK creators Kwelea Inc. are looking for $120,000 CAD to produce components and give the storage an interface for iOS and Android devices. Numerous stretch goals are offered to provide native audio and video output at $300,000, and official support for many more devices after that: $500,000 for Blackberry, $700,000 for Windows, $900,000 for the Pebble watch, $1,100,000 for Kindle Fire HD, and $1,300,000 for the Neptune watch. At $1,500,000, a final stretch goal is unlocked to create a smart shuffle algorithm for playing music through the MBLOK.
The Perks. A 128GB MBLOK is available in either emerald green or sapphire blue for $189 CAD. The 256GB model will cost backers a pledge of $279 CAD. A stylish wood-faced model is only for those who kick in $499 CAD to the campaign. All rewards will ship out in January 2015.
The Potential. This is the natural evolution of the thumb drive — something pocket-sized that can easily share files between any USB or Bluetooth device without the need for complex bridges or file sharing setups. MBLOK isn’t the first to attempt this, with storage big shots like Kingston and Seagate offering the Wi-Drive and Wireless Plus devices in the market already, but MBLOK looks like the first to do so via Bluetooth, offering a week of battery life as opposed to the mere hours offered by the competition. Add to that the even smaller body and the MBLOK looks like a great way to move files around painlessly and easily across any compatible devices.
The Premise. The performance stage has changed for musicians in the last few years, as many performers are finding it easier to just connect their equipment through a MacBook and play through AirPlay. However, going beyond what AirPlay was designed to support can cause a wealth of problems, certainly not the least of which is lag between the performance and the outputted audio.
The Product. Really two separate products, the Brick is a Mac mini-like Ethernet switch designed for professional digital audio that can connect to instruments, mixers, amps, and more, bringing it all together to be controlled with a single application. The Bullet is an adapter to connect audio jack-controlled instruments to Ethernet devices like the Brick, bridging analog and digital. The Brick and Bullet setup is natively supported by and MacOS device running Mavericks, including MacBook Pro, Mac Mini, or iMac.
The Pitch. AVB.io, creators of the Brick and Bullet, demonstrate the difference between using AirPlay with an AirPort Express and using a Brick through simply playing the keyboard. It can be almost painful waiting for the sound to come out after each of the keys is hit on the former setup, but with the Brick the two are simultaneous. While the technology behind the Brick and Bullet is certainly a little more than just end user-level stuff, the campaign for the Brick and Bullet keeps things simple and straight to the point, perfect for performers who just want to know if the device will fix their issues. AVB.io has set its goal at $35,000, largely to finish development of the Bullet.
The Perks. The Brick Ethernet switch will launch in September 2014 and backers who pledge $300 can get their hands on one. For those that want to get the complete rig for live digital audio, a Brick with two Bullets is available at the $850 tier in November, and the set can be custom engraved for $1,500.
The Potential. For performers, adding a Brick and Bullet setup to the stage can certainly make things easier to handle DIY digital audio. For a similar price however, it’s not too much to expect to be able to set things up using a standard analog setup with amps and cables. If it’s digital or bust, then there’s certainly nothing wrong with picking up these items to get the most out of a simple MacBook-style performance setup.
Constant laptop and computer use force people to hunch in unpleasant ways while they’re working. A more upright posture is necessary for avoiding that dreaded hunchback look during old age. Pillar is a laptop holder that keeps your laptop up while also maintaining your straight spine. It is extremely lightweight and folds up for optimum portability, but you’ll have to tote along a second keyboard to maintain good ergonomics. Ventilation measures are taken with this stand and a pleasing angle is used to make laptop work even more comfortable. This Icelandic product costs backers $18 at an early price or $20 regularly. Pillar hopes to raise $22,000 in a 30-day Kickstarter campaign.
The Nintendo 3DS is a great handheld for wirelessly playing games together with friends no matter where anyone is, but one of the system’s greatest shortcomings is a lack of dedicated voice chat options. The CHAT-PAK fixes that in a rather simple fashion, by attaching a two-way FRS/GMRS radio to the system in a plastic protective case. This allows players to communicate with each other from a distance of up to four miles, making it ideal for road trips or neighborhood contests. The device even includes a ping feature with up to ten unique alerts, letting users know if someone nearby wants to chat. The CHAT-PAK will be done in August for those that pledge $29.
Those of us who have laptops end up bringing them absolutely everywhere and plug into every outlet that we can find, even if the cord barely reaches. While this is convenient at the time, the laptop cords wear down and eventually break. The Python Cord Protector snakes around the cord and loops over the battery pack of a Mac cord to keep the wire casing straight and intact. One Python only costs backers $11 with an estimated delivery date of July 2014. This product hopes to raise $5,000 in its 30-day Kickstarter campaign.
When you’re away from home and working on an important business proposal, or thesis, that’s not the time to notice that your laptop battery is nearly dead. While battery life keeps getting better, AC adapters can still be a bulky mess to bring along. Dart scores a bullseye when it comes to this problem. The extraordinarily compact 65-watt near-universal adapter uses VHF technology developed at MIT to not only keeps your laptop powered, but can also charge USB devices. Alas, the MacBook requires Dart to take a novel and expensive approach that requires mating it with Apple’s MagSafe connector.. For others, $89 gets backers a Dart in their color choice with an expected delivery of November 2014.
One of the few inconveniences of using a laptop is overheating. Many laptop cooling devices are loud, clunky and look terrible while they keep those notebooks cool. Airbar offers the best of style, comfort and convenience while it cools your laptop down. The slim silver bar looks like an extension of the MacBook. It is designed to fit a minimum 13” system. One goes for $75 and includes a felt case with an estimated delivery of August 2014. Airbar needs to raise $50,000 in a 30-day Kickstarter campaign to keep things cool.
The Premise. Everything is mobile now, as phones and tablets are capable of doing almost everything a desktop computer can accomplish — everything except print, that is. Though these devices certainly can print, most people don’t want to lug a big desktop printer around with them for documents. Portable options to date — at least those for a full-page — haven’t been all that portable.
The Product. The ZUtA Pocket Printer offers grayscale printing that lives up to its name in terms of size. The way the printer works is rather ingenious; one sets it upon the page and running along it robotically to print as it moves. Because of this design, the Pocket Printer can sync wirelessly to any phone, tablet, or laptop, and can print on paper of any dimensions. With a USB-rechargeable battery, the Pocket Printer can print for up to an hour on one charge and the inkjet lasts for over 1,000 pages.
The Pitch. Seeing the prototype of the ZUtA Pocket Printer in action is more like a proof of concept than a finished product. The barebones robot slowly slides its way across the page at a rate that’s a little difficult to watch, but the people behind the product are confident that by the time it releases it will perform much closer to people’s expectations of what a printer should do. For those interested in the how of this little device, the campaign photos do a great job of explaining the design and functionality of the Pocket Printer. ZUtA needs to raise $400,000 to complete prototyping and manufacturing.
The Perks. The Mars Black Pocket Printer is available for $200 and is expected to launch at the start of next year. Those who want the Titanium White model or a special Kickstarter-branded variant will have to pay a little extra, but will still get their product at the same time.
The Potential. In the campaign video, the designers mention that their target is to get the production model to print at a rate of a page per minute. That may not sound like much after we’ve all been spoiled by laser printers, but to have a device that small handle printing from any location, a minute per page is extremely reasonable. It may not actually fit in your pocket (at least your jeans pocket), but this approach to the issue of mobile printing makes a lot of sense and may draw in people for the novelty factor before a future generation holds broader appeal.