It’s outrageous to think a single item can tame the legions of mighty and lustrous beards ruling over the chins of men the world over, but Joe Bencar and his Handlebeard have stepped into the arena to do battle. Whatever you do, don’t let the keychain comb’s diminutive size or whimsical handlebar design fool you: this is 3.5 inches of pure, anodized aluminum, water-jet cut to keep booming bristles in check. Reasonably priced at just $10, the Handlebeard’s lightweight design will accompany you anywhere you go. Even if the Handlebeard doesn’t come across as versatile as the GoComb, stretch goals include additional color options and a titanium version that inject variety and strike fear into the hearts of even the most labyrinthine mane. It’s due to whisk its way onto keychains in November 2014.
Trying to learn proper technique in racketsports such as tennis and badminton can be tough. Having an aid like the strangely named Holy Pie Smart Racket, though, can help curb a newcomer’s mistakes or refine a more seasoned player. A microsensor in the handle tracks stats like hitting position and power. The product then connects with a PC or a smartphone to display 3D-models of your performance for your scrutiny. Whether the racket will also analyze that data to give you tips remains to be The raw data could be helpful, but it seems as though the product could benefit from some expert interpretation of the data. That would be particularly welcome considering the badminton version is expected at $240 and the tennis version is expected at $600. Those who know the flow and have cash to blow can improve their chances of bashing a birdie with units shipped in November 2014.
Although iPads are renown for impeccable design, it can be a chore to hold for long periods of time. To address the issue, Swiss-based design firm sillber created YOHANN. The iPad stand’s minimal aesthetic offers users 3 positions to display and comfortably use the tablet. YOHANN works on everything from tables to the billowy folds of a duvet, setting it apart from other competitors. The sturdy one-piece design commands a similarly sturdy price, sacrificing true portability for sleek European construction, but that may not be3 enough to go beyond a discerning audience in a crowded field. Sillber hopes to raise $40,000 to have YOHANN in homes by November 2014.
From the mixtape maker to the part-time party planner, everyone has an inner DJ just begging to mix songs together to make people smile and dance. But DJ equipment is expensive, large, and difficult to set up, so it’s no good for the impromptu get-together.
Openmix is the world’s smallest audio mixer, roughly the size of an iPod Mini. It has microphone jack plugs to connect to phones or MP3 players and controlled via the small dial fader on the front of the device. Openmix also features a third port for input, allowing a tablet or simple synthesizer to be connected to provide sound effects or other audio options. This allows devices to be swapped in and out easily, allowing for an ever-changing library and selection of tracks to be at the fingertip of the Openmix user.
In terms of features, that’s where Openmix really stops. It’s not meant for professional grade mixing or complicated techniques, it’s just something that can take a party from the groundswells to the dance floor. Openmix is a device built around fun, and so it’s simple enough for anyone to use and flex their DJ skills with before passing it along. Invented by New Yorker Gabriel Danet, it’s going to take $65,000 to bring Openmix out of the functional prototype stage and into full production and availability. Party people can lay down tracks with Openmix in January 2015 for $34.
Does Openmix fill a need in the market, or revolutionize its industry? Certainly not, but with its presentation, price point, and feature set, it’s clear that Openmix is just about accessible fun and sharing music. When viewed in that light, there’s no reason not to have an Openmix on hand just in case.
The Premise. Even as the tools safeguarding our precious data continue to evolve, backing up remains a headache for some and a mystery to everyone else. A few things will always stay constant: the need to backup our data, and that crushing feeling when your smartphone [insert traumatic event here] while realizing you don’t have a backup.
The Product. bleep is a hybrid smartphone cable that can charge your iOS or Android phone and back it up at the same time. By condensing the charging cable with USB storage, bleep backs up your data every single time you plug it in without affecting charge time. With the data securely stored right on the cable, you’ll be able to recover relevant data to any smartphone even after losing your own. Its physicality also allows you to do all of this even without an internet connection or computer. In addition, bleep has created a mobile app on which you can manage your backups and set your own security parameters, giving users full control over how exactly their data is protected.
The Pitch. The company’s charmingly animated video does a thorough job in clearly explaining the basic ideas behind bleep, with the only downside being the lack of an actual product in action. Bright diagrams and charts both dissecting and discussing the benefits of bleep round out the rest of the campaign, which is aiming for a $50,000 goal by October 24th, 2014.
The Perks. All bleeps come in the “Luxury Green” color and there are three capacities available. Interested backers can grab the 16GB version for $40, the 32GB version for $55, and the 64GB version for $78, along with larger packages if you have lots of clumsy friends or family.
The Potential. The bleep is an innovative take on the humble charging cable. Similar products focus solely on on-the-go charging, like Lifelink or the popular Mophie cases. bleep intelligently adds utility to the charging cable while remaining unobtrusive. It would be nice to see more color choices and there’s some legitimate concern that a cable is often easier to lose than a phone itself. But the extra premium that bleep commands seems with it in terms of convenience and piece of mind.
The Premise. Over the last 100 years, the baseball cap has become an icon. From its humble origins on the diamond to its current place in almost every facet of popular culture, its countless iterations have proven its staying power. Unlike most other classics that eventually adapt to a new era, there aren’t very many examples of a hi-tech baseball cap.
The Product. Live Lids is swinging for a home run with its modern take on the classic cap. Its version flaunts an embedded 2.8 inch LCD screen on the front panel. Although the screen can display any image, the company is banking on the wide variety of athletes and team logos available thanks to deals struck with the MLB, the NBA, and the NFL. These images can be downloaded online from Live Lids’ own Web site for a reasonable 69 cents each and synced to the cap the using CapSync software. The hat holds up to 100 images which can be displayed one at a time or as a slideshow for up to 11 hours on a full charge.
The underside of the brim looks more like the sides of an MP3 player, including a microUSB port for transferring and charging duties sit opposite controls to turn the product on or off, move to the next image, toggle hat modes, or explore files.
The Pitch. Live Lids’ campaign page is chock full of information, high quality photos modeling some of the many cap combinations, and a few videos. Understandably, the videos are all about the fashion appeal and show off the product’s LCD screen in all its slideshow glory. Live Lids is seeking an influx of $50,000 from the Kickstarter community to begin mass production.
The Perks. $75 nabs you a Live Lids cap while $99 gets you one with personalized stitching, which is at most $44 cheaper than the listed price on Live Lids’ Web site. Bigger pledges offer you the opportunity to buy up to 10 Live Lids caps with a discount.
The Potential. Live Lids injects some modern flair into a sports staple, but perhaps not quite modern enough. Bluetooth support would allow updating the hat on the fly, which could be a great way to honor an athlete who just made a great play — that is, if you can see it. LCDs are notoriously tough to see in the kind of sunshine that ideally accompanies a baseball game. On the other hand, it could be distracting at indoor sports such as baseball and basketball.
While it’s great that Live Lids is seeking officially licensed logos and other graphics, community-generated content could also be fun to display. The product embodies some good ideas, but needs better connectivity and display technology.
Making simple circuits is a great way to learn about or teach electronics, but the methods of doing so aren’t exactly the most reliable or structurally sound solutions. Whether it’s Scotch tape or copper strips, demonstration circuits have a bad habit of malfunctioning or falling apart. Conductak is a conductive sticky tack substance that can be adhered to the ends of these circuitry components and have transistors, conductors, and other components added to to create reliable, functioning circuits that are easy to assemble and disassemble.
Conductak is sticky enough to hold components in place even on strange surfaces or surfaces in motion. Additionally, it doesn’t lose it’s adhesiveness even when taken apart, meaning Conductak can be used again and again. Inventor Allen Pan is still working out the optimal formula for Conductak and needs $2,250 to fund his research. Backers can play with an experimental batch of Conductak for $20 in November 2014. The idea here is to make learning about circuits easier and less frustrating. Using more science to accomplish this completes the circuit and is sure to make the light bulbs in some student’s heads turn on.
When traveling, most people cross their fingers and hope for the best with hotel or public Wi-Fi, and more often than not it’s more of a headache than a convenience.
Share Foil is a portable wireless router that offers a wealth of features perfect for anyone away from home. As a router, Share Foil can create strong Wi-Fi signals for up to ten devices, and has enough power inside of it to charge a smartphone to full battery twice during its 10 hour battery lifespan. Share Foil also allows devices to store and open files or even stream media by uploading it to the router or using the SD card slot. Same slot can be used to take photos off of a camera and transfer them to smartphones for easy sharing while on the go, turning vacations photos into live social media updates.
With a USB 3G adapter, Share Foil can take 3G signals and convert them into Wi-Fi that any wireless device can use. If signals are weak, Share Foil can be placed closer to the router than the devices to act as a signal repeater, keeping smartphone and laptop usage convenient and comfortable. Share Foil does all of this and costs backers only $60, with delivery expected in October 2014. Made by Trend Power LLC, Share Foil is raising $30,000 to produce the app and make sure all production and manufacturing possibilities are considered.
Share Foil does a lot of tasks in one small device, so if packing space is limited, make sure there’s room for it at least. If only one of these features is needed, or needs to be done at the best possible quality, users will probably prefer a cheaper or more dedicated solution to their network dilemmas.
The Premise. The ability to sense heat visually is a technology that has existed for some time but not in the consumer space. With the number of applications that thermal vision has professionally and in the home, now there’s a device to meet those needs.
The Product. Working with any Bluetooth- or Wi-Fi-capable device, the Hema-Imager offers consumers thermal imaging at a price point that is attractive enough to be practical. Detecting temperatures from -4 degrees Fahrenheit all the way up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit, the Hema-Imager has more range and doesn’t require constant shutter control or extra movement of the device. Whether detecting threats in a dark room or helping to insulate homes better to cut down on heating and cooling costs, the Hema-Imager is versatile enough and easy enough to use that it can tackle any job requiring real-time thermal imaging.
The Pitch. Hema-Imager inventor Erik Beall proudly cites the Predator movies as the inspiration behind the ability to create a device that allows consumers to see heat signatures using their smartphones. That sort of playful optimism is a staple of the Hema-Imager’s pitch video, while also staying grounded in the reality of how it can help emergency response crews for almost 1% of the cost of an existing device. The rest of the product’s campaign materials cover how it can be useful to the average homeowner, explains some of the components of the device, and how Hema-Imager stacks up to the competition. Beall needs $205,000 to offset the cost of buying a large quantity of the thermopiles necessary to make the device work.
The Perks. The Hema-Imager is available for $250 and will be out in November.
The Potential. There have been other heat mapping devices on the market for a long time now, but never in a package that is easy for consumers to purchase, set up and operate, and that is so cost-effective. While an apartment renter might not have a great deal of usage for thermal imaging, the applications for contractors all the way up to firefighters and police officers make this device a welcome addition to a relatively uncrowded market space. The added bonus of being compatible with devices that all consumers probably already have make the cost negligible for those that can use a tool such as this.
Building model rockets has been a great way to learn about science, bond by working together as a team, and do something that’s genuinely breathtaking for decades. With BuildYourRocket, owners can customize their own rocket not just with paint jobs, but with the actual rocket itself. From nose cone to nozzle, the BuildYourRocket rockets are easy to assemble and disassemble. This means that a broken rocket can be easily fixed, and experimentation can be done to use the right parts for the best flight.
Expansions are also planned for the BuildYourRocket line to join multiple kits together to make a bigger, more intense launch. Developed by Robert W Dunn, the BuildYourRocket project is looking to raise $10,000 to fund the manufacturing of the kits and development of more add-ons and accessories. The kits themselves start at just $10, and should be delivered in October 2014. Model rocket enthusiasts may be dismissive of the 3-D printed parts and sacrilege of a customizable design, but those getting started in the hobby or those who love the build more than anything else will love building and rebuilding with BuildYourRocket kits.