When you’re looking for more “portable” and less "kitchen," you go with something like the My Camp Kitchen camp box – or a trunk-full of camp stoves, grills, charcoal and propane tanks. On the other hand, if you lean more “kitchen” and less “portable,” you might want to look into the Critter, an elaborate portable kitchen designed for serious cookouts. Read More
Children of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s will likely remember the craze that was slap bracelets, those oh-so-trendy fashion accessories whose stainless steel springbands allowed them to wrap around a wrist with a simple slap. Ritmo Mundo has brought back the slap bracelet and added some extra functionality with its Reflex watch that lets you know just how far gone that misspent youth is. Read More
Recently, scientists unlocked the code used by neurons in the retina for sending visual data to the brain. This allowed them to create a device that restored almost-normal vision to blind mice. Now, another group of scientists has announced that they have determined the brain’s code for pronouncing vowels, and they believe that their discovery could lead to machines that speak for people who are physically unable to do so. Read More
Velomobiles are certainly a unique form of transportation. They’re essentially human-powered recumbent tricycles, with a full-body fairing to increase their aerodynamics and protect against inclement weather. Most of them are made in Europe, which unfortunately adds to their already-steep prices for non-European buyers ... so, when we spied the made-in-the-USA Tripod velomobile in Portland, Oregon earlier this month, we took note. He’s a quick look at some of the things that make it special. Read More
The Curiosity rover has taken its first drive today on Mars. It wasn’t much of a road trip. The unmanned craft went about 15 feet (4.57 m), turned 120 degrees and then reversed about 8 feet (2.43 m). Curiosity is now about 20 feet (6.09 m) from its landing site, now named Bradbury Landing after the late author Ray Bradbury. That may not seem like much, but it was a successful test of Curiosity’s mobility and takes it a step (or a roll) closer to beginning its two-year mission to look for areas where life may have or does exist on the Red Planet. Read More
Alpine Hammock lets you sleep in the air or on the ground
By C.C. Weiss
August 22, 2012
Tent manufacturers have become so obsessed with cutting weight that we have US$1,800 tents that weigh little more than a pair of sneakers. Backpackers that really want to cut weight to near-nill would rarely choose a tent, however. Instead, they’d use a lighter option like a bivouac sack. The Alpine Hammock packages the light weight of a bivouac with the comfort of a hammock tent, creating one light, versatile wilderness accommodation. Read More
Almost anyone who owns a dog will tell you that they love it unconditionally. However, I think they would also agree that dogs have some unpleasant odors from time to time. Many of these odors originate from the K9’s mouth – imagine how badly your mouth would smell if you only brushed your teeth every year or so when you paid a visit to the veterinarian. The Orapup is designed to clear up bad dog breath by cleaning the tongue. Read More
A new startup named TOHL, comprised of a handful young Georgia Tech graduates, has set up shop in Chile in an effort to "change the way people think about pipelines." Using little more than a helicopter and a coil of flexible high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe, TOHL laid a kilometer (0.6 miles) of water pipeline by helicopter in a "record-setting" nine minutes, despite windy conditions and mountainous terrain. TOHL claims this is "the first ever completely aerial installation of a pipeline." Now company President Benjamin Cohen is taking to Kickstarter to ask for US$30,000 to build the company's first "full-scale" installation. Read More
SunVolt solar charger claims "outlet-like" charging times
August 22, 2012
SunVolt is a portable solar power station able to harness the Sun's rays in order to charge low-power mobile electronic devices, such as digital cameras, e-book readers, cell-phones and tablets. While you'd be forgiven for feeling underwhelmed on hearing news of yet another solar charger in the works, the crucial difference between SunVolt and existing solar chargers like the Solarmonkey and EnerPlex, is that SunVolt’s creator Don Cayelli claims his product can, on a clear day, charge multiple devices just as quickly as if they were plugged into the wall. Read More
Synaptics has announced a new generation of touch-based hardware components, including a pressure sensitive capacitive touchpad and an ultra-thin keyboard with improved backlighting. The new components are designed for use with Intel Ultrabooks running Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 8 operating system. Read More
If, during your next hotel stay, you're met with a lock on your door like that pictured above, it's time for a conversation with management. This is an Onity HT series lock. Cody Brocious claims that the company has sold 10 million of its various locks to hoteliers, accounting for half of all locks worldwide, and appearing in one in three hotels. Described by Onity as its "flagship product," the HT series lock is its big seller: Brocious reckons there are 4 million HT series locks out there. Why does this matter? It matters because on July 24, Brocious took to the stage at the Black Hat conference in Las Vegas to demonstrate how to unlock one in a matter of milliseconds using gear you and I can buy off the shelf from Radioshack for under 50 bucks. Read More
Just about everyone loves bananas, but there is one problem with the things – they have a way of becoming overripe before they can be eaten. Yesterday, however, a scientist from China’s Tianjin University of Science and Technology announced the development of a spray-on coating that is capable of keeping picked bananas fresh for almost two weeks. Read More
In early July we brought you news of a hand-built one-off collaboration between Bavarian motoring giant BMW and Milanese designer/coachbuilder Zagato – the BMW Zagato Coupe. It was a popular piece and it seems Gizmag readers aren’t the only ones with taste; the vehicle had such a positive reception that BMW and Zagato agreed to create a roadster version in time for the Pebble Beach Concours at Monterey. With barely six weeks between design sketch and completion it was a tough task but the result is, if anything, more beautiful than the Coupe. Read More
Research headed by professor Nosang Myung at Bourns College of Engineering, University of California, Riverside (UCR), has resulted in the development of a prototype "electronic nose." The work brings to mind previous "electronic noses" that we reported on back in 2010, but rather than discovering forms of cancer, Myung's prototype is designed to detect harmful airborne agents, such as pesticides, bio-terrorism, gas leaks and other unwanted presences - with clear applications in military, industry and agricultural areas. Read More
Volkswagen has announced that its 2013 Jetta Hybrid became the fastest hybrid production-based car in the world during Southern California Timing Association’s (SCTA) annual Speed Week. Motor Trend Associate Road Test Editor Carlos Lago was in the driver's seat of the specially-modifiedcompact sedan when it set the new hybrid speed record of 185.394 mph (298.363 km/h) at the Bonneville Salt Flats, near Wendover, Nevada last week. Read More
Connectify, a company known for software that can turn your computer into a wireless hotspot, is at work on a new project called Dispatch that will turn all internet connections available to your device into one glorious (and hopefully faster and more stable) stream of high-speed bandwidth. Read More
Gnarboard electric skateboard takes on a C5 Corvette
By Darren Quick
August 23, 2012
When we first took a look at the Gnarboards Trail Rider electric skateboard a couple of months ago, we likened it to a “Ferrari for your feet” due to it boasting a power-to-weight ratio that would put many cars to shame. But rather than a Ferrari, Gnarboards creator Joshua Tulberg has pitted his invention against another vehicle to demonstrate its power and speed – a C5 Corvette. Read More
Training wheels attached to back of a learner's bike frame may well keep the rider upright and in the seat for much of the long journey toward two-wheeled independence, but they can also lead to bad habits and poor form. While re-inventing the wheel often carries negative connotations, the arrival of the Gyrowheel in 2009 put a new positive spin on learning to ride. The gyroscopic balance and stability aid is now about to enter the next stage in its evolution with the release of the 3-in-1 Gyrobike in Europe. Read More
The world’s estimated reserves of uranium are only 6 million tons and with the growing demand for reliable energy free of greenhouse emissions leading to more and more nuclear plants being built, that supply may not last very long. Some estimates place the time before all the uranium is gone at between 50 and 200 years. However, the oceans of the world contain 4.5 billion tons of uranium dissolved in seawater. That’s enough to last something on the order of 6,500 years. The tricky bit is getting it out, but a team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Tennessee has come a step closer to economically extracting uranium from seawater with a new material that is much more efficient than previous methods. Read More
DARPA releases video of floating tank-like CAAT vehicle
By Brian Dodson
August 22, 2012
So the year is 2015, and you're in a serious disaster – one that requires the immediate provision of food, water, medical care, and shelter for a hundred thousand people. In other words, not something that a few airlifts will handle. If there is navigable water anywhere nearby, you could be saved by a future version of one of DARPA's new toys: the Captive Air Amphibious Transporter (CAAT). Read More
When we think of remote control cars, we generally think of scaled-down vehicles that can easily get caught up underfoot. Not so Chinese automaker BYD, which has upsized the remote control car with the release of its Su Rui model in China. The mid-size family saloon that seats five includes Remote Driving Control technology that allows the driver to get out of the car and drive it using the included remote control “key.” Read More
So you’re unlucky enough to be hit with the real C-word: cancer. That sucks. But what can be worse is that many current medical scanning techniques come with large levels of radiation. The current practice of combining PET (Positron emission tomography) and CT (computerized tomography) scans produces good images, but the cost is high: a dose of radiation ten times the background amount the average human gets in a year. And that’s just one scan. Many cancer patients have to endure multiple scans. A new PET scanner from physicists at the University of Oslo (UiO) cuts the radiation dose in half and is also small enough to fit inside an MR scanner. Although it was developed for animals, the researchers say it could be easily adapted for human clinical examinations. Read More
Some people believe that there’s no problem that peanut butter, chocolate and whipped cream can’t solve. These people could be onto something with news that a team of researchers has developed a new, safer oil dispersant that uses edible ingredients found in the aforementioned trio of treats. The new dispersant could save the lives of thousands of birds and animals caught in environmental catastrophes. Read More
Most people don't think about it, but in a typical office the filthiest object in the room is the computer keyboard. Go ahead, pry off the keys behind any keyboard you've had for a few months and you're likely to find a mess of dust, food crumbs, sticky coffee stains, and other debris. Cleaning this grimy mess is a tedious task at best, unless of course you're packing the likes of Logitech's new K310 - a washable keyboard designed to be submerged in water so that cleaning it is as easy as doing the dishes. Read More
Thanks to its status as a brand that many aspire to own, the term Mercedes has earned a figurative connotation. When you say that you just ate the "Mercedes of meals," you undoubtedly feasted on a masterfully prepared example of haute cuisine, a meal that is to eating what a Mercedes S Class is to driving. When you say that you just ate at the "Mercedes of drive-thrus," well, it could now take on a more literal meaning. Read More
Sleeping Dogs features a slick narrative, plenty of colorful characters and thrilling improvisational combat. The game was almost killed off by Activision, but thankfully publisher Square Enix took over the project, releasing it last week. The game feels fresh, is easy to pick up and play and blends a number of entertaining elements into an engaging cocktail. Read More
The first Borderlands game was released on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC in 2009 and its cel-shaded visuals and heady mix of RPG and shooter elements resulted in a positive critical reception. A sequel, unsurprisingly titledBorderlands 2, is due to be released on Sept. 18 and the developer, Gearbox Software, is putting the publicity drive in gear. The latest push to gain attention is the release of a 16-bit version of Borderlands playable in a (Flash enabled) web browser. Titled The Border Lands, (like Facebook, it dropped the "the"), it offers some simple "old-skool" fun for gamers while they wait for the main event. Read More
Casio has announced a selection of new cameras which, it's claimed, were designed to appeal to women. How do you make a woman-friendly camera, you ask? Well, Casio seems to be of the opinion that offering a range of colors (obviously including pink), textured finishes and buttons which can be pressed even if you have long nails, will do the job. Read More
Harvard geneticist stores 70 billion copies of his book in DNA
By Ben Coxworth
August 23, 2012
George Church is a professor of genetics at Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, and also co-author of the book Regenesis: How Synthetic Biology Will Reinvent Nature and Ourselves in DNA. With a title like that, it’s only fitting that the book was used to break the record that it recently did – Church led a team that encoded 70 billion html copies of the book in DNA. That’s 1,000 times more data than the previous record. Read More
NASA’s Curiosity rover may be stealing the headlines, but there is other news coming from Mars. Recently, the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Mars Express probe made a 100-kilometer (62-mile) flyby of the Martian moon Phobos and returned a high-resolution 3D image filled with remarkable detail. The image includes a profile of Stickney crater, which dominates the right-hand side, and the grooves associated with the impact of the asteroid that created it thousands of years ago. Read More
Nikon outs Android-powered COOLPIX S800c compact camera
By Simon Crisp
August 24, 2012
When you picture an Android camera, chances are you're thinking about the one in your smartphone. Nikon is hoping to change that with the release of the COOLPIX S800c, a compact digital camera which is powered by the Android Operating System. When you're not busy taking photographs, the S800c can be used to check Facebook, send emails, run apps and allow you to access the internet via WiFi. Read More
New camo face paint protects soldiers against bomb blasts
By Ben Coxworth
August 24, 2012
For millennia, face paint has helped soldiers avoid being seen by enemy forces. This Wednesday, however, a team of scientists from the University of Southern Mississippi announced that a new type of face paint may soon also be able to protect against the heat of bomb blasts and other explosions. Additionally, a clear version of the paint could be used by civilian firefighters. Read More
Is mowing the lawn one of those household chores that you absolutely dread? Well, Honda is offering a new product in Europe designed to make it so you never have to walk behind a lawn mower again. The Honda Miimo is Honda’s entry into the growing robotic lawn mower market. Read More
We’re used to “special editions” from auto manufacturers trying to lift sales with a lick of paint and some fancy decals, but when Rolls-Royce does a special edition it’s a much more cerebral and artisanal endeavor as befits the mindset of its customers. The Phantom Coupe Aviator recently shown at Pebble Beach is a subtle but rather lovely limited edition inspired by the Rolls-Royce engined Supermarine aircraft of the 1930s; a precursor to the iconic Spitfire and from a time when cars and aircraft engines were actually made by the same company. Read More
As we build up to the global spectacle of U.S. election day, several companies have announced their efforts to provide coverage and insight into the biases and opinions of the country. Both Microsoft and Google will provide users with comprehensive coverage platforms, while Amazon has come up with a less conventional, yet somewhat more intriguing offering. Read More
Michael Jantzen's latest M-Velope transforming shelter
August 24, 2012
Michael Jantzen may operate in the sphere of architecture, but he doesn't think of himself as an architect. Instead he describes himself as "an artist and inventor who often uses architecture as an art form." Much of his work is conceptual, but his compact, transforming M-Velope shelters, which he described to Gizmag as "sculptures that you can sit inside" (and definitelynot as gazebos) have stepped out of the conceptual and into the physical realm. Jentzen shared his latest design (above) with Gizmag. Read More
In an emergency, every second counts, and communication between various emergency services and government agencies can be of critical importance. While proven to be effective, current systems such as Land Mobile Radio (LMR) can still leave gaps in the lines of communications. However, a new mobile app developed by U.S. defense contractor and industrial corporation Raytheon aims to close some of those gaps by enabling first responders to communicate without LMR. The app is part of the company's Interoperability Communications Suite which aims to enhance interoperability between LMR radios, landline, VoIP phones, and P25 systems via ISSI, and 4G/LTE. Read More
Silicon Valley-based Design to Matter (D2M) is aiming to provide the legions of Instagram users with an alternative to viewing their shots on a phone, tablet or PC. The company’s Instacube is an Android-powered digital photo frame to which users can wirelessly push their Instagram stream over Wi-Fi. Read More
Facit Homes claims to be the first company in the world to digitally fabricate a bespoke home on-site. The company has developed a process (D-Process) whereby it delivers a compact mobile production facility (MPF) to the construction site, equipped with all the materials and machinery required to transform a 3D digital design into a physical building. “We are the first company in the world to have successfully trialed manufacturing a house on-site,” Managing Director of Facit Homes, Bruce Bell told Gizmag. “We bring our compact high-tech machine to site and make it there and then—its an amazingly efficient way of designing and making a house.” Read More
The bunker fuel used in cruise liners and freighters is some of the cheapest, crudest fuel available. It’s also among the dirtiest. Scientists from the Maine Maritime Academy and SeaChange Group LLC led by George N. Harakas, Ph.D announced at the 244th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society that they have developed what they call "Bunker Green" fuel. This fuel uses an ingredient commonly used in food and medicine to reduce sulfur and other emissions in ocean vessels. Read More
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is best known by the DuPont brand name Teflon. Whatever it is called, PTFE is the third slipperiest solid known – the poster child for non-stick, non-reactive, non-friction, non-conducting, high-temperature, and generally high-performing polymers. Silicone also has a nearly non-bondable surface – if you try to paint a silicone sealant, it simply pops off as the paint dries. In particular, creating a strong bond between PTFE and silicone has never been accomplished, even in the chemical laboratory. Until now. Read More
We've been hearing a lot about a rumored 7-inch iPad this year, but the chatter has become particularly strong in recent weeks. This weekend, All Things D reported that it has "confirmed" an October release for the so-called "iPad Mini" with "several sources." The smaller iPad would be announced under a separate media event to follow one in September where a new iPhone will debut, according to the report. Read More
A recent study of auto consumers performed by Maritz Research revealed that, despite the auto industry's growing use of social media and websites, the salesperson is still the most valuable source of car information for consumers. Nissan customers may soon sing a different tune with news the automaker is launching a new dealership feature based on Microsoft Kinect hardware and software that will allow customers to perform a virtual inspection of a given vehicle – even when the vehicle hasn't yet rolled off the assembly line. Read More
EcoXPower by EcoXGear is another take on a concept which most Gizmag readers will be familiar with: harnessing the kinetic energy produced while one pedals a bicycle in order to convert it into electricity and charge a smartphone or similar device. Though we’ve covered several products of this nature in the past, such as Nokia's Bicycle Charger Kit, Dahon's BioLogic ReeCharge, and the PedalPower+, the EcoXPower sets itself apart by charging your smartphone or GPS and providing electricity to front and rear lights at the same time. Read More
Researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) are combining two of the best-known approaches to automatic speech recognition to build a better and language-independent speech-to-text algorithm that can recognize the language being spoken in under a minute, transcribe languages on the brink of extinction, and make the dream of ever present voice-controlled electronics just a little bit closer. Read More
Neutron generators provide materials analysis and non-destructive testing tools to many industries, including oilfield operations, heavy mechanical construction, art conservancy, detective work, and medicine. Many of these applications have been limited by the rather large size of current industrial and medical neutron sources. Now Sandia National Laboratories, the lab that develops and supports the non-nuclear parts (including neutron generators) of nuclear weapons, has developed a new approach toward building tiny neutron generators. Read More
The jury in a landmark intellectual property lawsuit has ruled that Samsung should pay Apple over US$1 billion in damages. After nearly 22 hours of deliberation, the jury found that Samsung willingly infringed upon Apple's patents with a number of its devices. Apple was not found to have infringed upon any of the South Korean firm's patents. Read MoreSpaceX Dragon cleared for cargo run in October
By David Szondy
August 24, 2012
The age of commercial space flight starts this autumn. In October, SpaceX’s Dragon space freighter will make its first scheduled commercial visit to the International Space Station (ISS). On Thursday, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden announced at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida that Dragon had completed its certification under the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program and was cleared for commercial operation. Holder also announced that Sierra Nevada Corporation’s Dream Chaser manned spacecraft has passed its program implementation plan review and will go on to further development. Read More
The Baladeo Eco133 is the multi-tool for adventurers that don't have time to eat with a proper knife and fork at a three-leaf dining room table. The five-function tool adds little weight or bulk to your load, but it brings everything you need to enjoy a semi-civilized meal. It appears to be well-suited to fast-and-light wilderness travelers of all kinds. Read More
Bakfiets, the distinctive Dutch cargo bikes with the cargo bed located in front of the rider, are becoming increasingly popular outside of The Netherlands. Practical as they are for hauling things like groceries, however, they’re heavy. Their beds also tend to be rather hard and unyielding – not ideal for carting your kids around. The Dutch designers of the Urban Arrow took these things into consideration when creating their machine. It has a padded, rain-protected cargo box to keep the little ones comfy and dry, an electric motor to compensate for its 45-kg (99-lb) weight, and a few other clever features. Read More
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