1995 Batman Forever promotional Batmobile up for grab

UPDATED May 26, 2012 Mike chua Leave a comment

(image credit: Auctions America) 1995 Batman Forever promotional Batmobile | US$200,000 to $275,000 | www.auctionsamerica.com

well, you may not be able to own the Batmobile Tumbler until Bob decided to put it up for sale but here’s one road-worthy Batmobile you can truly own (besides the official licensed 60s replica, of course). built as a promotional vehicle for Warner Brothers’ 1995 Batman Forever, this awesome example made its way around the world to promote the film and its next stop might be just any regular folks’ garage. this running and driving batmobile features a custom tubular chassis and a fiberglass body which cost a reported 2.5 million dollars. Continue reading 1995 Batman Forever promotional Batmobile up for grab →

ACCESSORIES

Etch-A-Sketch protective cases for iPad, iPhone and iPod

UPDATED February 15, 2014 Mike chua Leave a comment

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Etch-A-Sketch protective case | from US$24.99 | getaheadcase.com

remember Etch-A-Sketch? the magical doodle board that you used to entertain yourself at the backseat of the car as a child when your dad drove you to your grandparents’? i guess we all have some nostalgic feel towards our childhood toy and thanks to HeadCase, we can now have a piece of yesteryear toy without actually carrying a real one around, looking silly. new from HeadCase and officially licensed by Ohio Art, makers of the original Etch-A-Sketch, are the Etch-A-Sketch cases for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch. ah.. now we can carry our fond memories around without looking like an overgrown kid. isn’t that sweet?

HeadCase Etch-A-Sketch protective cases are available for iPad, iPhone 3/3GS/4 as well as iPod Touch and price starts from $24.99 for iPhone/iPod cases, while iPad version cost $39. Etch-A-Sketch cases are available via HeadCase web store.

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Headcase Etch-A-Sketch Case for iPhone 4 - front view 800x800px

Headcase Etch-A-Sketch Case for iPhone 4 - back view 800x800px

ACCESSORIES

Joystickers Classic: physical buttons for your iOS devices

UPDATED February 25, 2011 Mike chua 1 Comment

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(image credit: Joystickers) Joystickers Classic | US$30.00 | www.joystickers.com

remember the JOYSTICK-IT and Fling Tactile Game Controller? now there’s a new kid on the block seeking funding for yet another joystick made for capacitive touchscreen but this time round, it is in the form of a button. the tiny buttons, dubbed the Joystickers Classic, resembles a small electronic button switch with suction cup at the bottom. the Classic promised to bring back tactile button feel to your gaming experience. it will work with games that has ‘action buttons’ and any devices that has capacitive touchscreen, such as the iPad, iPhone and Android handsets.

as oppose to the JOYSTICK-IT and Fling Tactile Game Controller, Classic is a button-only contraption hence it does not have directional control. the plus side is, for games that has more than one action button close to one another, the Classic’s small foot print enables you to put two of them side-by-side. having a small footprint also means it won’t hinder your game play experience and it will also work well with smartphone. something which the previous two joysticks can’t because of their size.

Joystickers are currently asking for support to make the Classic a reality and if you are keen on this product, head on to their Kickstarter page and make your pledge. a minimum pledge of $30 will get you a pair of the Classic, a microfiber cleaning cloth and a carrying pouch. Joystickers has two other products in the pipeline, both which are styluses. the first is the Scribe, a pen-like stylus that comes complete with a pen cap and the second is the Flow, which imitates closely to a real paintbrush. catch their intro for these three products video after the break.

LIVING

ultimate breakfast combo: slices of toasts and radio

UPDATED February 25, 2011 Mike chua Leave a comment

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(image credit: Breville) Breville 2 Slice Radio Toaster | £49.99 | www.breville.co.uk

if you are one of those who needs a little music and toasts to kickstart your day, Breville has a solution for you. introducing the Breville Radio Toaster, or is it a Toaster Radio? either way, this nifty kitchen gadget will ensure you get your daily morning fix for both music and toast – simultaneously. sounds wonderful. isn’t it?

on the toaster end, the Radio Toaster features a 2-slice variable wide slots catering to both thin and thick slices of bread and the variable browning control ensures the toast turns out exactly the way you wanted it. it also supports common duty expected of a modern day toaster such as reheating and defrosting, and it allows mid-cycle canceling, in case you decided to abort the whole toasting thing.

beyond its retro-ish appearance, it has a non-retro element slapped onto it – which is the toaster’s music department in the form of a FM/AM radio with ten preset radio channels. an illuminated digital display shows you what channel you are on and an auxiliary-in is present, just in case you find the morning radio sucks and you needed an MP3 to save the morning from turning into a disaster.

the Breville Toaster Radio retails at £49.99 (about US$81) which is inexpensive, considering it has two functions rolled into one. sure, you can always have a toaster and a music player on your breakfast table, but why not cut the clutter with a one piece gadget and in the process, freeing up the space for more toast? sounds like an awesome idea.

TOYS

get ahead of your competition with Super Soaker Scatter Blast

UPDATED February 25, 2011 Mike chua Leave a comment

(image credit: Hasbro) Nerf Super Soaker Scatter Blast | US$15.00 | www.nerf.com

stinky hot weather is just a few months down the road and its time to arm yourself with the most powerful water gun for some good water drenching fun. no, not the fire hose! i’m referring to the NERF Super Soaker water guns. get an edge over your competition with not one but five streams of water from the new NERF Super Soaker Scatter Blast. just like a real-life pump action shot gun, the water shoots out in a spread but in this case, its five streams of water for up to 25 feet. never mind if you weren’t a marksman, you can’t miss it with five streams. other features include 0.6 liter capacity, flip-up sight and tactical rail, in case you feel the need to accessorize your Scatter Blast.

the Nerf Super Soaker Scatter Blast retails for $15 and is available at major online retail stores.

LIVING

Tovolo teago lets you enjoy loose leaf tea on the go

UPDATED February 25, 2011 Mike chua Leave a comment

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(image credit: Tovolo via Firebox) Tovolo teago | US$12.00 | tovolo.com

rejoice tea lover! you no longer need to suffer with stuffy teabags while you are on the road. introducing Tovolo teago which lets you brew you own loose-leaf tea wherever there’s hot water. the Tovolo teago is essentially a portable compact tea press that squeezes the flavor from your favorite brand of loose tea leaves. a handy cap is provided to contain the drips after you’re done with the tea brewing. i want one!

the Tovolo Teago portable tea press cost $12.00 a pop and is available at amazon and Firebox.

OTHERS

SWIFTPOINT mouse: table and mousepad not required

UPDATED February 24, 2011 Mike chua 2 Comments

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(image credit: SwiftPoint) SWIFTPOINT Mouse | U$69.00 | futuremouse.com

anyone who uses a laptop would understand the frustration with trackpad even the much intuitive Apple’s trackpad does little to relief this eternal frustration. countering this, the market is swarmed with laptop-friendly mouse (read: smaller) – with Microsoft and Logitech being the forerunner in the market. even with a small mouse, you will inevitably requires a table space to manipulate it and worst, what if you don’t have a mousepad and the table is of glass? gosh. fret not. you will always have SwiftPoint, an ingeniously designed mouse that lets you manipulate your cursor right on the palm rest of your laptop.

instead of resting your hand over the mouse, you need only your fingers to operate SwiftPoint, just like you would holding a pen. SwiftPoint is wireless and requires no software installation, which makes it usable across any platform. all you need is to plug in the accompanying micro USB dock/receiver, and you are good to go. aside from the usual left/right clickers and scroll wheel, user can tilt the mouse to scroll through documents or zoom-in and out et cetera. there’s no batteries to fumble about, cos’ the SwiftPoint is rechargeable via the micro USB dock/receiver and in the rapid charge mode, it will juice up the SwiftPoint with an hour of battery life in just 30 seconds. on a full charge (which takes 90 minutes), the SwiftPoint will last between 2-3 weeks.

the SwiftPoint boost a precise 1000dpi micro optical technology and has built-in sensor to detect if your finger is on it, thus minimizing stray movement of cursor when the mouse accidentally pushed. it also comes with a parking accessory, which is basically an adhesive film with a small magnetic parking area that secures the mouse in place whilst typing. the SwiftPoint retails for $69.00 and is available via SwiftPoint web store.

AUTOS, MOTORCYCLES

this concept Quad Bike is gunning for the green trail

UPDATED May 26, 2012 Mike chua 1 Comment

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(image credit: Facundo Elias)

seriously, the last thing we would expect to go electric is the Quad bike. then again, even racing bikes are going all electric, why shouldn’t a Quad bike? traditionally, Quad bikes are used as a recreational vehicle rather than a transport due to road legality in most countries but that doesn’t mean it don’t need to move on to the greener pasture. The Quad Electric Bike by The Quad Electric Bike by Facundo Elias is powered by a 48v electric motor, juiced up by 4 x 750amp batteries which should provide a good three hours of sand dune fun upon a full charge, that takes about 6-8 hours depending the voltage used. Continue reading this concept Quad Bike is gunning for the green trail →

ART, LIVING

the world’s smallest aquarium contains only 10ml of water

UPDATED August 14, 2011 Mike chua Leave a comment

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(image credit: Anatoly Konenko)

meet the world’s smallest aquarium that despite its miniature size, still gives the tiny fishes a ‘full featured’ aquatic experience complete with multi-colored pebbles, seaweed and even an aeration device. the miniature tank created by Russian artist Anatoly Konenko, measures just 30 x 24 x 14 mm and holes a 10ml (0.34 oz) of water. check out the setting up of the miniature aquarium video (with a rather haunting soundtrack) after the break. Continue reading the world’s smallest aquarium contains only 10ml of water →

SCIENCE

CIA declassified spy gadgets photos now on public domain

UPDATED December 19, 2014 Mike chua 3 Comments

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(image credit: United States Government Work) Robot Fish “Charlie” is an unmanned underwater vehicle (UVV)

this is one news that would definitely quench our thirst for real-life spy gadgets. the newly overhauled CIA website now includes link to CIA official pages on YouTube and Flickr, containing historical agency videos and photo galleries.

the videos didn’t get our attention as much as the photo galleries on Flickr which includes never-before-seen spy gadget images, along with a bunch of more mundane photos. shown on the photo galleries include standard spy gear such as miniature imaging devices, concealment contraptions, and code breaking machines – which we might have already imagined or seen them in spy movies (as in the concept, not the actual item).

however, there are also more advanced gadgets such as “Charlie”, an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) disguised as a fish (is that a cat fish?). “Charlie” is a line-of-sight radio control robotic fish that comes complete with built-in ballast and propulsion systems which allow it to covertly swim underwater. who would have suspect a fish would ever spy on them? clever.

another exploration by CIA was the dragonfly “Insectothopter” which is one of the first micro spy drones back in the 70s. according the caption on CIA’s Flickr gallery, the Insectothopter “was an initiative to explore the concept of intelligence collection by miniaturize platforms.”

these are just a handful being shown which are all part of the history and with the technological advancement of today, one could imagine the kind of super gadgets the agency now possess.