What is it? A laser cutter? A mod photo enlarger? A microscope? A tattoo remover? Nope, it’s a coffee maker, but an extremely svelte coffee maker. In fact, I imagine this little Nespresso-friendly caffeine inducer would look pretty sweet in your typical “ice hotel” or ad agency lobby.
Clearly, we’ve come a long way since days of yore when a Cuisinart was enough you get you by in the couture… → Read More
If there is one thing I could say about most websites, it is that they are ugly. I mean really. Just atrocious. There are generally so many things going wrong that we have all had to completely reconfigure our expectations just to exist in this noisy, cluttered, pixelated world. It’s difficult to stretch one’s mind far enough to even imagine what the web would look like with the clarity and… → Read More
The US has yet to join the rest of the world in the large-scale deployment of powered bikes, and I doubt this particular item will change that, but it’s always worth noting when a nice, practical vehicle like this shows up. This one is called the Vienna Bike, and it’s designed by Valentin Vodev of Pixstudio, a design studio (naturally) based (naturally) in Vienna. → Read More
This is an interesting little concept/design piece that’s more about the act of taking pictures than, you know, actually taking pictures. The Buttons camera isn’t fitted with a lens or any way to take a shot at all — but it’s shaped like a camera and has a “shutter” button and LCD screen. You hit the button and after a while a picture will show up, but there’s a little more to it than that. → Read More
One thing most 30-something people in tech have in common is video gaming nostalgia. Generation X (and Generation i) can go on for hours discussing the merits of our favorite Nintendo games, our programming experience in school, and of course our beloved Ataris. Sure there were C64s and Amigas and such, but Atari’s 2600 and its successors were truly groundbreaking in the gaming world.
You can… → Read More
While I’m sure these are 100% safe, it’s a little odd to see this wee one sitting in a Belkinz cardboard high chair that folds flat and is completely disposable if/when junior goes lateral on the mashed potatoes.
The kit, made by an Australian firm, is available for purchase but it might be a little hard to find around these parts. It is good for kids who are up to 20 months of age and seems… → Read More
You might remember the Split Ring Key, a clever twist on the keyring by designer Scott Amron that let you hang your keys on another key. The split-ring design, however, made it a chore to add and remove keys. Solution? Put a hinge on that sucker and ta-da: the CarabinerKey. → Read More
I wouldn’t expect much in the way of warm and well-regulated sound from this little speaker, but I sure do like the way it looks. Flat, portable, and extremely simple. Probably difficult to find outside Japan, though, and $65 is about three times what I’d pay for it. [via NotCot] → Read More
The only way I could like this cool little whiteboard wall clock better is if there weren’t even any numbers on there. And maybe if there was a little more space to write on the top an bottom. Do they think nothing happens between 12 and 6? [via 7 Gadgets] → Read More
Oh, so you thought Google was done after it rolled out Google+, Circles, Sparks, Huddle, and Hangouts? No, no, no. Google will be done when that’s Google-brand oxygen you’re breathing. This afternoon, the Google rollout announcements have continued, as the official Google blog quietly declared (relatively speaking) that the Google Search page (and products across the Google empire) will be getting… → Read More
Fellow Seattlite and Etsy seller Erica Hanson has put together a great little tool bag for discerning bikers: the Mopha. It’s waxed canvas and consists of ten of little pockets for you to put your patch kits, hex wrenches, spare tube, and all that jazz. Then roll it up and strap it to your frame. Hell of a good-looking thing, and the simple, rugged construction seems like it should last… → Read More
Now, I’m as tired of steampunk as the next guy (unless the next guy works at BoingBoing), but that doesn’t mean I’m going to pretend something like this Rotary Mechanical concept isn’t cool. Steampunk got cool because of stuff like this, not people gluing brass fittings onto their top hats. → Read More
There aren’t too many of us now who need to sharpen a pencil in the first place, much less do it in a poetically inefficient manner. But that shouldn’t stop you from appreciating this beautifully-designed little sharpener, which takes off little shavings the way you might peel a pointy potato. If I were the kind of guy who designed pencil sharpeners, I’d definitely use this to… → Read More
If you’re the kind of guy that always has to have some kind of off-the-wall tie, this could be right up your alley. No, it’s not pixelated, or LED-lit. It’s made of wood. Like real reclaimed wood pieces held to one another by sturdy elastic cord. Made by Wooden Thumb, they come in large and small (how large and how small isn’t specified), both for a very reasonable $34… → Read More
Ah, this should simplify playtime immensely. No more laying down tracks, or searching for that one elusive piece that completes your circuit. Yes, this frou-frou choo-choo Dutch designer Treintafel is pure genius. I’d probably get crumbs in the tracks, though. [via NotCot] → Read More
These laptop bags are slightly different from your average messenger or sling. Out of the box, the Unit 01 (no relation to Eva Unit 01) is essentially blank on the outside. But add on Unit 02 and/or Unit 03 (or more than one of either) to its little hook-on system and you’ve got yourself some extra storage that’s easily removable and accessible. → Read More
There are tons of sites out there that help you build a website, but most of them are built for novices or, on the other end, developers. Many of them rely on template-systems: The user is given a couple stock molds to choose from — you can change a few colors, add a logo, and that’s about it. For example, those with Macs might be familiar with iWeb, which allows you to use a few pre-existing… → Read More
Olympus’s XZ-1 competes with models like the Canon S95 and Panasonic LX-5 in the “primo point and shoot” market, and looks good doing it. But having a manual lens cap can sometimes be a pain: it’s either dangling from a lanyard, taking up space in your pocket, or getting lost somewhere. This excellent retracting lens cap fits over the lens and splits apart to get out of the… → Read More
Those of us in cooler climates are familiar with the common hot-water radiator. It’s old-school, but it works. 5.5 Designers have decided they’re too good for wrought iron and steam (or rather their client Saazs has), and have instead put together this insane device, which uses a special coating (creating what they almost certainly mis-describe as “quantum glass”) to… → Read More
Some kids wanted to be firefighters, doctors, and movie stars. I wanted to grow up to be either Boba Fett or a sky pirate. Final Fantasy III and Skies of Arcadia helped nurture this ambition, and while I’m no closer to it now than I was then, at least there are kites like this that remind me that the sky will one day be mine. This awesome denim kite is sold by Grey Label and handmade… → Read More
What’s the main problem with notebooks? You know, like paper notebooks, stacks of paper stuck together, that you write on. What’s the problem with them? They don’t store any gigs of data at all! Unless you manually transcribe the bits and bytes onto their pages, and that’s really not efficient. This notebook is different, though. It has quattro. Quattro. Quattro gigs, my friend. → Read More
Just take a look at that. What’s going on here? This radically different bike frame design is called the Roundtail, and inventor Lou Tortola claims that circular rear fork thing makes for a way more comfortable ride. → Read More
I haven’t used a stapler in years, nor a straight-up calculator, but I remember my days of desk work where I needed this stuff every day. It might be kind of metro to have matching tape and hole punch, but I think I could have pulled it off. → Read More
There’s something about this simple, elegant wall clock on Etsy that just makes me want to buy it. Too bad I don’t have $92 burning a hole in my pocket… any more. Damn ponies! My guy said “Rutger Hauer’s Bifocals” was a sure thing! [via Swiss Miss] → Read More
The original ceramic crinkled cup has been around for decades, but this glass version is, if anything, better. Sure to get lots of comments at parties. You know, parties, where your friends come over and hang out. You know, your friends. Oh. Oh, I see. Me neither. [via Swiss Miss] → Read More
Short version: A good-looking and fairly durable alternative to your usual black-nylon camera bag. Not an all-purpose bag, though — definitely for the photographer who loves waxed canvas, not the gadget guy or world traveler, despite its Indiana Jones looks. → Read More
I won’t deny it — I get pretty neurotic when I’m chopping stuff in my kitchen. I was just fretting over some barbecued pork earlier that I simply couldn’t slice into pieces of equal width. Cheese is like that too, and of course celery. Maybe I’m crazy (I’m crazy), but I think we can all agree that this measurement-covered cutting board is a pretty good idea. → Read More
You would think that, in a city like Seattle, people would learn to A: not have gigantic, pointy umbrellas, and B: look where the hell they are walking. But no, that is not the case. I fear for my life on blustery days when iPhone-absorbed pedestrians of smaller stature menace my eyeballs with their spiky bumbershoots. Today I learned that there are blunt umbrellas. I implore you, world, for… → Read More
Austin, TX
Seattle, WA
San Diego, CA
Menlo Park, CA
Boston, MA
Disrupt Europe: Berlin Hackathon
Berlin, Germany
