Around The Home

OSRAM develops high-performance transparent white OLED

By Emily Clark

20:50 December 16, 2007 PST

December 17, 2007 OSRAM Opto Semiconductors has developed a transparent white OLED (organic light-emitting diode) tile that opens up the potential for new applications in furniture and interior design. Read More

Transparent toaster concept: pounce when it's perfect

By Loz Blain

17:12 December 9, 2007 PST

December 10, 2007 No matter how sophisticated our toasters have become in the last 50 years, they still haven't managed to overcome one simple problem: how do you make sure your toast comes out exactly how you like it? The transparent toaster concept from Inventibles uses heated glass technology to let you watch your slices gradually browning over so you can pull them when they're perfect. Are we looking at the Toaster 2.0 here? Read More

Advanced soil moisture monitoring technology saves water

By Emily Clark

22:09 December 4, 2007 PST

December 5, 2007 Effective use and management of precious water resources is increasingly a key concern for many countries. Two products from Agrilink offer optimization of irrigation scheduling via advanced soil moisture monitoring technology that promise vast water-savings for the environment. Read More

Teresonic's Magus compact speakers

By Emily Clark

21:53 November 29, 2007 PST

November 30, 2007 The new Magus compact loudspeakers from Teresonic combine quality audio and environmental efficiency in a unique casing. The speaker gets the most out of its low wattage, thereby offering power savings without compromising on sound quality. Read More

Simple and effective: Page' Up document holder

By Kyle Sherer

22:54 November 26, 2007 PST

November 27, 2007 Much attention is placed on ergonomic keyboard and chair design these days, but the key fact that typing while looking at sheets of paper usually involves twisting your neck in ways that would require years of Yoga to master is often overlooked. The Page’ Up document holder offer an effective and unobtrusive solution – and they’re currently adorning the desks of 15 million users in 42 countries. Read More

Neverlate Executive Alarm Clock: complete control of your waking life

By Darren Quick

20:44 November 25, 2007 PST

November 26, 2007 American Innovative has released a successor to their Neverlate 7-day Alarm Clock. The new Neverlate Executive Alarm Clock is a fully customizable 7-day Alarm Clock with everything from the backlight brightness (three levels of brightness or off altogether) to the total alarm duration being fully adjustable. The new model features the first-ever "preferences menu" in a clock radio and snooze duration, sleep and nap timer options are carried over from the original. If you're not a tinkerer however, these advanced features stay out of your way. Read More

Oregon Scientific weather forecasting projection clock

By Kyle Sherer

20:25 November 21, 2007 PST

November 22, 2007 Oregon Scientific has added its range of weather monitoring smart clocks with a Projection Clock that constantly reacts to forecasted weather from 12-24 hours in advance, changing its display color to red, light blue, blue, orange or green depending on the anticipated conditions. Read More

Whitegoods get a color makeover

By Emily Clark

19:24 November 15, 2007 PST

November 16, 2007 The term “whitegoods” may be headed for the scrap heap. Over the past few years, silver, grey and black have crept into the color scheme for bulky household appliances and now Electrolux has expanded on the trend by announcing its Color Passion range of kitchen and laundry appliances in a number of vibrant hues. Read More

iRobot Looj cleans up at innovation awards

By Emily Clark

21:43 November 13, 2007 PST

November 14, 2007 The Looj remote controlled gutter cleaning bot from home robotics specialists iRobot has been announced the winner of the Best of Innovations Design and Engineering Award in the Home Appliance category in the 2008 International Consumer Electronic Showcase (CES). Read More

Waterdrop Weather Station

By Emily Clark

22:45 October 31, 2007 PDT

November 1, 2007 It’s 6am, dark, the alarm is buzzing and you can’t find the snooze button. If that’s your worst nightmare then perhaps this rather novel clock and weather station from the Sharper Image is the solution. Read More

More BoKlok homes for Gateshead

By Emily Clark

22:09 October 21, 2007 PDT

October 22, 2007 Following our report earlier this month that applications had opened for the innovative

BoKlok housing project in the UK, approval has been granted for even more of the homes to be built at Gateshead in the UK. Read More

Poggenpohl Porsche kitchen designed for men

By Mike Hanlon

17:26 October 8, 2007 PDT

October 9, 2007 Since the world’s marketers have become aware that women account for more purchasing power than they’ve previously been given credit for, there’s been a distinct lack of “women’s domain” appliances designed for men. Recognizing that men are showing an increasing interest in developing the kitchen as part of their habitat, Porsche Design Group and Poggenpohl Mobelwerke have taken the covers off their first co-designed kitchen, the P’7340. Read More

Applications open for first UK Boklok housing

By Emily Clark

22:24 October 7, 2007 PDT

October 8, 2007 IKEA has accepted applications from potential homeowners for the first release of Boklok houses in the UK. Gizmag has been following the progress of this innovative housing development that aims to create affordable and sustainable housing to offer space and flexibility to low income families. Read More

iRobot release Looj gutter cleaning robot

By Emily Clark

01:14 October 1, 2007 PDT

October 1, 2007 Cleaning the gutters is an unloved yet necessary - even dangerous - household chore that is inevitably given the lowest priority until gutters are clogged and overflowing with leaves. The latest offering from home robotics specialists iRobot uses remote control to solve the problem – the Looj blasts out debris and brushes gutters clean while your feet remain firmly planted on the ground. Read More

Celebrating 40 years of microwave cookery

By Emily Clark

17:15 September 19, 2007 PDT

September 20, 2007 After completing a 6 feet (1.8 m) tall, 750 pound (340 kg) prototype in 1947, the Raytheon Corporation introduced the first commercial microwave oven to the world in 1954 and 13 years later Amana brought us the very first domestic bench top microwave. In the 40 years since is inception the microwave has fundamentally changed the way we live, shop and eat. Read More

Low-profile Weibel projector lift

By Kyle Sherer

20:23 September 7, 2007 PDT

September 8, 2007 Rising projector sales on the back of lower prices and constantly improving technology has seen increasing numbers of consumers bringing the big screen feel into their homes. But when it’s not offering a visual feast, a projector can be a bit of an eyesore. The Weibel Precision Projector Lift is designed to address one of the issues that arises when trying to solve this problem - build depth - by requiring only 15 centimeters of space to be built into the ceiling. Read More

Hydrogen based power offers green alternative for homes

By Noel McKeegan

18:14 September 6, 2007 PDT

September 7, 2007 In a development that marks another step towards the vision of a sustainable, clean future for home power generation, UK company ITM Power has announced the upcoming release of a device which can generate hydrogen in the home to fuel central heating boilers and cookers while drastically cutting CO2 emissions. Set to go into production next year, the ITM electrolyser is designed to utilize off-peak or renewable electricity sources to create its own hydrogen fuel which can then be stored and used as a conventional gas to burn in central heating boilers as well as a fuel for cooking. Read More

Meridian iRIS Universal iPod Dock - high-quality video on HD screens

By Mike Hanlon

12:47 September 5, 2007 PDT

September 5, 2007 Meridian Audio is set to unveil a product later today at the 2007 CEDIA Expo which could have quite some significance if it delivers on its claims. A unique new enabler for the Apple’s iPod family, the Meridian iRIS Universal Dock for iPod accepts the full range of current iPod models and delivers battery charging and home audio-system integration and control. More importantly, the design features high-end video up-conversion processing (up to 1080p) that produces what it claims are astonishing images with clarity and detail, delivering true big-screen performance from iPod Video. The company claimsthe new dock can play iPod videos on the big screen, with big-screen quality, clarity, and freedom from video-noise, “jaggies,” or blocking-artifacts. Read More

Surface computing meets home automation: ROSIE Coffee table touch-panel

By Emily Clark

23:42 September 4, 2007 PDT

September 5, 2007 Surface computing is moving full steam ahead and this latest release from Savant is another reminder that even the wireless mouse is becoming an outmoded piece of technology. The ROSIE Coffee Table Touchpanel Controller offers an easily accessible interface for home automation coupled with interactive multimedia capabilities, connecting to iTunes, digital cameras, IP network cameras, business card readers and various high-tech devices around the home. Read More

The Microwave television

By Mike Hanlon

22:41 September 3, 2007 PDT

September 4, 2007 One of the first kitchen appliances to have an integrated LCD was LG’s much celebrated refrigerator which began show appearances seven years ago and though it was a star in its day and is still around in a subsequent design, it still strikes us as something for people with more money than tech savvy. Seven years later, at IFA in Berlin this week, the Holland Electro Wave TV made its first appearance. While the product in the press handouts looks impressive, HE showed what appeared to be a prototype at IFA and quite frankly, they shouldn’t have because it looked like exactly what it is – two different consumer electronics products bolted together. Read More

Brownie baking pan has the edge

By Emily Clark

19:11 September 3, 2007 PDT

September 4, 2007 True brownie lovers who savor the edges of chocolatey treats will love this new pan from Baker’s Edge. The 9” x 12” x 2” Edge Brownie Pan was designed specifically with “edge-lovers” in mind and is promoted as the only one of its kind. Read More

The Porsche-designed Eton P9110 emergency radio

By Mike Hanlon

13:13 August 31, 2007 PDT

One of the stand-outs on the floor at IFA was the new Porsche-designed Eton P9110 – in function, it’s a AM/M/Shortwave radio with LED flashlight, cell phone charger, emergency siren, flashing red light and a crank handle so you can generate your own power, but it is more than just the sum of its parts. Made of cast aluminium, its considerable (1.74 pounds - 0.74 kilograms)weight and the feel of its precision knurled nobs, and the look and feel is … quite extraordinary. That’s before we even get to what it looks like, which is a metallic sculpture of great beauty. Read More

Day Clock offers a hand for the memory

By Emily Clark

16:55 August 30, 2007 PDT

August 31, 2007 Since the advent of the sundial people have relied on clocks of all shapes, sizes and functions to tell the time. A new type of clock designed for people suffering memory difficulties breaks with convention and goes one step further by telling you what day it is. Read More

Polymer Optical Fiber home network on display at CEDIA

By Noel McKeegan

16:12 August 29, 2007 PDT

August 30, 2007 For centuries one’s house has been one’s castle, it’s just that now the castle of choice is also a fully networked entertainment and communications hub. With the aim of making this easier in terms of both installation and performance, Mitsubishi International Corporation and Firecomms have announced a live home network demonstration using Polymer Optical Fiber (POF) at CEDIA Expo in Denver. The demonstration will take the form of a fully networked living room showcasing the advantages in connectivity, flexibility, and up to one Gigabit data rate capability of POF. Read More

Pottery Barn’s Daily System with Recharge Station

By Mike Hanlon

07:56 August 23, 2007 PDT

August 23, 2007 Isn’t it strange how people who are masters of the digital realm often struggle with arranging real world objects into a functional office. For these proponents of the geographic strata method of desktop filing (aka anarchy) who would like to get organized but just can’t find a spot for everything, Pottery Barn’s Daily System is well worth a look. It has a series of modular components (corkboard, letter bin, magazine rack, magnetic chalkboard, whiteboard calendar, an office organizer with three hooks for keys, slots etc) which can mix and match to suit even the most dyslexic brain. Pick of the bunch is a new Recharge Station that incorporates Smart Technology so you can organize electronic devices and recharge MP3 players, handhelds, mobile phones and laptops all in one place. Read More