Electronics
Playing a bit like a computer version of Lego, Mojang's Minecraft – the darling of the indie game movement – has been an impressive success story. It soared to mainstream popularity as intrepid players proudly showcased their elaborate creations online. Its similarity to Lego didn't go unnoticed by the toy giant, and in 2012 kids of all ages could enjoy the game AFK with a licensed brick set. The problem is, you'd need an awful lot of bricks to recreate what you can make in the game (for example, check out this version of Game of Thrones' King's Landing), so that's where Printcraft – and the magic of 3D printing – enters the picture. Read More
With one in five Japanese citizens now aged 65 or older, various robotics technologies are being developed to prolong independent living and improve quality of life at home. The main alternative to nursing homes and hospitals would be smart homes designed around the needs of the elderly. Earlier this week, Honda announced that it will test some of its life support robots in a mock household environment at the Future Life Showroom, in Sekisui House's brand new SUMUFUMU Lab. Read More
When Lego kit specialist The Daily Brick made contact to see if we'd like to review its Lego iPad Dock Kit for Retina or iPad mini, bits were champed. This was partially because I don't actually have a Lightning dock for my Retina iPad, and partially because… you know… Lego. But as fun as Lego is, most of the joy is in the building. Is a Lego iPad dock really up to the rigors of daily use? Gizmag built one to find out. Read More
The need for true-to-life digital objects is accelerating as visual effects studios outbid themselves into bankruptcy, game studios build increasingly realistic AAA titles, and the art world begins to digitally preserve priceless artifacts for future generations. A 3D scanner can generate digital models of real world objects quickly and easily, and that's where Creaform's Go!SCAN 3D finds its niche. Read More
The latest LED lighting product to hit Kickstarter, Klauf Light Bars are semi-portable, low-cost LED strips which can be connected end-to-end more or less straight out of the box. They come in 6-inch and 12-inch (15 and 30 cm) lengths, which can be arranged as you like up to a length of 15 feet (or about 4.5 meters). They can either be slotted together directly or connected with cables, which is handy if you intend to install them under kitchen cabinets which extend around a corner (recommended), or make giant illuminating nunchaku (less so). Read More
In its travels, portable power system manufacturer Powertraveller says that it's come across the question many times: "Can you make a battery with enough charge to run a laptop all day?" It now has an answer. The silverback-gorilla is its beefiest portable power pack yet. Read More
Digital Light Processing (DLP) is the method of choice for the next generation of personal 3D printers. The DLP process prints objects with a very fine resolution that surpasses that of typical Fused Filament Fabrication (RepRap) printers which extrude molten plastic layer by layer. An Italian company called Robot Factory has created the latest prosumer printer. If judged by appearances alone, the 3DLPrinter would be one of the more attractive 3D printers we've seen – but can it measure up to its competition? Read More
Over the past several years, we’ve seen a number of bike-mounted products designed to charge the user’s phone using pedal power. Some of these have included the PedalPower+, the EcoXPower, Nokia’s Bicycle Charger Kit, and BioLogic ReeCharge Power Pack. One of the latest such devices, the Siva Cycle Atom, is hitting Kickstarter – and it's quite a bit more compact than most of the competition. Read More
Japan's Zoom has released a few details about a new addition to its excellent handy recorder line. The H6 is claimed to be the world's first portable recorder with interchangeable microphone heads, giving it a versatility lacking in its closest competitors. There's not too much by way of available information, but here's what we do know. Read More
3D printers have been a hit with consumers for several years now, but designing anything for them still requires some basic knowledge of 3D modeling software. Otherwise, you're stuck just building whatever designs you can find online. With Doodle3D, you can draw simple 2D sketches on a computer, tablet, or smartphone, and then send them to a 3D printer to turn them into physical objects. Read More
