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Design
Technosphere: eco-friendly Earth in miniature proposed for Dubai
By Gizmag Team
18:18 November 4, 2009 PST
It's been a while since we've taken a look at the weird and wonderful canvas that is Dubai's skyline of the future, and this proposal from James Law Cybertecture would slot neatly in among radical designs like the Almeisan Tower and the spiraling ZPO. Shaped like a giant disco ball, the Technosphere is conceived as a self-sustaining model of the Earth in miniature incorporating a range of active and passive systems to meet these goals. Read More
Tilera unveils Tile GX100, the 100-core general purpose processor
17:31 November 1, 2009 PST
If you thought Intel's plans to embed eight cores in its high-end processors were a bit too out there, you'll find that the latest processor developed by semiconductor start-up Tilera is even more of an extreme. Packing 100 1.25GHz to 1.5GHz cores on a single chip, the Gx100 brings parallel processing to the extreme thanks to a new architecture that minimizes the bus bottleneck in today's multi-core processors. Read More
ID titanium laser mouse - stunning design and a price to match
By Jude Garvey
17:41 October 30, 2009 PDT
With Apple’s new wireless Magic Mouse grabbing headlines this month, and innovations such as the multi-functional GlideTV navigator and Nortek Duplus mini wireless mouse being rolled-out almost weekly, it seems the days of the humble mouse are long gone. Enter Intelligent Design’s titanium laser mouse - a hand-crafted device that is anything but humble (or cheap) and while it doesn't have the smarts of Apple's new offering, its certainly lays down a challenge on the design front. Read More
Pentax gets colorful with Korejanai K-x D-SLR
By Paul Ridden
21:56 October 28, 2009 PDT
Black may not be the new black in the world of digital SLR cameras. Last month Pentax announced its intention to add a splash of color by offering its new K-x camera in white, red and blue as well as black. Now the company has announced a very colorful limited edition K-x based on the design of the popular Korejanai robot. Read More
Award-winning ReNu personal solar-powered storage system
By Mick Webb
20:51 October 27, 2009 PDT
Solar power is being harnessed and applied in ever more interesting and creative ways, and the ReNu personal power generation and storage system is certainly no exception. The device features a freestanding modular solar panel that, once charged, can be slotted into a number of extensions to make use of the collected energy, including an iPod dock and an LED desk lamp. Read More
Delta’s Pilar kitchen faucet offers unique touch-technology
By Jude Garvey
16:06 October 20, 2009 PDT
With the rise and rise of celebrity chefs and cooks on our screens, more home cooks are getting down and dirty in the kitchen, which (like it or not) may include using hands as mixing utensils. This is all well and good – until hand-washing time - when it is almost impossible to avoid covering the taps with your latest culinary offering. Help may be at hand - Delta has recently released its Pilar kitchen faucet - which can be turned on or off by a simple tap or touch anywhere on the spout or handle. Read More
Solar Decathlon solar house competition heats up
By Darren Quick
00:45 October 12, 2009 PDT
Competition is underway in the Department of Energy’s (DoE) Solar Decathlon, in which 20 teams of college and university students compete to design, build, and operate the most attractive, effective, and energy-efficient solar-powered house. The house designs entered in the competition not only capture heat and light from the sun, but also integrate design features to take advantage of cooling breezes and shading. By combining these proven energy efficient designs with the latest off-the-shelf technology, the teams aim to create homes that reduce utility bills and meet all their energy needs, while providing all the comforts of home. Read More
Mouse 2.0: Microsoft's multi-touch mouse prototypes
05:01 October 10, 2009 PDT
It's been over forty years since the first computer mouse saw the light of day, and the fact that its basic design hasn't changed all that much is a testament to the original. But that doesn't mean there's no room for improvement. A group of researchers at Microsoft has come up with five new experimental designs that tie traditional mouse functionality to increasingly popular multi-touch technology on a single device. Read More
The Finger Hinge prevents fingers being caught in the door
By Jude Garvey
11:20 October 8, 2009 PDT
Children and adults can suffer painful injuries, or even risk amputation, from getting their fingers caught between a door and the door jamb. A unique door-hinge design from an Australian inventor could prevent these injuries from occurring. The Finger Hinge is a full-length door hinge that completely eliminates the gap between the door and the wall and therefore removes any possibility of getting crushed fingers when the door is closing. Read More
MAX: An almost Lotus that runs on vegetable oil
By Paul Ridden
05:05 October 7, 2009 PDT
Even before entering the Progressive Automotive X-Prize competition, Jack McCornack had started to pull together all the things needed to knock out a sporty two-seater car capable of achieving 100 miles per gallon. Fueled by the desire to make his creation a template for others to repeat and determined to bring it together within a strict budget, the race was on to bring MAX into the world - a Lotus Seven replica which just happens to run on vegetable oil. Paul Ridden traces the history of this fascinating project. Read More
Fujitsu announces winners of Mobile Phone design competition
By Paul Ridden
03:04 October 7, 2009 PDT
In May of this year, Fujitsu called on the imagination of the public to help the company come up with some mobile designs for the future. Offering budding designers the choice of being realistically practical or wildly imaginative, the company received around 2000 entries over the Summer and has just announced the winners at the CEATEC technology trade show in Japan. Read More
The Cruzbike Silvio - form and function in a front wheel drive
By Mick Webb
22:05 October 4, 2009 PDT
For many, the words “recumbent bicycle” conjure the image of a strange-looking vehicle with the rider set low to the ground achieving less than remarkable speeds. That perception could well become a thing of the past with the Cruzbike Silvio, the world’s only recumbent racing bike that is not only fully compatible with road bike components, but aims to eliminate many health problems associated with standard cycling. Read More
Teleavia type P111 - high definition TV circa 1958
By Gizmag Team
14:49 October 4, 2009 PDT
Michael Bennett-Levy's extraordinary collection of early technologies went under the hammer at Bonhams in London on Wednesday with 90% of the 758 lots on offer sold for a total of £683,384. A tidy sum no doubt, but having had the opportunity to examine the treasure trove closely, and the benefit of speaking at length to Bennett-Levy about the significance of key items, we can't help but conclude that many pieces were a steal for shrewd investors. The largest privately held collection of early televisions in the world - including 26 pre-war sets - made up a large slice of the auction and in the first of a series of interviews, Michael Bennett-Levy talks to Gizmag about outstanding items in his collection, starting with the much sought after Teleavia type P111, a rare 1958 console-stand television by Citroën DS designer Flaminio Bertroni that was not only a hallmark in style, but also one of the earliest examples of high-definition TV. Read More
Video: the state of the art in robot perception and dexterity
By Loz Blain
21:02 September 29, 2009 PDT
Don't watch the video after the jump if you've recently seen a Terminator movie - because it's becoming clear that if the robots come after us, there'll be no stopping them. The video shows an incredible array of three-fingered robot hand/eye co-ordination exercises, including throwing and catching, spinning pens, tying knots and dribbling a ping-pong ball. The Ishikawa Komuro laboratory at the University of Tokyo put these videos together to demonstrate the incredibly quick parallel processing they are achieving with a mix of visual and tactile sensory inputs. Astounding stuff. Sarah Connor, you're in deep trouble. Read More
Cocoon meat and fish 'maker' wins Electrolux Design Lab 2009
By Jude Garvey
15:24 September 27, 2009 PDT
A conceptual cooker that “makes” meat and fish has taken out first prize in the Electrolux Design Lab 2009 competition. Cocoon uses radio frequency identification (RFID) signals to identify muscle cells in meat and fish dishes and "grow" food in a process described as being similar to making popcorn in a microwave. Read More
Mosquito Electric Bike by Toto Design
By Paul Ridden
17:15 September 24, 2009 PDT
With a very sturdy folded steel frame and elegant simple design, the Mosquito or Mücke electric bike is one good-looking machine. Its 48V lithium batteries only cost a few (European) cents to charge up and will give a range of about 60km (37 miles). The 0.8kW motor produces a top speed of around 50km/h (31mph) and the bike also has a removable center pole for instant accessibility. Read More
Become a human packhorse with the Yoke Shopper
By Darren Quick
00:33 September 24, 2009 PDT
As a manly man who will eschew a shopping trolley in favor of carting a multitude of plastic shopping bags (on the rare occasion I forget my more environmentally friendly cloth bag, mind you) to the car - only to find I don’t have the third hand required to find my keys and open the boot - I would probably be the perfect candidate for the Yoke Shopper. This ingeniously simple device allows shoppers to lock together a number of plastic shopping bags and carry them on a shoulder. Read More
myPANTONE App puts color library in your iPhone
By Jeff Salton
19:23 September 22, 2009 PDT
The release of a new iPhone App is sure to please graphic designers, decorators and artists who work with Pantone colors. Pantone has been the industry standard in color for many years, but carrying around a Pantone book full of color palettes hasn’t always been practical. And they’re expensive books to lose, too. Pantone LLC has launched myPANTONE, a digital app for iPhones that gives designers more flexibility when choosing and working with Pantone palettes. Read More
The multimedia Athena sofa
By Jude Garvey
17:19 September 20, 2009 PDT
Call me crazy, but isn’t a sofa meant to be a place of relaxation? Apparently, it’s not any more. Swiss-based Artanova has created a modern, upholstered sofa that incorporates multimedia into its design. Featuring creamy upholstery and stainless steel feet, this is one stylish-looking piece of furniture on its own, but it also boasts a computer, wireless MP3 player and iPod/iPhone dock, as well as subwoofer and loudspeakers. Read More
The world's first floating, rotating (floatating?) hotel building
By Loz Blain
05:47 September 18, 2009 PDT
Antalya is a city of around 800,000 people on the Southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Like most cities in that region, it has played host to a revolving cast of empires over the centuries, from the Romans, to the Byzantines to the Ottomans and Turks. Nestled between a stunning coastline and majestic mountain ranges, it's known as one of the most beautiful cities in Turkey, and it's also the site of one of the world's most unusual hotels. The Hotel Marmara Antalya features the only fully rotating hotel building in the world - and the way they've done it is fascinating. Read More
2009 BraunPrize shines a light on young design talent
By Gizmag Team
09:52 September 17, 2009 PDT
Young German designer Johanna Schoemaker was last night awarded the prestigious International BraunPrize during a ceremony at the company's headquarters in Kronberg. Schoemaker's elegant Clam OLED Lamp was among four worthy designs shortlisted by the jury from a field of more than 1000 entries from 54 countries. Read More
The slim-line, funked-up Bullitt cargo-bike
By Paul Ridden
09:47 September 17, 2009 PDT
Danish duo Larry vs Harry have taken the obviously functional but visually uninspiring cargo-bike and given it a funky makeover. Notable for a streamlined design that's not much wider than your average bicycle and weighing as little as 22kg, the Bullitt range sports jumbo-sized hardened aluminum tubing, top quality gears, hydraulic braking and puncture-proof tires with an added dash of iconic branding. Cue the 1970s soundtrack! Read More
An interesting take on the PWC – but will the idea float?
By Mick Webb
06:46 September 17, 2009 PDT
With personal watercraft design evolving at what some may say is “a rate of knots”, a rather interesting concept has come to our attention. The brainchild of Spanish designer Miguel Angel, this cross between a Jet Ski and a body board is designed with speed and maneuverability in mind – but does the idea have what it takes when the going gets tough and the water gets rough? Read More
Bloom’s Fresco Fiamma – Ferrari red, funky and fabulous
By Jude Garvey
06:32 September 17, 2009 PDT
The design team that brought us the Alma crib has taken their Fresco baby chair to the furniture equivalent of an auto-mechanic shop, lacquering it in new-car-quality high-gloss red and adding an extra design function. The limited edition Fresco Fiamma was rolled out by the four designer dads behind Bloom to celebrate the company’s third birthday. The global production has been limited to 1,100 units that come individually inscribed with a unique model number. Read More
Native Instruments announces Komplete 6 bundle for music creation
By Paul Ridden
16:06 September 13, 2009 PDT
Native Instruments has just announced a recession-busting update to its impressive arsenal of digital musical instruments and effects - Komplete 6. The bundle not only comes with improved versions of amp and effects simulator Guitar Rig, the powerful sound manipulator Absynth and over 44Gb of sampling joy in the form of Kontakt, but it's also being offered at a significantly reduced price too. Read More
Jonathan Cole
- November 6, 2009 @ 16:15 UTC
