(Credit:
Art Lebedev Studio)
The Fleximus is a twisty concept camera from Art Lebedev Studio, generator of such innovative ideas as transparent trucks and the Optimus Maximus keyboard.
(Credit:
Art Lebedev Studio)
The Fleximus is a tubular, flexible photo and video camera with a lens at one end and viewfinder or a 3-inch display at the other.
The device is designed to be as simple as possible, with few controls. Natch, since the motto of Art Lebedev Studio is "No bullsh--."
The Fleximus is also meant to get those photo angles you never could before, though it seems less practical than, say, a more compact camera you can simply aim at anything.
But it may be perfect for plumbers angling through pipes, nooks, and crannies--rovided, that is, it ever becomes a product and gets a much longer tube.
There is a neat page of designs showing how the Fleximus was created here.
A video signal is delivered from the camera mounted in the head of the truck to the back door panels through a projector.
(Credit: Art Lebedev)Russian design studio Art Lebedev calls this simple invention--a camera that takes images from the front of a truck to show it on screens in the back--Transparentius. I call it geeneeuzz.
I don't know why the drawing below shows a tank at the front of the truck, but I guess that in Russia people drive T-90s like people drive Fords in the U.S. I wish the technology was so cheap that this could be implemented for real, because I'm sure being able to see what's in the blind zone before switching lanes would save a lot of lives on the road.
(Credit:
Art Lebedev)
This story originally appeared on Gizmodo.
(Credit:
Electrolux)
I am confused by the concept behind this new Electrolux vacuum cleaner.
The company has developed the technology for what it's calling the "quietest vacuum cleaner ever." But then it breaks the silence by incorporating an iPod dock and speakers into the thing. Yes, this quiet vacuum plays music.
It's just a concept at this point based on a study Electrolux did (PDF) on the effects of music on doing housework. But I could easily envision these quiet-but-loud machines hitting stores in the next year if the demand is strong enough. I see these as the world's first hipster vacuums.
I suppose I like the idea of making housework fun, but the elimination of noise to create more enjoyable noise is like gentrification of the soundwaves. I can't help but think about how it mirrors what's happening in cities around the globe as people are pushed out of their neighborhoods to make way for newer, hipper, higher-end housing.
Or maybe I've been reading too many social-theory books before bed.
(Credit:
Othmar Muehlebach)
Swiss designer Othmar Muehlebach conceived of a toaster that not only looks like an inkjet printer, but also toasts bread like one.
The gizmo has an iMac-esque stand and you can drop the bread on the tray at the top, which will then feed the slices into a slot where it'll be toasted. This design won a second-place Berner Design Award in Switzerland, but so far there's no sign of it going into production.
I wonder if there's a butter cartridge for this gizmo, and does anyone knows its tpm (toast per minute) speed?
(Source: Crave Asia via Boing Boing)
(Credit:
SchultzeWorks)
(Credit:
SchultzeWorks)
A California-based design studio has dreamed up a deliciously retro desktop PC that looks like it came from the set of midcentury sci-fi classic "Forbidden Planet." The Philco PC from SchultzeWorks pays homage to an iconic brand of TV marketed in the late '50s, the Philco Predicta.
The hep PC won top-three placement in a design contest, according to SchultzeWorks. It was designed with Rhino modeling software.
The Philco Predicta was revolutionary for its time but suffered from poor picture quality. It featured a sculpted CRT separated from the receiver chassis and was marketed under the slogan "TV today from the world of tomorrow." Predictas sold well when launched in 1958, but color sets outsold them, and by 1962 Philco was bankrupt. Today, Telstar Electronics makes replica Predictas with color screens.
In styling his Eisenhower computer, Dave Schultze also drew upon antique typewriters for the keyboard design, as well as steampunk objects. He also seems to have been motivated by bland PC design in general, remarking that "most computers are engineered eyesores."
There's no word yet on whether anyone will actually make the Philco PC. For a closeup look at the concept, check out the promo video after the jump.
... Read more
(Credit:
Min-Kyu Choi)
We blog about the latest gadgets on Crave, but sometimes the best ideas come from redesigning devices that we use on a daily basis--for example, the standard U.K. three-pin power plug. That's exactly what Min-Kyu Choi of the Royal College of Art in London conjured up for his graduate show upon completing his master's in product design.
His design is a folding plug system inspired by the MacBook Air. According to Choi, the Air is "the world's thinnest laptop," but "we still still use the world's biggest three-pin plug." When people carry laptops with U.K plugs in a bag, he says, the plugs can tear paper, scratch laptop surfaces, and break things.
(Credit:
Min-Kyu Choi)
Choi's plug measures only 10mm wide (just over 3/8 of an inch) when "folded" and features swiveling live and neutral pins. It has a pair of flaps that can be unfolded to complete the standard U.K. plug. What's even better is that the design has inspired him to come up with a multiplug adapter. This attaches up to three of his folding plugs while keeping the overall size only marginally bigger than the three-pin plug we use today.
(Source: Crave Asia via Design Sojourn)
Try running to catch a train in these babies.
(Credit: Yatzer)Were designer Andreia Chaves' mirrored shoes to meet the Mirrored Rubik's Cube, you'd have yourself a look with a capital L. The "Invisible Shoes" are low-cut boots covered in asymmetrical mirrors that reflect the wearer's surroundings and create a different optical effect with every step. Right now, they're just concept footwear, and in the unlikely event they ever make it to market, we're figuring they'll be limited to the likes of Lady Gaga.
Chaves, a Brazilian designer, views shoes as part art, part math. Currently studying form, texture, and visual effects in Florence, Italy, she created a number of wild designs from unusual materials, including the Invisible Shoe and the intricate and dramatic "Prism Shoe," which casts dancing shadows on the ground. Again, probably not something you'll ever see the average commuter wearing, but a striking study in creativity nonetheless.
The Prism Shoe is part origami, part footwear.
(Credit: Ian Murphy, via Yatzer)(Via Yatzer)
(Credit:
Franziska Dierschke)
This campy camera gun is, quite literally, that. The Aimat is a squirt-gun-looking digital camera that you, well, point and shoot. Conceived by designer Franziska Dierschke, it's a concept device and not for sale--and for good reason. We can't imagine packing this piece through airport customs or even any sensitive area for that matter.
One can also expect the picture quality to be pretty Lomo-esque. Still, despite its "for laughs" intentions, this "firearm" could be aiming to be a shortlived novelty, given its notable lack of a viewfinder, zoom function, memory expansion options, and all the other niceties we expect in our cameras today.
(Credit:
Franziska Dierschke)
(Source: Crave Asia via Tomel)
(Credit:
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California)
Start-up Spring Design has been denied an injunction to halt Barnes & Noble from selling its Nook e-reader, according to court documents.
The company had requested the injunction, in addition to monetary damages, as part of a recent lawsuit filed in federal court in San Jose, Calif. The suit charges that the bookseller misappropriated Spring Design trade secrets in the design of its Nook, which launched October 20, the day after Spring Design announced its Alex e-book reader.
The court's decision (PDF), based on a Monday hearing, denies Spring Design's request for a preliminary injunction, but states that a halt to sales could still be appropriate if the plaintiff ultimately prevails. The court also says it will expedite the pre-trial process to accommodate Spring's request for an early hearing.
Barnes & Noble does not comment on litigation as a matter of policy, a company spokeswoman said Wednesday. CNET has contacted Spring Design for a comment and is waiting to hear back.
The Nook, like Spring Design's Alex (which has yet to be released), combines a color touch screen with an e-ink display, and both readers use the Android operating system. In its lawsuit, Spring Design said it showed its plans for the Alex to Barnes & Noble, which showed interest in the product and gave no indication it was working on a similar device.
So sales of the Nook will move forward for now, though not without hitches of a non-legal sort.
... Read moreThese are challenging times for camera manufacturers. The megapixel race is coming to an end, profit margins on entry-level cameras are slim to nil, and the thin line that separates cameras and phones will only get more blurry in the years ahead.
The challenge now is to make interesting products that offer features you won't ever find on a mobile phone. The new Olympus EP-1 (CNET review) does that by giving the point-and-shoot user a camera that offers a dSLR-like experience in a compact package that evokes the stylish feel of a classic camera from the "Mad Men" era. It'd be tough for a mobile phone to do that.
The EP-1 takes good pictures, but it also makes a powerful design statement. Inspired by the mid-1960s Olympus Pen, the $800 EP-1 hearkens back to the glory days of film cameras by offering removable lenses, a fast (1/4,000) shutter, and a lens format that keeps the the camera compact.
Just as importantly, it looks great when it hangs around your neck, it feels great in your hand, and you interact with it in an old-school way that requires a higher level of engagement than one normally associates with digital cameras, except perhaps prosumer-level digital SLRs.
The EP-1 is certainly easy on the eyes, but does it have what it takes to escape the forces that threaten to decimate the point-and-shoot camera segment? In this walkthough, we'll take a close look at the design and engineering choices Oympus made to bring this product to market.
Click a picture to enter the Design Review slideshow.
