kickstarter

After concerns were raised about where donors' money goes if Kickstarter projects are never finished, the crowd-source funding platform addressed its accountability today.

"The number of creative projects that have been funded and produced on Kickstarter in the past three years is enormous," the company's co-founders, Perry Chen, Yancey Strickler, and Charles Adler, wrote in a blog post today. "But of course not every project goes perfectly. Delays do occur, especially with more complicated projects. Some creators get in over their heads dealing with processes that are new to them."

Ultimately, Kickstarter concluded that the … Read more

It was just a few weeks ago when my buddy Tyll Hertsens was raving about Colin Shaw's Sicphones amplifier Kickstarter project. Hertsens never steers me wrong, so I contacted Shaw, and a few days later I received the amp. Hertsens was right. This design uses a newly available SemiSouth silicon carbide transistor, and the amp sounds amazing. If Shaw makes his Kickstarter goal he'll be able to sell amp kits for as little as $229, and assembled amps for $279! DIY-ers can spring for just $35 and get the Sicphones amplifier PC board, assembly instructions, and parts source … Read more

If you've ever wanted your very own working Android robot, this Kickstarter project is something to watch.

Reality Robotics is fishing for funding for Be the Robot (BERO), a pint-size bot you can control with a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone.

The programmable droid was inspired by the Android mascot, but since Google hasn't officially given its blessing to the project, it looks a little different. It can dance, avoid obstacles, and take commands from an open-source phone app. … Read more

CruxSkunk sounds like it would add a bad smell to your iPad, but what it really does is turn your tablet into a little laptop.

Sure, we've seen lots of add-on iPad keyboards, but the CruxSkunk from CruxCase goes all out with imitating Apple's MacBook aesthetic. If there were such a thing as a MacBook Mini, it would look like an iPad in a CruxSkunk.… Read more

Your iPhone may be getting more and more wireless, what with iCloud and Wi-Fi syncing and all, but there are times when it's nice to have a dock.

Of course, most docks are little more than stands, offering few, if any, features beyond charging and syncing.

Enter the Foundation Dock, a Kickstarter project that's arguably the most versatile iPhone dock to date.… Read more

Once-hot digital photo frames are now relegated to the holiday gift sales section at department stores. But the digital frame may be about to get its groove back thanks to Instacube, an Instagram-specific display.

The bigger-is-better concept is alive and well with this Kickstarter project. The squared-off Instacube streams your Instagram photo feed in a much larger format than you can view on your little smartphone screen.… Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Pitchfork's People's List polls readers for the best albums of the last 15 years.

- The new rise of a summer hit: Tweet It Maybe.

- How Murder by Death became the No. 3 most successful Kickstarter music campaign ever.

- The Internet has finally met its match: Avril Lavigne engaged to Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger.

- Lights turning off at Nintendo Power?

- Custom BioShock pinball machine is Rapturous.… Read more

In this age of keyboards and stylii, there's still something beautiful about a pencil. I'm talking about real wood pencils, the kind you have to sharpen.

If you're anything like me, you end up with drawer full of pencil stubs that need to be cleaned out periodically. Instead of tossing them in the trash, there is an alternative.

The Sprout pencil from Democratech is made with a Ticonderoga cedar body, but it has a seed inside a water-activated cap. Once it gets small, just turn it upside down, plant it, water it, and reap the benefits of growing your own herbs or heirloom tomatoes.… Read more