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bamboo

Feel like riding a bicycle made of bamboo?

We've seen bamboo speakers, laptops, stylii, iPhone cases, and even a concept car. Next up: a bicycle.

We have to be clear: This isn't a bike for cycling enthusiasts or speed demons (there's the Storck Aero2 IS TT bike for that), but for those who want something a little different from the crowd.

Singapore-based startup Bamboobee is taking a ride on Kickstarter and aiming to launch two series -- the Revolution and the Sunny (named after co-founder Sunny Chuah). … Read more

ADzero brings student's bamboo phone concept to life

There are times when the tech world can be so, so cruel, teasing us with amazing concepts that will probably never see the light of day (at least, not in our lifetime). Fortunately, this isn't one of those kinds of tales.

A company called ADzero is set to release a bamboo smartphone based on a concept devised by Middlesex University student Kieron-Scott Woodhouse. Woodhouse, who is in his final year studying product design at the university, originally created the phone after becoming frustrated with the lack of variety in handset designs.

After posting the concept online, Woodhouse was contacted a technology entrepreneur interested in making the phone a reality, and thus ADzero was born. … Read more

Blackbox Case: Bamboo sleeves for sensitive Macs

There's something about the Bamboo Blackbox case that makes you want to run your fingers across it and give it a name like Sebastian or Fabio. These cases are pretty, oh so pretty.

Makers of the Blackbox already topped their Kickstarter funding goal of $25,000 with about a week to go. Each case consists of a bamboo sleeve with a stylish strap to keep your Mac in place.

For $89, you get an iPad 2 case. A $99 pledge sets you up with a case for your 11-inch MacBook Air. Larger MacBooks are also accommodated, topping out at $129 for the 17-inch MacBook Pro.

If you really want to get crazy with this, $1,999 will get you two personalized cases and a wacky weekend adventure in Colorado with a Blackbox Case representative as your sidekick. Keep in mind that Blackbox is located in Golden, which is also home to Coors beer.

For your Apple device to survive that weekend of beer drinking, snowmobiling, fishing, or skiing, you're going to need a tough case. The makers tested the Blackbox by dropping an iPad 2 from 25 feet up. It survived, but you still shouldn't try it at home.… Read more

Get natural with iPhone bamboo speaker

Bamboo has long been cherished in Asia as a food and building material, among its many uses. It can also be fashioned into flutes and other instruments, so it's no surprise that it would make a good speaker for an iPhone.

iBamboo is a foot-long slice of natural bamboo that has been machined, laser-cut, and finished by hand. The wood is hollow and naturally amplifies the iPhone 4's built-in speaker, and requires no electricity.

As seen in the vid below, you simply slot the phone into the wood. It magnifies the sound significantly, including the stereo effect, though the sound quality can't really compare to conventional speaker systems.

Still, it's not bad for an eco-friendly device. And if you're in a jam, you can probably use the iBamboo in all sorts of MacGyver ways. … Read more

iPad as sketchbook: Hands-on with the Wacom Bamboo Stylus

Can the iPad be a valid artist's tool? Wacom, maker of professional digitizer tablets and computer peripherals for artists, has gone ahead and put its vote in the affirmative, with the upcoming release of the Wacom Bamboo Stylus for the iPad. Available in May for $29.99, the roughly pen-sized aluminum stylus works via a conductive barrel with the iPad's capacitive display. We were sent an advance unit from Wacom and gave the Bamboo a spin with our iPad 2 and some popular sketch programs.

The iPad has had styli available since its launch last year, and they'… Read more

Touch pads compared: Apple Magic Trackpad vs. Wacom Bamboo

With the Apple Magic Trackpad creating ripples regarding the spread of touch across all Apple devices, it's important to regard a product that visited this territory last year, and perhaps even attempted it more ambitiously. The Wacom Bamboo Pen and Touch, a combination multitouch trackpad and pen-based tablet that theoretically offers a killer alternative to the Apple's pad for one reason alone: its versatility.

After reviewing the Magic Trackpad this week, I realized that a Bamboo was still in a drawer in my cube, and I pulled it out to revisit. How did it compare with Apple's sleek square? And, more importantly, are there any areas where it's even better?

First off, the Bamboo is larger than the Magic Trackpad. The extra-wide Bamboo Fun Pen and Touch I have is a lot larger. It's similarly colored to Apple's tiny device, but made of a less sturdy-feeling plastic that's prone to scratching. The Bamboo Pen and Touch is a also a USB-wired device, unlike the wireless Magic Trackpad. It's also more expensive: while a $69 model offers only pen or touch input but not both, the combination pen and touch-pad combo that most users would want costs $99. The extra-large version we reviewed, the Fun, costs $199. The not exactly cheap $69 Magic Trackpad comes off as a relative bargain. … Read more

Ready for a wooden laptop? Check out Asus' bamboo-clad U33J laptop

No matter how inspired a laptop design, chances are it is made of either glossy or textured plastic, or, in some upscale cases, aluminum or magnesium. There's nothing wrong with that, but there's certainly room for some creativity around the margins, and that's exactly what Asus brings to the table in the new U33Jc-A1.

This $999 13-inch laptop is partially clad in actual bamboo, creating a unique upscale look and feel that we find greatly appealing to our midcentury modern design tastes.

Beyond the look and feel, this Intel Core i3 system also works in some useful … Read more

Audioengine P4: The little $249 speaker that could

The Audioengine P4 is a cheap speaker.

Correction, it's an audiophile speaker that sells for $249 a pair. But that hasn't stopped it from getting raves from audiophiles who live with speakers that sell for a whole lot more.

I use Audioengine A2 self-powered speakers ($199 a pair) with my computer, so I thought I had a handle on what to expect from the P4.

I did not; it's a whole new ball game. First, the P4 is a "passive" speaker, so you need to hook it up to an amplifier or receiver. The A2 is an "active" self-powered design that can be connected to a computer or MP3 player via a headphone jack.

I started listening to the P4 with my computer, with the speakers hooked up to an old Jolida hybrid tube/solid-state amplifier. The A2 is a sweet sounding little speaker, but the P4 was dramatically clearer, cleaner, and more vibrant. The P4 blows the A2 away--it's not even close.

At 9 inches tall by 5.5 inches wide by 6.5 inches deep, the P4 looks like a larger A2 (the A2 is 6 inches high by 4 inches wide by 5.25 inches deep). The P4 comes in satin-finished black or gloss white paint for $249 a pair, or in bamboo for $325 a pair. The wood isn't merely a veneer over medium-density fiberboard; no, the P4's cabinet is made out of solid bamboo, it's gorgeous!

Audioengine offers a nifty tabletop stand, the DS1 ($29 a pair), that cants the speaker back at an angle to project sounds up. The rubbery stands also isolate the speaker and prevent it from transmitting bass into your desk. Want to wall mount it? No problem, use the threaded inserts on the speaker's rear-end.

The P4's three-quarter inch silk dome tweeter and 4-inch Kevlar woofer appear to be of very high quality. Both drivers are made by Audioengine. … Read more