Your friends call you a klutz, Mom calls you careless, and you beat yourself up every time you drop your phone in the toilet or step on your MP3 player. We can't help you with your overall clumsiness, but there may be a solution for your soaked devices.
The Bheestie Bag is a small, lightweight pouch that draws moisture out of personal electronics using small, liquid-absorbing beads. After the device has been soaked or spilled upon, take the battery out, dry the device, and place it in the bag for 24 to 72 hours. The beads absorb water in much the same way rice absorbs water, as they are made to physically bond with liquid and don't release the moisture back into the bag when they've reached their absorption capacity.
At first, I thought Bheestie Bag was just another mythical solution for rescuing drenched devices, but after putting it to the test using a soaked Insignia MP3 player, I'm far less skeptical.
Other well-known device-drying methods come to mind, of course, the most infamous bring the blow dryer. Unfortunately, it's more likely that you'll further damage your device under the dryer's heat, so it's not recommended.
There's also the "just let it sit" myth. Many, like CNET News reporter Ina Fried, have tried this and seen positive outcomes. But I have a feeling that the success of this method has a lot to do with the inner workings of the device and how crammed the parts are. If there's a sufficient amount of open space in the device for air drying, it's more likely that if you "just let it sit," the device will work again.
The last, less obvious tactic is the bag of rice. Here, you simply dry off your device, remove the battery, and place it in a bag of rice for a couple of days. Since rice is a natural soaking agent, it supposedly removes the moisture from the device. Like many others, I can say this method works.
Despite these available solutions, none have proven to be consistently successful. Luckily, after trying the $20 Bheestie Bag, I can say there's a more dependable solution for those of you who are accident-prone. See our photo gallery for more on our experience with the product.
When young we learn at an astonishing rate. Soon after we learn about Mother's Day, we learn about Father's Day. The next logical thought in the process is to ask when "Kid's Day" is. The answer I always got was short, simple, and true: "Every day is Kid's Day." The recent Earth Day makes me think of this answer, and the realization that truly every day is Earth Day.
Perfect for storing wet items.
(Credit: BreezeDry)Here's a concept I really like: a self-enclosed drying cabinet for clothes right out of the wash. The BreezeDry ambient drying cabinet is a built-in fixture designed to remove the need for an energy-hungry traditional clothes dryer. Pulling in air from the outside, the cabinet circulates the air to dry a full load of laundry. Completely enclosed, laundry can be safely stored away as it dries. The whole process only takes a couple of hours.
Lots of products are called "green" nowadays, but few are able to transform daily chores to the extent the BreezeDry accomplishes. Operating at a fraction of the energy usage of a conventional dryer (yes, it does still use electricity), the BreezeDry looks to change the way we think about the common task of doing laundry. With the recent trend of green appliances, it's nice to see one that takes the next step and embraces the approach that every day is a good day to consider the environment.
(Via Appliancist)
This episode is all about your hands. So, put your clammy, pudgy, baby-like ham hands together for these handy gadgets.
Listen now: Download today's podcast
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EPISODE 132 |
Mouse doubles as hand dryer, triples as seizure inducer
The new TV remote: Your bare hand?
DIY Microsoft Surface clone you can make on the cheap
Vibrating touch screen enables Braille reading
Apropos (of) nothing
Toto Neorest toilets, now even more high-tech, self-cleaning
Bling RX (thanks, Fernando!)
Chevrolet’s Captiva gets the Swarovski treatment. For some reason.
What the hell? (Gender gap edition)
CJ7: The ever-so randomly shaped MP3 player
Kill Me
Le Whif: Don’t eat your chocolate, inhale it
Fug!
Sony’s crocodile skin Vaio has teeth
OK. Maybe not everything in today's show is super cute, but it gives the ladies the chance to speak in exaggerated falsettos. Jason, on the other hand, balances all the cute with an unintentionally awkward joke about one of the newest segments. Oh, you'll see.
Listen now: Download today's podcast
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EPISODE 127 |
Candy Comfort Earphones are comfy and kitschy
PBS Sprout makes iPhone apps for preschoolers
Yuruppy, a virtual-pet petting gizmo
Australian IT expert invents the shoe phone
Could the Bra Dryer save your lingerie?
... Read moreListen now: Download today's podcast
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EPISODE 104 |
Hottest solar-powered sports car ever
http://dvice.com/archives/2008/08/seat_brisa_the.php
Solar ice maker
http://dvice.com/archives/2008/08/solar_icemaker.php
Xbox 360 coin-up arcade
http://gizmodo.com/5042961/xbox-360-goes-coin+op
Logitech Squeezebox Boom: The ultimate Wi-Fi radio?
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10027437-1.html
Nikon D90: The hotness
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10026094-1.html
PinkWatch:
LG to join the UMPC bandwagon with the Netbook X110
http://www.shinyshiny.tv/2008/08/lg_to_join_the.html
It’s about time
Chococlock delivers chocolate every hour
http://www.mystichackers.com/1054.html
Why didn’t I think of that?
GE Profile frontload washers & dryers
http://www.uncrate.com/men/home/appliances/ge-profile-frontload-washers-dryers/
Kill me
The Fuggit by Fuggis Hilton, Part II: The actual box of fake hair
http://gofugyourself.celebuzz.com/go_fug_yourself/2008/08/the_fuggit_by_fuggis_hilton_part_ii.html
A propos (of) nothing
Kinesio Tex Tape
http://www.uncrate.com/men/body/health-fitness/kinesio-tex-tape/
What the hell!?
Teddy Bear USB drive is a headless horror
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/08/27/teddy-bear-usb-drive.html
(Credit:
GeekAlerts)
I've seen some hair-brained (hey-ooooo) ideas in my time, but this just might take the cake. For those of you who find Bluetooth headsets or the wired headsets that come with your cell phone too pedestrian, here's something that will certainly turn heads: a wired headset that looks like a hair dryer. Trust me, I wish I were making this up.
Yes, for just $7.59, you can talk to your family and friends through a hair dryer and be the object of various onlookers' ridicule envy. The cell phone hair dryer headset comes with various adapters that should work with most Nokia, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson cell phones. But all I have to say is: really? Really?!
Yeah, I'm going to go ahead and nominate this for Brian "Flash" Tong's "Do Not Crave" segment on the weekly Crave vodcast. Do not want.
(DealExtreme via GeekAlerts)
Clothes dryers are the second biggest hog of household energy, according to the Department of Energy. Most are so similar in terms of power hunger that the Energy Star label of efficient appliances doesn't even mark dryers.
By this fall, however, consumers could enjoy faster, greener, and safer clothes dryers that draw half the power of conventional models, according to Hydromatic Technologies Corporation.
With the Dryer Miser installed, the dryer on the right demands less energy.
(Credit: Hydromatic Technologies Corporation)Its Dryer Miser technology would dry garments 41 percent more quickly without shrinking as much or stinking them up with the odor of burnt lint, said Michael Brown, the inventor and company president.
He plans to sell the Dryer Miser in the fall as a $300 retrofit kit that he says could be added to existing dryers in 20 minutes by a technician. Up to 40 percent of dryers from Whirlpool, the top brand in the market, as well as others, could be converted.
The company is also working with a large European appliance manufacturer to integrate the technology into a scratch-built dryer model.
The Dryer Miser is installed on the dryer to the left.
(Credit: Hydromatic Technologies Corporation)Liquid is the key ingredient to drying clothes more quickly, according to Brown.
"We used NASA and MIT engineers to prove the technology is an oxymoron and (that) I'm not a moron," said Brown.
His copper and aluminum system heats a fluid, which mixes with air that is then blown hot into the clothing drum. Each unit would use about three cups of a nontoxic, hydrocarbon-based oil. Unlike natural gas dryers, no carbon dioxide would be produced.
Nor would the noncombustible system, which could be plugged into 110-volt outlets, create a fire hazard, Brown said. Conventional dryers may reach 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit in order to raise the tumbler temperature up to 155 degrees. They are blamed for 15,000 household fires counted each year by the Consumer Safety Product Commission.
The Dryer Miser also would be more effective than relatively efficient heat pump or condensing dryers in Europe and Asia, according to Brown. In those markets, dryers are about half the size as those in the United States.
Brown, a heating and air conditioning technician, invented the device in 2004 in his garage in Kissimmee, Fla. He got the idea from working with boilers. So far he says he has raised $3 million privately and has turned down offers of up to $100 million from venture capitalists.
He hopes his work will lead to the first Energy Star-rated clothes dryers. To that end, Brown plans to submit a rule-making request to the Department of Energy. Energy Star recently raised its energy efficiency requirements for clothes washers.
Brown is also working on an off-grid, solar-powered dryer that would draw power in the daytime from rooftop photovoltaic panels.
The Dryer Miser kit is being demonstrated this week at the International Builders' Show in Orlando. A state utility there has expressed interest in offering rebates for customers who use the system.
Utilities elsewhere are exploring smart meters and networking tools to help people conserve energy. CenterPoint Energy in Texas, for one, is testing a Zigbee networking module that would turn off dryers during peak load times.
Refrigerators and dryers are the hungriest of all household appliances, which make up one-fifth of energy consumption, according to the government's Energy Information Administration. A washer and dryer are found in 9 of 10 single-family American homes.
On a related note, a movement is afoot among green-leaning consumers who are ditching dryers in favor of the clothesline. Members of Project Laundry List assemble online to fight for the right to dry clothes outside without the interference of local NIMBY laws.
(Credit:
Appliancist)
Despite its name, which sounds like something out of a Dickens or Shelley novel, Fagor is a U.K. company that has some cutting-edge technology for household appliances. And despite the decidedly Ronco-esque name of its latest clothes dryer--"DrIron"--it makes some bold claims.
Unlike competing products that promise to dewrinkle clothes but still require ironing, this one supposedly takes the process a crucial step further. "The dryer and iron combo works so cleverly that when clothes and laundry are removed from the machine they have no wrinkles or creases," according to Appliancist.
There's a price for such luxury, of course, to the tune of $3,000. But if you send out your laundry every week or so, it might end up saving in the long run. Or, if you have a personal staff that handles this sort of domestic drudgery, it will leave the butler more time for important duties.
(Credit:
Be-s.co.jp)
I want to go to Japan. However, my feet stink so bad that I'm reluctant to go anywhere where taking off your shoes is customary.
Step one in achieving my travel dreams might be picking up the Eco Shoes Dryer, which will conceivably blow the stank right out my shoes. You charge them up with the flip-out plugs, stick them in your shoes, and take a foot bath while the dryers work their silica-gel magic on your various shoe aromas.
One dryer costs $27, and according to a team of analysts at CNET Mathematics Labs, that comes out to $54 per pair. If they work, that's a fair price for eliminating your shoes' sundry fetid odors as well as diminishing the possibility of others dry-heaving when you take your shoes off.
While we're on the topic of shoe redolence, I personally recommend the following items for curbing rampant foot stench.
- Miracle of Aloe Miracle Foot Repair: Replaces stank with wintergreen freshness.
- Boom! Tough-actin' Tinactin
- Johnson's Foot Soap: Like a vacation for your feet.
- Walgreen's Callus Remover: Grates off dead skin like it's Parmesan cheese.
[Via Geekologie, which has the best write-up for this product in world history.]
(Credit:
Electrolux)
This sounds too good to be true, but we're putting our faith in it anyway because we love the idea so much.
Electrolux, which has already invented the washing machine from the future (ultraviolet light), has outdone itself with the ultimate in next-generation dryers: one that helps with the ironing. The "Iron Aid" steam dryer doesn't exactly iron the clothes, according to Appliancist, but it does have "dewrinkling" feature that adds a steam phase at the end of the regular drying cycle. The 20-minute shvitz is enough to treat five shirts.
The U.K.-made device is definitely on the pricey side for a dryer, weighing in around $1,145. But if you detest ironing as much as we do, it may well be worth the money.
