Crave

(Credit: Inventables)

You know how annoying it is when you stick your bread in the toaster and accidentally set the dial too high, and when your toast finally pops up, it's darker than you want, or burned?

Granted, most of us over the age of, say, 6 are probably able to handle an ordinary toaster most of the time. But don't you want to watch your toast, well, toasting? Don't you want to see the magic happen?

This concept transparent glass toaster lets you do just that. Or, rather, it wants to let you do just that. Yeah, I was disappointed, too, when I read that the transparent heating glass technology does not currently heat the glass enough to toast bread. But the vendor thinks that a little R&D (and, I'm guessing, a lot of VC cash) could solve that problem.

At any rate, it looks cool.

We take a walk on the virtual side in today's Gadgettes. Virtual reality museums, robotic kittens, and fusion in your pocket!

Listen now: Download today's podcast

EPISODE 145

Household gadgets we’d like to see

Canon launches virtual-reality dinosaur exhibit in Japan

Robo-Kitty: Sega Toys unveils the Dream Cat Venus

Handheld fusion reactor on the way?

“Design your own clock” clock

A propos (of) nothing
Vroom: Surf the Web with a Ford GT

It's About Time
Eris Planetary Sphere watch goes anywhere but the wrist

Pink Watch
Juicy Couture goes geeky

Tool Time
Ript Fusion body-shaping undershirt (thanks, Sam!)

Reverse Gender Gap
Ostrich three in one chair for sunbathing bookworms

BlingRX
Russel Hobbs RHG2TSW crystal encrusted bling toaster (thanks, Colleen!)

Kill Me
Fantasy coach bed for the budding superiority complex

Treat your pets right this Mother's Day! We spend equal time talking about gifts for mom and for fluffy. Go figure.

Listen now: Download today's podcast

EPISODE 136

Petairways.com–for the pet who loves to travel (Thanks Sheala!)

Honda unveils dog-friendly car

The Tweeting Cat Door (Thanks Nathan!)

New worm-like floor-cleaning robot threatens Roomba’s dominance

Digigrade Leg Extensions

Dog poo recycler

Special Edition Mother’s Day Gender Gap
Danielle Steel Limited Edition Reader Digital Book is More of the Same just in Red (No! Don’t do it! Get a Kindle instead!)

Mother of the Year video

Mother’s Day shirt for the geeky mom-to-be

A propos (of) nothing
Lego sunglasses let you build your own fashion

What a concept
Portable toaster

Why didn’t I think of that?
PermaFLOW Self Cleaning Drain System

Pretty
Gorgeous iphone cases (thanks fernando!)

Good Vibrations (Thanks Fred!)
DIY Steam punk vibrators

(Credit: World Design Market)

We've covered silly-slash-interesting concepts before, but I'm not really clear on how I should feel about this handheld portable toaster by Korean designer Been Kim. You apparently run it over your bread like a fancy butter knife and it toasts that side in your hand. An LCD readout on the back gradually tells you just how toasty your toast is getting.

The product, still a concept as far as we can tell, is apparently wireless and uses a cord-free charging system. We're not sure how practical this is or if it can replace a regular toaster, but it is a neat idea that we expect to see on the bus and street corners once it gets mass-produced. Design-wise, it looks fantastic.

The little butterflies on this portable toaster represent its heat strength.

(Credit: World Design Market)

Yes, that is a slice of toast.

(Credit: CrazyPC)

We love toast. And by we, I mean you. Everybody loves toast. Even if you say you don't love toast...you still do. It's a fact, an irrefutable fact. What's that you say? Don't put words in your mouth? Or toast either? You really don't love toast that much? It's just all right you say? Well, I have proof that you love toast.

Here we have the PC Toaster Bay from CrazyPC. (What's so crazy about it?) It fits into a standard 5.25-inch drive bay and makes, well, toast--toast from the comfort of your computer. To hook it up you need an available USB port and a four-pin Molex power connector. Your familiar toaster controls for light to dark and time are available via a Windows-based software interface. The generated heat is ventilated through the back of the case.

High-tech toast.

(Credit: CrazyPC)

So, there is the undeniable truth: people love toast so much that toasters are now everywhere--even in your computer. To further that chain of logic: You're reading this on a computer, right? And this is about a computer drive bay being used to make toast, right? Therefore you love toast. Case closed.

Oh, everybody loves toast except Mac users; the software isn't available for them (yet).

(Via Cooking Gadgets)

Pity the poor toaster. Like a single person surrounded by married couples, it seems destined to be fixed up again and again, with the promise that this coupling will be the match that lasts.

The latest pairing to come to my attention: a Breakfast Set from Team Appliances, which combines a two-slot toaster with a five-cup drip coffee maker. All the expected features are here, from a removable crumb tray and adjustable darkness settings on the toaster to a reusable filter and automatic shut off on the coffee maker. What's missing? A timer to start your coffee brewing before you wake up in the morning. But it's a forgivable omission, given the product's space-saving design (hello, dorm room) and $50 price tag.

If you're not a coffee drinker, fret not: there's a toaster combo appliance for you, too. We've already seen a combination toaster and teakettle from Breville. I've long been a fan of the toaster and egg poacher that a friend acquired several years ago; it lets you prep all the ingredients for a breakfast sandwich at once. (Tefal makes a similar product.) LG makes a $140 microwave oven and toaster combo that's available in black, white, or stainless steel finishes. (So does Daewoo.)

Each of these pairings seems like such a good fit, I have to wonder if the humble stand-alone toaster is an endangered species. Tell me: would you go for any of these hybrids? Or is there any other appliance you'd like to see fixed up with the toaster?

Like a mood ring for your water

They say a watched pot never boils, but with the Kenwood Response kettle you won't be able to look away. That's because the sides of the kettle are constantly changing color, from a cool blue to a hot red, as the water inside heats up. Aside from the rainbow lighting effect, the Response kettle also features a switch on the side that lets you heat water to exactly 176 degrees--the perfect temp for brewing green tea. The kettle will then hold the water at that temperature so you can always top off your cup or brew a second serving.

(Credit: Kenwood)

Unfortunately, Kenwood is based in the UK, so we here in the States can't yet enjoy the company's "21st Century Breakfast Set." It's such a good idea, though, I hope someone will bring it to our shores soon.

Via Chip Chick

(Credit: WhereDidYouBuyThat.com)

Forget about phones and MP3 players--the next designer gadget is the toaster. And leading the way to branded nirvana are, of all things, sportscar dynasties.

Porsche joined the fray with a brushed-aluminum model that looks good enough for the track, and now Bugatti has gotten into the act with an appliance of its own. True to its exacting nature, Bugatti has included "six browning-control options" for its "Volo" toaster, Gadgetizer says, with especially wide slots to accommodate different sizes of baked goods. But it's the red Italian flair that drew us to it, of course.

Unfortunately there's no indication that it will make pirate toast. But at least we haven't found any signs of Sanrio--yet.

(Credit: tomwet.de/photoshopped by Caroline)

I like toasters. I really do. And I like it when they're creative. I've spent some time this week researching Instructables tutorials for how to hack my own toaster in order to make it a pirate toaster that brands my toast with a skull and crossbones. (Stay tuned on that one.)

But this is too much. I'm not terrified of Hello Kitty or anything, but I think the cat should stay the heck off my toast. Even if it's only $19.99, I do not have any use for a Hello Kitty toaster. Like all other Hello Kitty-related appliances, this toaster is pink and white and has a giant cat on it. There's not a whole lot else you can say about it. Except that it'll probably match that Hello Kitty crock pot that you've been hiding in the kitchen cabinet for several months now.

(Credit: Amazon.com)

What slightly disturbs me is that full-size toasters, crock pots, waffle irons, etc., are for grown-ups. Not kids. This makes me wonder whether there are actually adults out there who are furnishing their homes with pink-and-white cat appliances.

However, as we've seen, Hello Kitty is a pirate too, so maybe I should consider the toaster a positive development in my ongoing quest for a pirate toaster.