There’s such an interesting market in unique USB drives these days, but this two in particular caught my eye. Choose a rugged key shape…
just one of the gang on your keychain
or an ubber-cute robot.
nice robots always hold their own helmets
quickly attaches to keychain
Robot, from Gadget4all. 4 gb, $25.
istaKey, from LaCie. 4 gb, $14.99. 8 gb, $23.99.
I grew up with a grandfather who loved technology and Bang-Olufsen (B&O) specifically. Thanks to Pop’s influence, I was an official audiophile at an early age.
So I was overjoyed when I found out that B&O made a headset. I’ve traveled in several countries with this beauty (none more challenging of an obstacle than the hills of San Francisco) and always experienced crystal clear calls. And because of B&O’s commitment to quality, it emerged unscathed and in perfect working order after an unfortunate accident going through a wash/dry cycle;.
Due to it’s smashing good looks, it’s the only headset I’ve worn that people comment upon daily.
Right ear headset - also available in a left ear version
beautifully designed combination carrying case/charger
From Apple. $350.
A few years ago I was traveling with my buddy Tim in Laos; on our first night there, in Luang Prabang, we got a bit carried away listening to tunes on the deck of our hotel and burned through the iPod’s battery.
Panicked (no tunes for two weeks? Say it isn’t so!), we wandered the streets until we found a fellow backpacker who offered to charge it up for us. With judicious playing, we managed to make the music last through the majority of our visit. It finally gave on the last night of our visit to Bokeo Nature Reserve in our magical treehouse. Instead of groovin’ tunes, we were forced to listen to the chilling, barking deer (true story) all night.
easily attaches to bottom of phone or ipod
Since this unfortunate incident, I’ve vowed to never travel without proper backup (and an extra iPod to boot.) To the rescue comes the Kensington battery. Provides an extra 30 hours of music, or 6 hours of video, or 3 hours of chatting (iPhone) in a small package. Must be charged via a USB source. I’ve used mine several times and the performance is excellent.
Music to my ears. From Amazon. Aprox. $33.
The ubber-cool Mir:ror is a RFID (Radio-frequency identification) device.
Simply pre-define a task on your computer, tag an item with a Ztamp, wave the item across the Mir:ror and the computer performs the task (such as tagging an umbrella and after you wave the tag in front of the Mir:ror, the weather forecast comes up on your computer screen.)
Mir:or, 2 Nanoztags, and 3 Ztamps
Yet another beautifully executed product offered by Violet.
A wi-fi rabbit (nicknamed Nabaztag, Armenian for “Rabbit”) that handles a variety of cool Internet/computer tasks and occasionally takes time out to do his Tai-Chi exercises? Okay, I’m officially smitten.
Invented by Rafi Haladjian and Olivier Mével.
Rabbit
You simply must visit the Violet site to read more about them and check out their other groovy products. Prices vary.
Teeny, tiny microphone that plugs into the bottom jack of your iPhone. Incredibly useful and a perfect “stocking stuffer” to boot.
Mini Capsule
I don’t normally comment on shipping costs because they vary so much across the board, but at a $12.90 US price-point and $3 international shipping from Hong Kong, it’s a nice deal. From Brando.
Albeit, this is on the high price-point side (because there’s loads of speakers out there that would provide you with an extra, if not superior, sound output for less money) but on looks alone, this mp3 speaker from Tristan Zimmermann wins.
Phonofone
From Charles & Marie. $500.
Great design, great sound; unique, small travel speakers for your mp3 player. Terrific sound in a small package. Winner of Wired’s 2008 “Best Mobile Gizmo”.
From Turntablelab. Aprox. $40.
Simply the hippest portable mp3 speakers out there. 3-inches tall. Various limited edition styles.
From headphonies. $30.
These cameras are available all over the web, but at Cafe Press, you can customize the look of your Flip. Prices vary.
To see a manufacturer’s description, visit Amazon.com.
uzzle - the quest for intelligent design 