Category: Lifestyle

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Connected Objects Lifestyle

The Nailbot combines tech and beauty to print pretty nail art

editors-choice-300x96One of the more lamentably defining features of the tech industry is its lack of women. While there are a variety of reasons for why that’s the case, it doesn’t mean something can’t be done. With the Nailbot, inventor Pree Walia is merging technology with art and beauty to create a product that serves as an introduction to the world of tech for girls and women of all ages.

The Nailbot is a smartphone-equipped nail art printer that prints a wide variety of designs directly onto a nail in less than five seconds. It works quite simply: First, users prep their nails by painting it with a base color. Second, users choose an image from their camera roll, one of 3,000 preloaded icons and emojis in its companion app or one of their own designs. Finally, the Nailbot prints the selected image or design right onto the nail. The Nailbot encourages a person’s own artistic impulse with its ability to print custom-made designs as well as fermenting an interest in coding with the ability to code art that can be printed later. With all this functionality, girls will no doubt be intrigued with everything the Nailbot can do for them. 

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Lifestyle Technology

TableTalk lets you hear others talking no matter the noise level

It’s often annoying when the noise is so loud in a restaurant or other public gathering spot that it’s hard to hear what companions are saying.

patent-claimedTableTalk is a patented assisted listening system made up of a base station and headsets. The digital signal processor (DSP)-equipped system uses Bluetooth and advanced noise cancellation technology to make conversations clearer regardless of how noisy it is, according to its Kickstarter campaign. TableTalk connects up to five people.

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Lifestyle

Magic Mirror provides a full-length view on the go, won’t tell you Snow White’s whereabouts

Anyone who has owned a full-length mirror knows that, after experiencing the full view, it’s hard to go back. That is why traveling can sometimes be irritating because it’s impossible to bring that long mirror along.

To address this minor albeit vain issue, Magic Mirror has come up with a way to travel with mirror in tow. This product folds up into a lightweight package, but folds out to either provide a small makeup mirror or all the way out for a full length mirror. The outside comes in various fun colors. The unique folding design makes a couple of different configurations possible and, in most instances, the mirror can stand up on its own. For the full length, it comes with a strap at the top so it can easily be hung up wherever’s convenient.

While few would want to admit owning a Magic Mirror for fear of being accused of vanity, many could benefit from this product. It’s a clever way to stay looking cute while on the go. The campaign is marketing the product to music festival goers, which is a clever strategy considering the fact that summer is coming. For their own, backers must donate £28 (~$42). Magic Mirror is hoping to raise £7,500 (~$11,200) in funding with the help of Kickstarter.

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Lifestyle

Pandle protects the germophobe from public handles

For the germaphobes of the world, going out in public can be a scary thing. Every door, bathroom, surface and public mint bowl contains bacteria and germs that could cause death! Or at least that’s what extremists think.

Pandle is a product for any such fearful person. It fits over any handle—whether it’s a door, car, or toilet handle, Pandle is there to cover it up. It’s made from rubber silicone infused with nanosilver. It can withstand extreme temperatures, and comes in five different colors: black, blue, red, purple, and green. A strap goes over the knuckles of the hand while the bendy part below covers the surface in question.

Oh, how so many products cater to the germ-obsessed. It’s okay to be clean, but an oven mitt for the outside world seems a bit extreme. Kids especially need to be exposed to germs in order to build up their immunities. Still, for those who can’t resist, one can be had for a donation of $10, expected to be delivered in March of this year. Pandle is looking for $10,000 in funding on Kickstarter by March 6.

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Lifestyle

Back to the Backers: The Easy Throw Shovel

Backerjack first met the Easy Throw Shovel just about a year ago. This nifty little invention promised to ease the strains of snow shoveling. By using the weight of the snow, the mechanism is able to fling the snow so the shoveler doesn’t have to. Unfortunately, funding was cancelled for this product before it could reach its goal.

Now, the Easy Throw Shovel is back. Unlike other products that come racing back to the crowdfunding scene after a time of hibernation, the Easy Throw has done little if anything to improve upon their original product. The shovel looks the same and doesn’t boast any new features. However, the price has come down substantially. In the last campaign, the shovel costed backers $72 CAD (~$58 USD), but now backers only need to shell out $48 CAD (~$39 USD), nothing wrong with a little discount. Easy Throw is looking to raise $64,000 CAD (~$51,500 USD) ($8,000 CAD less than their original goal) on Kickstarter.

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Lifestyle

CoordiMate helps math lovers coordinate their Cartesians, stamps graphs neatly

An important part of any math curriculum is learning about graphs. The Cartesian coordinate system is taught so that kids can learn all sorts of important facts about algebra and dimensions. However, drawing endless graphs can be annoying and yield sloppy results.

CoordiMate was designed for just such situations. This tiny tool is a self-inking stamp that seamlessly places a perfect Cartesian coordinate on any piece of graph paper. To use, just push down on the center for a neat graph. The ink dries quickly so that pencil mistakes can be easily erased without any smudges. This product is made from recyclable materials. It’s plastic and looks like a cross with a little face in the middle.

CoordiMate is a great tool for kids learning about math. The company should really consider marketing their product to schools so that kids can buy it directly at school. There’s no mention of how long the ink lasts or if there’s any way to refill it, a definite drawback. Still, for their own, backers can donate $15 for delivery in April 2015. Coordinate hopes to raise $25,000 on Kickstarter.

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Lifestyle

Save face with the ShaveFace disposable razor raw denim strop

The modern man has to contend with many difficulties during the day, but getting a clean, crisp shave shouldn’t be one of them. Disposable razor companies do their best to make sure that isn’t the case, though, with blade that quickly becoming dull and out of alignment, forcing the purchase of another, overpriced set.

The ShaveFace raw denim and leather strop is designed as if for a professional barbershop, but is to be used inside of the bathroom with disposable razors instead. Using the strop lengthens the life of any razor and, as a result cuts down on razor waste, saving most users at least $100 a year on razors alone. On the go, ShaveFace rolls up into a compact, portable size to easily stow away somewhere.

The product tackles the problem of razor usage in a more traditional way when compared to something like the RazorPOD, and looks more attractive doing it. For $29, backers can expect a ShaveFace strop in their homes in June 2015. The campaign is looking for $24,000 in funding.

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Lifestyle

Packer’s a strap with a pack to wear your skateboard

Skateboards and boards of any kind can really be a useful tool to easily have transportation handy wherever you go. The biggest problem with them rears its head when you step off the board itself and are forced to carry it wherever you go, which can quickly become a chore. The Packer system eliminates this burden, and inevitably makes you look cool doing so.

The Packer system is comprised of the Packer itself, a bag that small enough to be unobtrusive but large enough to hold your essentials, and the Packer Risers. The Risers are special in that they are installed between the deck and trucks of a board to allow a strap to be connected, so that you can walk around with your board on your back as opposed to in your hands. You can order just the Risers and construct your own strap set-up for $19, or opt for the full set-up which will set you back $49. The company is looking for $30,000 to alleviate your skateboarding burdens by March 2015.

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Lifestyle

Wrap turns desks into dry-erase surfaces for lateral thinking

Our workspaces are chock full of all kinds of clutter which doesn’t do much to help inspire us to be creative. This is most likely the case at home as much as it is at work as well, but no one is saying that it has to be like that. Inventor Brandon Saw is questioning our use of space, urging us to reconsider what it can do for us with his product Wrap.

The product is a removable flexible film with an adhesive backing that can attach to pretty much anything without damaging what’s underneath. When applied, it makes any surface dry-erasable, multiplying the space available to brainstorm, doodle, take notes, or do whatever else without wasting tons of paper in the form of scrap paper and sticky notes in the process. The product also features air channels that transforms the process of getting rid of air bubbles from a chore to a delight.

Wrap is an extremely simple idea that makes a lot of sense. With many large and successful companies instituting dry-erase boards as canvasses for creativity, it’s only right to reclaim the space we have so we can be similarly expressive. Custom cut Wrap can be purchased for $29, while a package of custom cut Wrap along with markers and erasers is going for $44. The campaign is looking for $40,000 for manufacturing.

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Lifestyle

Grocery Pal combines notepad, calculator and coupon holder for the smartphone-averse

The best way to avoid grocery store crowds, slow-moving elderly, the u-scan “impaired,” and people who seem to dawdle at the checkout with scads of coupons is to go between the hours of 1 am and 5 am. But when that’s just not practical, there’s Grocery Pal. This gadget puts the grocery list, coupons, and calculator all in one place for easy referencing, It also comes with a lanyard and magnet so as not to get lost while browsing the isles.

This might be a wonderful gadget for granny, but a smartphone works just as well for the majority of this. Some stores even offer electronic coupons that can be downloaded to a store loyalty card if customers will visit the store website, which eliminates the need for fidgeting with those paper coupons. This campaign seeks to raise $40,000 by December 8, 2014. For $20, backers get one product with an expected delivery of January 2015.