The days of being asked whether some dodgy looking stranger can use my mobile to send a text message because they’ve run out of credit are finally numbered. Optus has today announced their emergency credit service, which will let their prepaid customers borrow $3 worth of credit by texting ‘IOU’ to 468. The money will automatically be deducted from their account the next time they recharge their account. This is an awesome service, if only because it means I don’t have to fear for my life the next time I tell that massive bogan wanting my phone, “no”.
[Optus]
You know how it is: you’re camping in the wild, and your iPhone suddenly runs out of juice, just as you get bored stiff with the music selection you’ve got aboard it. Previously you’d've had to carry a bunch of stuff around to sort this out, but Macally’s PowerLink has come to the rescue. With USB plug on one end and 30-pin iPod connector on the other, it acts as a sync cable, but has a battery inside to give you a squirt of extra power if you’re in a pinch. It also packs a 2GB flash drive, but you’ll need to get mp3′s off that via iTunes, sadly. No info on how long the battery lasts, but as a 3-in-1 gizmo it’s pretty useful. Out “soon” for US$49.99. [OhGizmo]
The British company behind the Juicebar are billing it as “the world’s slimmest emergency phone charger.” The device looks about as big as a cardboard coaster, but apparently it is capable of powering up a phone for up to 480 minutes of standby, or around 60 minutes of talk time depending on the device. Full charge is reached in about an hour, but you are free to talk anytime during that period.
This concept is a gizmo which you’d have in a first aid kit to help you if someone collapses and needs CPR. You’d whack it on the chest of the ill person, line it up and follow its instructions. It flashes to give you proper timing, and clicks to let you know you’re using the right chest-compression pressure (it’s harder than you think). It looks pretty simple, and is exactly the sort of thing that might help save a few lives in an emergency. Best of all, it’s a classic case of nominative determinism in action: its designer is Ryan Helps. [Yanko Design]
Sure, there are other emergency chargers out there, ready to give your gizmos a puff of extra life when they’re out of juice, but perhaps none so pocketable as IOGear’s new GearJuice Rescue charger. Just big enough to house a single AA battery it’s got a mini-USB plug to connect up to many MP3 players, cameras and phones. It’ll give a phone about 15 mins of talk time— enough to call Mum and Dad and tell them you’ll be home late and your phone’s out of juice, anyway. Available for around US$11.99. [iogear and Akihabaranews]
You never know when a partying emergency will strike—which is why you must always be prepared. If you have the know-how, you can build one of these Emergency Party Buttons and launch the fun in a matter of moments. When the key is turned and the button is pressed, the blinds will close, the lights will dim, the stereo will blast, blacklights, laser lights and a strobe will come to life, and a fog machine will do its thing. To see it in action, check out the video after the break.
The government is hard at work on updating the Emergency Broadcast System, moving it away from the TV, where you could not see a warning until you watch that TiVo’d episode of Battlestar a week after a tornado swept away your trailer home. It’s instead at work creating an emergency text message program, allowing the government to send you a text message if some bad shit starts going down near you.
Perfect for those early Lost-style situations, (if you can convince airport security that you’re not going to bum rush the cockpit once you get on the plane, that is) this survival kit-in-a-can has just about everything you need should you be stranded in the middle of nowhere. Airtight, waterproof and crushproof, and with 25 indispensable items from chewing gum to razor blade, fire starter, tea bag and fish hook and line, the kit floats in water. Measuring 4.25″ x 3″ x 9″, the survival kit costs US$12.99, and you can see everything it’s got in the gallery below. [ThinkGeek] galleryPost('sardinecansurvivalkit', 3, 'sardine can survival kit');
Tucked inside these 50-gallon drums is a life-saving package of stuff to help people in crisis zones. Designed by Toby McInnes, the container has a tent, storage annex, photovoltaic strip tarpaulin/blanket, multifuel stove, lighting rig, tool kid, medical kit, water filtration system, generator and battery pack and emergency radio inside to sustain people in an emergency. See just what it looks like unpacked after the jump.
Boy, here’s something you don’t want to see while driving to grandma’s house. It’s a WWII-era airplane making an emergency landing on a busy Wisconsin highway, and the entire thing was caught on police video. The 1943 plane was on its way to an air show when it got engine trouble. The pilot, who has huge, huge balls, decided he would make an emergency landing on a highway full of cars. No one was injured, and the only damage to the plane was to the wings, as the plane clipped some signs during the landing. Sweet merciful crap, that is crazy. Hit the jump for video.
