Thanks to the germ eliminating knife block, the next time you stab someone you will have the peace of mind that comes with knowing your blade is 99.99% germ-free (we wouldn't want an infection to set in now would we?). The block relies on UV-C light to eliminate bacteria—and if you are a serious germaphobe it can be set to give your knives a hit once every three hours. If stabbing isn't your thing, it should do a decent job of eliminating pesky salmonella and staphylococcus from your foodstuffs as well. Available for $US90. [Hammacher Schlemmer via Boing Boing Gadgets]

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If researchers are successful, Kevlar-based armour will soon be able to protect the wearer from more dangers than bullets and fire. Yuyu Sun and Jie Luo of the University of South Dakota have discovered a way to coat Kevlar with a substance called acyclic N-Halamine. After testing it against "E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida tropicalis (a fungus), MS2 virus, and Bacillus subtilis spores (to mimic anthrax)," they discovered that the coating prevented these microorganisms from sticking to the Kevlar fabric.

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We have all heard the horror stories about how our keyboards are dirtier than our toilet seats and how nasty germs build up on our mobile phones. If that is a concern for you, La Fresh is unveiling a new Teck Pack germ killing kit for gadgets. Each kit comes with 4 Wet and Dry Screen Cleaning towelette duo-packets as well as 3 Lens Cleaning and 3 Anti-Bacterial towelettes. And since we all know that hygiene can sometimes take a back seat to the computer, you could probably spare a few for an impromptu shower. Not bad for US$10. Available starting on May 27th. [La Fresh via Crave]

IOGEAR's Germless Portable Laser Mouse isn't quite so germless after all, which is why the US Environmental Protection Agency levied a fine of US$208,000 on the company for "unsubstantiated public health claims regarding unregistered products, and their ability to control germs and pathogens." In other words, these things aren't killing any germs, and you probably shouldn't be buying them in hopes that they will. And as a result of the fines, IOGEAR's also stopped claiming that their germ-killing mice (now just "mice") kill germs. [IOGEAR via Crave via Gadgetell]

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Having an air conditioner running during the summer while we're sitting naked on our leather chairs is luxurious enough, but an air conditioner that also kills germs? That's just plain opulent. Samsung's Vivace Shadow and Neo-Forte (black and white) air conditioners do just that, using their Micro Plasma Ion technology to kill 78 percent of fungus and 58 percent of bacteria within 30 minutes in a closed environment. It may look like a printer, but when's the last time you hung a printer on the wall? [Crave Asia via Unpluggd via DVice]

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We're not germophobes here at Gizmodo—not necessarily because we aren't afraid of tiny sickness-inducing attack—but because we're too lazy to dust let alone sterilise. But the Germ Guardian Air Sanitizer offers a lifestyle of sloth paranoia we could live with. Using UV-C rays (like similar models on the market), the device kills 99.9% of airborne germs with light alone. Why do we like it? The Germ Guardian's design induces feelings of an inescapable bleak future—like it's waiting for us to curse, at which point it will blind us with a flash of light and we'll boil in our skin. Now that's a conversation piece. $US200 [product via appliancist]