Gizmodo Australia » hammacher schlemmer

High-Def Digital Pinball Machine Doesn’t Really “Get” Pinball

Dan Nosowitz — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:00:00 +0000

Hammacher Schlemmer’s digital pinball machine crams a 720p, 32-inch display into a full-sized cabinet, and offers by way of emulation 17 classic boards. But I’m not sure pinball freaks are that interested in digitised flippers.

Not everything’s better digitised, you know? People like pinball because it’s nostalgic and flawed, not because it’s such a great game. Sure, this digital version lets you “bump and tilt”, and for $US6000 I’m sure the rendering of the flippers is excellent — but it’s got no soul, and since pinball was pretty much dead by the time I was born, maybe I’m not the best authority on the subject. It’s available from HS now. [Hammacher Schlemmer via Technabob Crunchgear]

You Can Tell This Coffee Maker To Do Anything But Make Coffee

Mark Wilson — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:20:00 +0000

Here’s a fantastic idea for a product: A coffee maker that responds to voice commands…just not a voice command to “make me some freaking coffee!”

Offered by Hammacher Schlemmer:

This is the first voice-interactive coffee maker that asks, “Would you like to set the clock or set the coffee brewing time?” and operates in response to your verbal commands. Simply saying, “Set the coffee brewing time,” or “Set the clock,” will prompt the machine to reply, “Please say the time, including AM or PM.” It uses an advanced voice recognition system to identify any time of day you speak, eliminating the hassle of fussing with buttons.

Sure, the one instance that you ever have to program the time on your coffee maker is a tad inconvenient, and I can appreciate the UI improvement of any gadget. But as long as we’re using voice commands and $US100 coffee makers, we might as well open the door for new functionality. “Brew four cups of coffee” or “tea earl grey hot” would both be welcome commands that could save you time and prodding on a daily basis.

Imagine if you could only tell the Enterprise to “set the clock”. [Hammacher Schlemmer via CrunchGear]

* To be fair, maybe Hammacher Schlemmer just failed to mention the “make coffee” command. Even if so, the fact that you need to press a button to issue the order sort of negates the convenience.

Ecotones Adapts to Outside Sounds to Lull You to Sleep

Gizmodo US Edition — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 06:45:00 +0000

Traditional sound machines tend to use white noise or repetitive nature sounds to compete with the cacophony of the outside, but that only works to a certain extent. Ecotones, by Silicon Valley start up ASTI, is hoping to one-up them by actually being able to adapt to the user’s environment. You can choose from 12 different SoundStories–including settings, I bet, like ocean or rainforest–that play at 18-bit quality, better than standard CDs. Audio backgrounds react to cues in the listening space and combine them with hundreds of “natural” sounds to make a soundscape that’s supposedly a lot more relaxing. It’s available through Hammacher Schlemmer for $US299. Wow, anything for a good night’s rest, I guess? [Hammacher]

Five Axis Mechanical Core Muscle Trainer Is Wild Bull Riding Fun for the Older Sect

Jack Loftus — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 17:30:00 +0000

It turns out the wet t-shirt-wearing girls riding those mechanical bulls at the local bar were actually exercising. No lie, as you can see with this Five Axis Core Muscle Trainer, ripped from the everlasting kitsch-ridden pages of Hammacher Schlemmer. The saddle tilts left and right, up and down, and throws in a few twists for good measure. All the while the motions target your “core muscles,” which are worked as your body attempts to regain equilibrium. The whole idea of a rocking, jocking mechanical exercise bull for the home actually sounds kind of exciting, until you realise this piece of equipment was designed with the senior bull rider in mind. And yes, those are stirrups.

The core muscle trainer is designed for low impact exercises, but does include “moderate” and “advanced” programs for when you want to hold onto the handle for dear life. The nine speeds (think Sybian) and seven programs are controlled via an LCD screen on the pommels. Just plop down US$1,800, and this bucking grandma machine is yours, today! P.S. — This thing is out there, but it’s still infinitely less sad than what Jesus dug up in May. [Hammacher Schlemmer]

Concept Toast-Dropping Toaster is Real After All: The Trapdoor Toaster

Kit Eaton — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:30:00 +0000

We gave the Nahamer T450 toaster concept design a big thumbs-up for its simplicity… but it turns out that there’s actually a real toast-dropping versus toast-popping machine. The Trapdoor Toaster does exactly what it sounds like it does. It’s a 1400W device, with auto-adjusting guide racks so it can do toast, bagels or pop-tart-style food. You simply slide in your food, and when it’s done it slips out the bottom, and elegantly onto your plate. Out now for US$79.95. [Hammacher Schlemmer]

You Can Finally Pogo Stick In a Pool Thanks to Hammacher Schlemmer

Gizmodo US Edition — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 20:00:00 +0000

The swimming pool was really the only place left on Earth where extreme pogo stick users couldn’t rip mad tricks. Until now. “The Only Underwater Pogo Stick” was designed for use in the pool, and allows you to easily “perform a variety of waterborne stunts as you bounce off walls or bottoms.” Instead of a traditional spring (which is for landlubbing amateurs), a rigid ball filled with water fits into the footrest, and lets you bounce about in shallow water or “bound powerfully” in the deep end. Works with in-ground pools only for US$60. [Hammacher Schlemmer]

Cordless Propane Mosquito Trap Gives You Al Fresco Bug Jerky

Gizmodo US Edition — Wed, 21 May 2008 10:30:00 +0000

Effective over up to an acre of land, this battery-powered garden gadget allows you to commit mass mosquito-cide using a tank of propane. Silent and odourless, the trap emits octenol (something that mozzies find sexy, aspazzarently) to lure the beasties close to the machine. Once there, a vacuum gathers them into the “removable catch basin”, or death pan, as I like to call it, where they are dehydrated, giving you the potential to serve mosquito, midge, black-fly and sand-fly biltong at your barbecues. Cost is US$500, and the mosquito trap will run for up to three weeks on a 9kg propane tank. [Hammacher Schlemmer]

Photograph-to-Digital-Picture Converter Sounds A Lot Like “Scanner”

Benny Goldman — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 19:30:00 +0000

Goofy gadget masters Hammacher Schlemmer are back at it again with a Photograph-to-Digital-Picture Converter that takes your old paper snapshots, and well, digitises them. Now we know what you’re thinking—isn’t this just a scanner with a more complicated name?—and at first, I was inclined to agree. But digging deeper I found that this may not be a bad specialty box for US$150.

It’s no badass like the 7200dpi Plustek OpticFilm 7300, but it costs US$100 less and goes beyond most standard scanners, including a 5-megapixel CMOS sensor, 1800dpi resolution and 10-bit colour. It doesn’t look like it’s got a sheet feeder; instead it has a tray specifically suited to 3×5, 4×6 and 5×7s. Drop ‘em in, press a button, and presto, it magically becomes a picture on your computer screen—if you have Windows, that is. [Hammacher]

Astronomer’s Watch Tells Best Time to Watch the Skies

Gizmodo US Edition — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:30:25 +0000

At first glance this watch looks pretty ordinary, until you notice the lack of minute hands and the 24-hour dial around the edge. It’s actually designed to help amateur astronomers work out the best conditions for sky-watching, so it tracks sunset and sunrise, moon phase and moonrise/set times. All you have to do is tap in your location from one of its 583 pre-programmed cities, and its combination of hands and detailed LCD displays will tell you all you need to know. If only it could predict the cloud-cover conditions, eh? You’re going to have to really enjoy astronomy if you want to buy it, though: it’s US$495.95 from Hammacher Schlemmer. [OhGizmo]

Motorised Monocycle Eliminates Need for Pedals, Humility

Gizmodo US Edition — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 16:40:00 +0000

This monocycle from rich man’s playground catalogue Hammacher Schlemmer is a few phalluses short of a South Park episode, but I think even Mrs. Garrison would appreciate the fact that this 1869 throwback is now available at retail for a modest US$12,999.95. And the best part? The wealthy sops whipping around the Hamptons on this thing won’t even have to pedal, as this monocycle boasts a 31cc 1 1/2 horsepower engine. The lawnmower-esque four-stroke maxes out at modest 40kph but Hammacher promises its monocycle can still comfortably navigate on anything from pavement to grass to the backs of the common man. [Hammacher Schlemmer product page]